The Premier League signings are steadily rolling in, so our January Transfer Analysis will delve into the prospects of all the major transfers. It’s imperative that you know who the new signings are ahead of the upcoming Fantasy EPL waiver runs, and what kind of impact they could have on the Premier League!
This article will be updated as new players come in.
The Premier League January Transfers covered here occurred between January 19th and January 31st.
Premier League January Transfer Analysis 22/23
We outline each Premier League new signing individually, providing our views on how they will perform this season and a star rating is given based on their upcoming prospects! We use a five-star rating model to rank the new signings; use these hints and tips to help kick start your Draft Premier League season!
We’ve ranked the prospects based on a star rating, from 1 to 5:
⭐️ = Steer clear
⭐️⭐️ = Wait and see
⭐️⭐️⭐️ = Could be worth a punt
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ = Great prospect
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ = The Premier League signing you’ve been waiting for!
Pedro Porro
Position: Right wing-back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Tottenham
Signed From: Sporting
Prospects: Conte gets his desired right wing back finally. Porro is a super attacking, little defending 23 year old Portuguese defender. He scored 6 and assisted 9 in 31 starts in Portugal over the last season and a half and averaged 17.8 fantasy points and 11.7 ghost pts per 90. He was, however, on penalties and most set pieces (corners and free kicks). In 5 starts in the Champions league (tougher matchups), he scored merely 6.9 gpts per 90. 6G, 9A in 31 GS in Portugal (3 pens, lots of corners, free kicks). Stylistically he's a big time dribbler and chance creator, but poor in the air and in duals. Meanwhile, at Spurs, Matt Doherty has been shipped off (for free) to Atletico, Djed Spence to Rennes, and Emerson Royal has never gained the complete trust of Conte. Thus, Porro should be fast tracked to the starting role with license to attack. He will likely lose his set pieces though (penalties to Kane, righty sets to Son). Still, he should have very good open-play ghost & return scoring. For a wing back in the Spurs system, he should have loads of upside. Expect a better, more consistent version of Doherty. For his historical scoring, future potential upside, and large opportunity size, he's our #1 pick for recent transfer additions.
Verdict: Worth a number one waiver claim or up to 60% FAB. Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Tete
Position: Right Winger (Forward in Fantrax)
Team: Leicester City
Signed From: Lyon
Prospects: Leicester finally get their permanent right winger. After failed stints of Perez, Albrighton, and many more, the 22 year old, left-footed Tete comes from a stint in France, where he put up 13.9 fpts and 7.8 gpts per 90 with 8 goals and 7 assists in 26 games. He did take some lefty corners there (which he may not get again), but he also put up good dribbling and defensive stats. He'll have plenty of opportunity for minutes and a starting role, with little competition under Brendan Rodgers. Leicester haven't been kind to wingers historically with Lookman and others failing to find any consistency, even fantasy-wise. But their attack should get better with Maddison and KDH (and Soumare and Ndidi) back healthy soon, plus an improved defensive corps (Kristiansen, Souttar, even Ricardo). Like Ouattara below, Tete should be able to provide a better floor than most other forwards due to his well-rounded stat sheet. Compared to his teammate Harvey Barnes, we'd expect a better floor (due to def. and dribbling) and consistency, but a worse ceiling and less minutes.
Verdict: We think 20% of remaining FAB or a 2nd to 4th waiver is reasonable.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Dango Ouattara
Position: Winger (Forward in Fantrax)
Team: Bournemouth
Signed From: Lorient
Prospects: Ouattara is a good player coming into a bad team. He really has no business joining Bournemouth as a young player having a good season in France, but there's advantages to the Cherries' new owner, Bill Foley, part-owning Lorient as well. Ouattara is a 20 year old winger who's quite good on both sides of ball. He's a fast, volume dribbler, who's also great defensively (putting up impressive stats for tackles, interceptions, and aerials won). He averaged 12.9 fpts and 8.8 gpts per 90 in Ligue 1, however Lorient do have a much better attack than Bournemouth. Ouattara is likely to start very often, and in fact he did (and assisted) right away in his first game with the Cherries. Dango tends to fill out the stat sheet, and that usually bodes well for fantasy, even on an inconsistent, and often poor side. Expect a good floor (rare for a forward) and an infrequently hit ceiling.
Verdict: His BOU team tag should get you him at a discount. His assist may raise his price though. We think 15-20% of FAB or a 2nd to 4th waiver is reasonable.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Kamaldeen Sulemana
Position: Winger (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Southampton
Signed From: Rennes
Prospects: Sulemana averaged 14.8 fpts and 10.9 gpts per 90 for Rennes in Ligue 1 this season and last. He put up nearly 4 successful dribbles completed per 90 (in the 98th percentile of all attackers in the top 5 leagues). He also added in lots of tackles, interceptions, aerials, shots, and key passes. These are fantastic ghost point numbers and even if Southampton's attack isn't amazing, should be plenty good, even with a level shift downward in the Prem, if Sulemana starts and plays 90s. Therein lies his downside though. Sulemana has only started twice, with 12 sub apps for Rennes this season, and only 11 times last season. He did start 29 in Denmark in the 20-21' season. Some of his absences have been due to injuries (back problems caused him to miss 13 games last season and knee and ankle 5 this season), but he's also only 20 years old and hasn't played a ton of senior, top-level football. Therefore, its likely unreasonable for him to start a ton of games this season. Jones has chopped and changed his squad quite a bit, altering formations and personnel. Southampton even signed another player, Orsic, in Sulemana's preferred position, left wing, this window. So, when he plays, he should have a very nice floor and decent upside, but it may take some time for him to find his chances, and he may not be a consistent starter for a while.
Verdict: His scoring upside if he does find his way into the XI is enough to consider 5-10% of remaining FAB or a 4th or later waiver.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Harry Souttar
Position: Centre back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Leicester City
Signed From: Stoke City
Prospects: Souttar is a 24 year old centre back coming from the Championship, but also a successful World Cup run with Australia. He scored a whopping 6 goals in 10 games for them in qualifying! But his goal-scoring isn't what will likely make him valuable as a fantasy asset; it's his noggin. You could be looking at your next Fantrax aerial beast. This past season and a half, Harry has won 4 aerials per 90 to go along with many clearances and tackles. He averaged 8 fpts and a whopping 8.8 gpts per 90. His fantasy valuable will likely come down to opportunity. Rodgers intentionally brought him in to fortify the back line, and he's generally expected to take the starting position from Amartey fairly quickly, alongside Wout Faes. However, even if he manages that, he'll have to contend with Johnny Evans upon his injury return in a couple weeks. The veteran Evans may not be so easy to fend off for the position, but if he does, he should score quite well in easy to medium matchups due to all those ghost points. Hopefully fellow new signing Kristiansen (a LB) and a returning Ricardo Pereira (in maybe a month) will further help shore up the defense.
Verdict: A poor upcoming schedule and uncertain starting prospects counter his expected quality scoring if starting. We'd go 0-5% of FAB or a late waiver.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Noni Madueke
Position: Right Winger (Forward in Fantrax)
Team: Chelsea
Signed From: PSV
Prospects: Madueke is a 20 year old left-footed right winger. He scored 11 goals and 7 assists in 23 90's across 3 seasons (20'-23') in the Eredivisie. He put up 11 fpts and 7 gpts per 90 in the Europa League (in 6 games). He's a very high volume dribbler and good shot creator. He's young and there's a very crowded attack at Chelsea but he could get minutes due to his ability to play on the right (and be a lefty). Still, Ziyech is still around, and Sterling can play there too. In addition, he's had a poor injury history so he could be used cautiously, particularly as he adapts to the league. If he manages to hit the ground running, before Sterling is back fit, and Ziyech is maybe reintegrated, perhaps he could win himself some short to medium term opportunities... But as I said for Mudryk previously, we must acknowledge the other side of the coin. He's a young player, who has started 18 games at most in a single season, coming into a crowded attack. He could be eased in and treated as a player of the future. Still, stats when starting (both floor and ceiling), plus minutes up for grabs at RW in the short term, mean he's a good option to punt on. Otherwise, he'll be a premium streamer when he does start.
Verdict: 0-5% of FAB or late waiver.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Arnaut Danjuma
Position: Winger (Forward in Fantrax)
Team: Tottenham
Signed From: Villarreal
Prospects: Danjuma is an attacking depth signing for Spurs, and a good one at that. Stolen from Everton at the last moment, the former Bournemouth man has had an up and down career. He wasn't finding much play time at Villareal this season but did play well for them in the past. Over the lase last season and a half he averaged 12.6 fpts and 6.8 gpts per 90 with 10 goals and 3 assists in 23 games last season. He's a righty who prefers to play on the left wing, but is flexible and can play RW and up top as well. He'll most likely backup Son for the most part but could compete for wing minutes with Kulusevski as well if he takes a poor run of form. Still, he's likely not a starter in the short to medium term, barring an injury and thus he's merely a high upside forward stash in a good offense.
Verdict: 0-5% of FAB or late waiver if you're in need of a forward high upside flyer or nervous Kulusevski manager.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Enzo Fernandez
Position: Centre Midfielder (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Chelsea
Signed From: Benfica
Prospects: The big money signing of the window finally got done. But don't be as desperate for Enzo as Boehly and co were. He's a deep-sitting central midfielder who's very good at passing and still growing elsewhere. He put up 10 fpts and 7 gpts per 90 in Portugal and 1 goal and 5 assists in 17 games. But in the Champions League he only scored 7 fpts and 5 gpts per 90. Even for those solid Portuguese numbers, he took a lot of free kicks and a few corners, which he's less likely to get at Chelsea. His and the typical Chelsea CM profile don’t generally scream very fantasy friendly. His path to fantasy viability will be mostly through key passes and tackles. I’d expect Kova-esque fantasy numbers, popping up with an assist every now and then but otherwise a decent floor and infrequent ceiling. You could do worse for a solid mid though, and maybe you luck into some set pieces.
Verdict: 0-5% of FAB or late waiver.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Marcel Sabitzer
Position: Midfielder (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Man Utd
Signed From: Bayern
Prospects: Sabitzer has had a tumultuous time in Germany with some wonderful seasons at Leipzig followed by some poor ones at Bayern. On his day, he's a wonderful center mid who works hard and contributes well on both sides of the ball as a great shooter, passer, and tackler. But in his last 15 starts (and 42 apps) across the last season and a half for Bayern, he's only averaged 7.7 fpts and 5.9 gpts per 90. Whether it's his deeper lying positioning or the various other creators around him, he hasn't found his footing, nor his scoring there. At Leipzig, where he often took set pieces and played further forward and out wide he averaged around 12 fpts and 9 gpts per 90. Which version of Sabitzer United get, remains to be seen but his spot will likely be where Eriksen used to play prior to his bad injury. Marcel will need to compete with an in-form Fred for the roll and I could see rotation for the short to medium term. Longer term, its generally expected he'll make the spot in the XI his own, but there's a wide array of outcomes. In the unlikely event that he gets set pieces (instead of Bruno Fernandes and/or Luke Shaw) he could offer a similar floor and ceiling to Eriksen, but more than likely he'll be be a more inconsistent version, with a weaker floor like Fred.
Verdict: 0-5% of FAB or late waiver.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Paul Onuachu
Position: Centre Forward (Forward in Fantrax)
Team: Southampton
Signed From: Genk
Prospects: “He’s a handful to play against, has got a tremendous record throughout his career and he’s also someone who brings great experience with him, so he’ll be a really positive addition to the squad.” said manager, Jones on him. It’s hard to predict the 6-7' target man's fantasy prospects, with a 28 year old jumping up league tiers quite far. Yes he scored a ton of goals in Belgium, 64 in 81 games over 3 seasons. Yes, Southampton were looking for a striker desperately. Yes, they signed some other good pieces and their attack looks better with JWP more advanced and Lavia back in behind him. Onuachu should eventually be a starter, either taking Adams's spot or playing alongside him (I’d bet on the former). Ghost points look okay in limited European time (via aerials, dribbles, shots, key passes). But I think Southampton are the issue. They're in a relegation dog fight, their defense is still struggling, and Jones is chopping and changing their line-up. I think he’ll take some time to break into the XI, but when he does he should be an upgrade fantasy-wise on Adams, with more consistency, a better floor, and similar, infrequent upside.
Verdict: 0-5% of FAB or late waiver, could end a bargain.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Hamed Traore
Position: Attacking midfielder (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Bournemouth
Signed From: Sassuolo
Prospects: Traore averaged an impressive 12.4 fpts and 8.8 gpts per 90 with 7 goals and 5 assists in 27 starts (42 apps) in Italy over the last season and a half. During that time, he was one of Sassuolo's primary set piece takers and a quarter or so of his fantasy points came from there. This year, Sassuolo are worse than last and Traore is only scoring 9.6 and 6.9. The 22 year old, Empoli youth product, is a good dribbler, hard-working tackler, and not afraid to shoot. Into the comparably poor Bournemouth side he comes. Likely to start somewhere in the side, Traore can play many positions, including left wing or in the 10 role. With Tavernier still out, he may be tasked with creativity in the side, but will be helped by fellow new signings Ouattara and Semenyo. Just how fantasy viable he is likely comes down to what percentage of set pieces he takes and whether the BOU offense improves. I'd bet mores on the former than the latter so think he'll be Tavernier-esque: useful in decent matchups, not so much in worse ones. Hopefully a good floor.
Verdict: Keep an eye on or take a free punt on in deeper leagues.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️1/2
Weston McKennie
Position: Midfielder (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Leeds
Signed From: Juventus
Prospects: Joining his American compatriots, McKennie comes into a crowded Leeds attack and midfield. McKennie is traditionally an offensive-minded central mid who's more of an 8 than a 10, more of a carrier and dribbler than creator, and has a good knack for getting into good goal-scoring positions. American fans will remember him from his World Cup endeavors playing alongside new Leeds teammate Adams and Yunas Musah. Where he fits in at Leeds is the key for fantasy opportunity. He played all over at Juve, including out wide, further forward, and further back, but at Leeds he's likely to play as part of the 3 man midfield, likely in a 4-3-3 as one of the two 8's flanking Adams. Because he's not super defensive-minded, I think he'll likely need to play with both Roca and Adams, meaning he may be competing directly with Aaronson for that last spot in the mid. Aaronson can also push out wide, but there's plenty of competition there too (Sinisterra, Gnonto, Summerville, Harrison, etc.). Aaronson has been in poor form but Marsch has seemed reluctant to drop him, so whether McKennie cracks the lineup sooner or later is very up in the air. Even if he does, he only scored 8.2 fpts and 6.3 gpts per 90 at Juve, so you're looking at a middle of the road centre mid.
Verdict: Consider picking up for free for DGW chances.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️1/2
Antonio Semenyo
Position: Forward (Forward in Fantrax)
Team: Bournemouth
Signed From: Bristol City
Prospects: Bournemouth sign a young, promising striker to help tide them over while Solanke is out. Putting up 12.4 fpts and 6.8 gpts per 90 with 14 goals and 14 assists in 25 starts (54 apps) in the Championship, Semenyo is more than just a scorer, he's a good creator and also works hard defensively. But the Bournemouth striker position is not a very rewarding position fantasy wise and I'd expect those ghost points and goals to dry up, even with reinforcements around him. On top of that, when Solanke returns to fitness I'd expect he gets his job back, so Semenyo might not get a ton of starts rest of season anyways. Exciting one for the future, might get a couple fantasy streams.
Verdict: Wait and see. If you're desperate for a starting forward he could be your guy for free.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️
Keylor Navas
Position: Goalkeeper (Goalkeeper in Fantrax)
Team: Nottingham Forest
Signed From: Paris SG
Prospects: He has won it all at Real Madrid and PSG, but also been a backup for long periods of his career. He will come in to Forest and take the starting GK spot right away and possibly hold it even when Henderson is bac. Similar to Henderson, he should get a bunch of saves, so he'll be streamable as a low floor, high ceiling option.
Verdict: Could be a great streamer, or even more if he finds a purple patch
Rating: ⭐️⭐️1/2
Victor Kristiansen
Position: Centre back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Leicester
Signed From: Copenhagen
Prospects: Brought in to compete with Luke Thomas at LB, Kristiansen is a decent ghost point scoring defender (6.7 gpts per 90 for Copenhagen in the Champions League). If he takes the spot in the XI he'll be decent in good matchups, but likely still below replacement level overall. With Ricardo Pereira also returning to fitness, Castagne could shift back to LB and minutes could dry up.
Verdict: Stream when the schedule is good.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️
Sasa Lukic
Position: Midfielder (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Fulham
Signed From: Torino
Prospects: Could compete for the starting 8 role with Harrison Reed but low ghost point scoring, no upside
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Joao Gomes
Position: Centre Midfielder (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Wolves
Signed From: Flamengo
Prospects: Brazilian midfielder is unlikely to feature a ton this season. Even if he does, he's a defensive-oriented centre mid who won't score super well. Give it a couple years.
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Felipe
Position: Centre back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Nottingham Forest
Signed From: Atletico Madrid
Prospects: Even if he starts, his 7.2 ghost points per 90 will not withstand the goals Forest concede.
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Yasin Ayari
Position: Centre Midfielder (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Brighton
Signed From: AIK
Prospects: Comes in as a backup and one for the future. You never know with Brighton players, but I'd wait until next season at least.
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️⭐
Naouirou Ahamada
Position: Midfielder (Midfielder in Fantrax)
Team: Crystal Palace
Signed From: Stuttgart
Prospects: Comes in as a rotation option in the 6 position (for Schlupp/Hughes). But even if he was a starter, we probably wouldn't be interested (6.2 fpts and 4.4 gpts per 90 in the Bundesliga). I'd wager he has more vowels in his first name than fantasy points per start at end of season.
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Matias Vina
Position: Left back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Bournemouth
Signed From: Roma
Prospects: Likely a starter, but his 7.4 ghost points per 90 will not withstand the goals Bournemouth concede.
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Ilia Zabarnyi
Position: Centre back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Bournemouth
Signed From: Dynamo Kyiv
Prospects: Poor defense. Poor ghost point scoring. Avoid.
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Diogo Monteiro
Position: Centre back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Leeds
Signed From: Servette
Prospects: Only 18 years old, he is very likely a backup and signing for the future.
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window. Rating: ⭐️
Jakub Kiwior
Position: Centre Back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Arsenal
Signed From: Spezia
Prospects: Young Polish backup CB, unlikely to feature one for the future or a Gabriel injury.
Verdict: Not likely worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Malo Gusto
Position: Right back (Defender in Fantrax)
Team: Chelsea
Signed From: Lyon
Prospects: Gone back to Lyon on loan.
Verdict: Not worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Daniel Bentley
Position: Goalkeeper (Goalkeeper in Fantrax)
Team: Wolves
Signed From: Bristol City
Prospects: A backup GK.
Verdict: Not worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
Darren Randolph
Position: Goalkeeper (Goalkeeper in Fantrax)
Team: Bournemouth
Signed From: West Ham
Prospects: A backup GK.
Verdict: Not worth a waiver or bid this window.
Rating: ⭐️
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