Here we have compiled a list of 10 transfers that you may have missed due to the excitement and hype around Euro 2020 with this summers European Championship providing all of the headlines having seen the likes of France and the Netherlands get knocked out by Switzerland and the Czech Republic, as well as England beating Germany on Tuesday night.
Former Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool centre-back Steven Caulker comes first on this list having re-built his career away from England at the likes of Dundee in 2018, before being picked up by Turkish Super Lig outfit Alanyaspor in January 2019 where following impressive defensive displays over his 71 appearances in the league for the Turkish club, he has earned himself a move to the might of Fenerbahce where he’ll play alongside the likes of Mesut Ozil.
Highly rated Republic of Ireland youngster Nathan Collins made the switch from Stoke City to Burnley on 24th June, following a successful two-year spell in the Potters first-team setup which saw the Leixlip born defender make 39 league appearances.
The 20-year-old joined the Clarets for an undisclosed fee which is rumoured to be in the region of £12m plus further add ons, which prompted Michael O’Neill’s side to quickly announce the signature of England Under 21 international Ben Wilmot from Watford as his replacement for an undisclosed fee.
Brighton’s Dutch midfield maestro Davy Propper announced on 23rd June that he was to make a return to Eredivisie outfit PSV Eindhoven following four years at the Amex Stadium. The 29-year-old had previously spent two seasons at PSV between 2015 and 2017 where he managed to win the league title in 2015/16 as well as the Johan Cruyff shield in both seasons at the Philips Stadium.
Aston Villa defender Bjorn Engels has recently returned to Belgium to play for Royal Antwerp in the Belgian Pro League following two relatively miserable years at Villa Park for the 26-year-old, having only played 17 league matches following the emergence of the Ezri Konsa and Tyrone Mings centre-back pairing which has proved so successful for Dean Smith’s side in the last 18 months.
Villa signed Engels from Ligue 1 outfit Stade Reims in 2019 for €8m and this will be the first time that the 26-year-old has played in his homeland since he left Club Brugge in 2017 following a five year spell which saw him win the Belgian Cup in 2015, Belgian Pro League in 2015/16 as well as the Belgian Super Cup.
Another Premier League centre-back that has left England to return to Europe is Southampton’s Wesley Hoedt. The Dutchman hasn’t played a Premier League game for the Saints since the 2018/19 campaign, having been loaned out to the likes of Celta Vigo, Royal Antwerp and Lazio in the last two and a half seasons.
Both Celta Vigo and former club Lazio turned down the options to buy Hoedt at the end of the Dutchman’s loan spells as the Saints were looking to recoup some of the £15m fee they paid for the 27-year-old defender from the Italian club. On 17th June it was announced that Hoedt was to make a return to Belgium to play for Anderlecht.
On 23rd June Angus Gunn became the latest player to depart from St Marys’, leaving Southampton for Norwich City.
25-year-old shot-stopper Gunn is well recognised by Canaries fans having played for Norwich on loan in the 2017/18 campaign, playing all 46 of their Championship games that season, earning himself a move to Premier League Southampton, making 22 league appearances across three seasons. As well as this, Gunn’s dad, Bryan, is also a club legend at Carrow Road having played 390 league matches for the Canaries.
Newly promoted Watford announced the signature of Nigeria international striker Emmanuel Dennis from Belgian Pro League outfit Club Brugge on 23rd June. The 23-year-old made a combined total of 18 league appearances for Brugge and Bundesliga outfit FC Koln last season, making three assists, scoring no goals.
Watford will be hoping that the Nigerian can find consistency at Vicarage Road having previously seen him score a brace in a 2-2 draw against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in the Champions League on 1st October 2019.
Wolverhampton Wanderers announced the signing of promising Colombian centre-back Yerson Mosquera on 17th June which was perhaps overshadowed by Aston Villa announcing Ashley Young’s return to Villa Park from Inter Milan.
The 20-year-old Colombian has drawn similarities to that of Everton’s Yerry Mina due to his strong and commanding presence in the penalty area and signed from Atletico Nacional for a fee just shy of £5m on a five-year contract at Molineux.
Next up on this list of transfers that you may have missed during the Euros is the departure of Leicester City legend Christian Fuchs from the King Power Stadium following the expiration of his contract at the end of the 2020/21 campaign.
The 35-year-old Austrian who has 78 caps for his national side joined Leicester in the summer of 2015 when Claudio Ranieri was the Foxes manager and was part of their famous Premier League winning team in his first season in England. Following his six-year spell at Leicester amassing 152 appearances across all competitions, Fuchs joined MLS expansion side Charlotte FC at the end of his contract.
The final player on this list is former Tottenham Hotspur left-back Danny Rose. The 30-year-old left Spurs following 14 years at the Lilywhites having fallen out of favour at the club following the turbulent tenure of Jose Mourinho.
Rose who is a former England international didn’t play a single minute for Tottenham last season due to his relationship with Mourinho as the Portuguese manager didn’t register him for any league or cup squads meaning that he was ineligible to play any competitive games.
On 16th June Watford announced the signing of the highly thought of left-back who was part of the England team that made it to the World Cup Semi-final in 2018, as well as playing for Spurs in the Champions League final a year later, bringing an end to 14 years at the club where he made 214 appearances.