Our 10 favourite signings of the summer so far
With the window now officially open, here's the business we like the most...
Happy Summer Transfer Window to all who celebrate, tolerate or endure it! Tomorrow, and every subsequent Friday until the window closes, we will be sending out a Done Deals bulletin listing every single transfer that gets completed in the EFL, so that we all have a living, breathing record of the 2026 EFL Summer Window.
For now, read about the transfers we like most so far!
1. Daniel Peretz (GK, reported £6m), Cyle Larin (ST, reported £3.4m) ➡️ Southampton
Ali Maxwell
It’s exciting to predict good things from a signing before they’ve kicked a ball for their new club. But it’s all unknown, of course. All speculation.
How about some known knowns?
You may remember that, before the Spygate scandal, Southampton had been playing rather well. From the date that the winter transfer window closed, they picked up 40 points from 16 matches, three more than any other side. The methods of the manager, Tonda Eckert, certainly seemed to be working! But in bringing in Daniel Peretz and Cyle Larin on loan, they also made two of the most impactful January signings in the league. Both of them have signed on for more.
25 year-old goalkeeper Peretz was, quite frankly, sensational. He made dozens of top class saves, led the league for save % and ‘prevented’ eight goals above average based on the quality and placement of shots faced. Goalkeeper performance is perhaps the hardest to predict season-by-season, but I’ve seen enough of Peretz to make me confident that he’ll be among the league’s top keepers once again, and having the league’s best shot-stopper is the football equivalent of snagging a star on Mario Kart.
Cyle Larin arrived on deadline day, rusty from a lack of football at Feyenoord and replacing Wolves-bound Adam Armstrong, who was third top scorer in the league at the time. No matter, he scored within two minutes of his debut and grabbed eight in total at 0.84 per 90. He was an xG magnet in a good attacking team - 0.62 non penalty xG per 90 compared to Armstrong’s 0.56 - but finished his chances more clinically, a 17.1% conversion compared to 11.9% from similar average chance quality. He offered less in terms of clever link play and chance creation, but more in terms of physical presence and box presence. With Ross Stewart leaving the club on a free, Larin is currently Saints’ #1 striker heading into pre-season. Having looked the part from February onwards, he’ll likely be among the favourites for the Championship Golden Boot.
