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The 10 best signings of the season in Europe

28 May 2026 18:01 BST | 8 min read

Yan Diomande, Joao Pedro, Granit Xhaka

Cameron Smith

Cameron Smith | Digital Content Producer

Accredited sports journalist covering football since 2020

A plethora of high-profile deals were finalised during the 2025 summer transfer window and while some of those moves haven’t worked out, several of them have arguably exceeded expectations.

Players such as Alexander Isak and Alejandro Garnacho failed to live up to their lofty price tags during their debut seasons, but a host of stars deserve immense praise for their performances across the 2025-26 campaign.

Below, FootballTransfers runs through the 10 best signings of the season in Europe.

Luis Diaz - €70m (Liverpool to Bayern Munich)

Bayern Munich have long been looking for reliable wingers as successors to Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery, and they finally have found them in Michael Olise and Luis Diaz. Olise has been a revelation since joining in 2024 and with Diaz, they now have someone on the other flank who they can rely on consistently. Kingsley Coman, Leroy Sane, Serge Gnabry and others have auditioned at the Allianz Arena, but none of them could produce on a consistent basis.

Former Liverpool wideman Diaz, however, has been everything Bayern wanted, helping them create one of the best attacks in world football and smash the Bundesliga goals scored record.

The Colombia international ended his debut campaign at the Allianz Arena with 26 goals and 19 assists in 51 appearances across all competitions.

Joao Pedro - €63.7m (Brighton to Chelsea)

Chelsea endured a torrid 2025-26 season after a hugely disappointing summer transfer window, but the signing of Joao Pedro from Brighton & Hove Albion for €63.7m was at least a major success.

The Brazilian was often deployed as a second-striker at the AMEX Stadium, however he immediately became Chelsea’s preferred centre forward upon his arrival and he notched an impressive 20 goals in 50 games during his first full season at Stamford Bridge.

Pedro was one of very few positives for Chelsea this term and he is expected to play a pivotal role under new manager Xabi Alonso if the Blues are able to retain his services amid significant interest from Barcelona.

Joao Pedro, Chelsea

Rayan Cherki - €36.5m (Lyon to Man City)

Lyon were forced to sell Rayan Cherki for just €36.5m last summer, due to financial woes, and Man City won the race for his signature amid substantial competition from across Europe.

Pep Guardiola’s side turned to Cherki as they looked to replace club legend Kevin De Bruyne and after a slow start at the Etihad Stadium, the France international burst into life in 2026.

Only Bruno Fernandes registered more than his 12 Premier League assists this season, and Cherki was a breath of fresh air in an English top flight campaign dominated by set pieces.

Joan Garcia - €25m (Espanyol to Barcelona)

Joan Garcia was wanted by a host of Premier League clubs during his time at Espanyol, but Barcelona won the race for his signature last summer after finalising a deal to bring him to Camp Nou for €25m.

The Blaugrana were desperate to sign a reliable goalkeeper and Garcia has arguably surpassed expectations following a sublime debut season with Hansi Flick’s side.

The Spaniard, who will be at the 2026 World Cup with his nation, conceded just 21 goals in 30 La Liga games, while he kept 15 clean sheets as Barcelona secured back-to-back league titles for the first time since 2018-19.

Joan Garcia, Barcelona

Yan Diomande - €20m (Leganes to RB Leipzig)

Yan Diomande was playing U.S. high school soccer a couple of years ago, but this year he will make his Champions League debut. That could be for RB Leipzig where he has become one of their best ever wonderkids, even though he only joined in the summer of 2025.

Leipzig didn’t play in Europe this year, after a dreadful 2024-25 campaign, but they finished third in the Bundesliga this term, thanks in part to Diomande's magnificent attacking performances, with the Ivorian notching 20 goal contributions in the German top flight.

Whether he will still be at Leipzig when the 2026-27 UCL campaign kicks off is another story as his dazzling dribbling and clever playmaking is something all of Europe's elite clubs desire, and he could be one of the most expensive transfers of all time this summer.

Joaquin Panichelli - €17m (Alaves to Strasbourg)

In many ways, Strasbourg’s decision to sign Joaquin Panichelli saved their season. The burly Argentine striker was signed for €17m from Alaves with the intention of making him a back-up option for Emmanuel Emegha, but the Dutchman was struck down by persistent injury issues after agreeing a summer 2026 move to Chelsea.

Panichelli stepped up admirably and for a long period shouldered the weight of the Strasbourg attack both domestically and abroad. Unfortunately, the 23-year-old succumbed to a serious ACL injury himself just as he was fighting for a place in Argentina’s World Cup squad.

His debut campaign in France was cut short in April, but he still notched 20 goals across all competitions in 2025-26.

Joaquin Panichelli, Strasbourg

Granit Xhaka - €15m (Bayer Leverkusen to Sunderland)

Granit Xhaka’s €15m move from Bayer Leverkusen to newly-promoted Sunderland was a major surprise and it looked like one of the signings of the summer at the time.

10 months later, after a fantastic debut season at the Stadium of Light, it’s clear that Xhaka has been an outstanding addition to Regis Le Bris’ side, who will be playing Europa League football next year after finishing seventh in the Premier League table.

Xhaka was immediately named club captain following his arrival last summer and he has guided the club to heights they simply couldn’t have predicted after their play-off final win over Sheffield United.

Esteban Lepaul - €13.5m (Angers to Rennes)

One of the feel-good stories of French football over the course of the last season has been Esteban Lepaul’s continued explosion. He was playing lower-league football in January 2024 when Angers signed him for €200,000 from Epinal, and after his first full season in Ligue 1 he was snapped up by Rennes for €13.5m.

With 20 goals, he finished as Ligue 1’s top scorer and stood a serious chance of making France’s World Cup squad, threatening to cancel his wedding if he was called by Didier Deschamps.

The story didn’t quite have the fairy tale ending he would have wished, although his wife-to-be may not see it that way.

The consensus was that Florian Thauvin was washed up when he returned to Ligue 1 with Lens as a 32-year-old after spells in Mexico with Tigres and Italy with Udinese. How wrong he would prove his critics.

In the early part of the season, in particular, he was the fulcrum for Pierre Sage’s side as they went toe-to-toe with PSG for the Ligue 1 title. His form even earned him an unlikely recall to the France national team.

By the end of the season, he had 14 goals, 10 assists, a runners-up spot and, most meaningfully, Lens’ first Coupe de France crown. This was €6m well spent.

Donyell Malen - Loan (Aston Villa to Roma)

Donyell Malen is the only winter signing and the only loan signing on this list, but he is a worthy inclusion thanks to a stellar stint at Roma after arriving in January.

The Netherlands forward was permitted to leave Aston Villa on a temporary deal during the mid-season window and he played an instrumental role in Roma qualifying for the Champions League for the first time since 2018-19 thanks to a third-place finish in Serie A.

Malen scored a whopping 15 goals in just 20 games for Gian Piero Gasperini’s side and the transfer will be made permanent this summer for a bargain fee of just €25m thanks to a clause in his loan deal.