10 Transfers We’re Excited About in FM22

While FM22’s release is still a few weeks away, we’re sure that you’re already plotting your first saves. You know the players you’re looking forward to using, or signing, and have some idea of the tactics you’re planning to implement. 

As a team, we love poring over the goings on of the summer transfer window, assessing both the big, headline moves and those under-the-radar deals that could eventually prove to be real hit signings. Here are 10 of our favourite recent transfers; which of these players are you most excited to manage in FM22?

Ilaix Moriba to RB Leipzig

Joining Lionel Messi through the exit doors of Spain’s second largest city was hugely popular midfield wonderkid Ilaix Moriba. The Guinean-born teenager is someone FM fans have known about for a long time and we were delighted to see him break through into the professional ranks last season. 

A powerful, dynamic player who is still maturing and developing, he’s swapped the bright lights of Barcelona for the Bundesliga and RB Leipzig, a club with a distinct recruitment model and proven track record of developing young talent. Moriba is in safe hands and he wasn’t RB Leipzig’s only interesting capture of the summer, with Brian Brobbey and Andre Silva coming in to bolster their attacking arsenal. 

Rafael Santos Borré to Eintracht Frankfurt

The aforementioned Silva scored 28 times in Bundesliga action for Eintracht last season as they secured a return to European competition. Replacing him was always going to be a difficult task but in Colombian forward Rafael Santos Borré, we think they’ve done a pretty fine job.

Blessed with great footwork and natural finishing ability, Santos Borré has all the tools to light up the Bundesliga and replicate the prolific, title-winning form he demonstrated in South America. And the goalscoring feats he’s registered for so many in previous editions of Football Manager.

Donyell Malen to Borussia Dortmund

Last season’s third-placed finishers Borussia Dortmund now have a new manager in tow and if the opening weeks of the season are anything to go by, they promise to be one of the best sides to watch across Europe.

Their most notable new addition for this campaign is Dutch forward Donyell Malen. Capable of playing out wide and through the middle, Malen’s pace and directness make him an exciting player to watch. 

We’re off to start plotting a way to get him and Erling Haaland firing on all cylinders in FM22…

Calvin Stengs to OGC Nice and Myron Boadu to AS Monaco

Ok, we’ve cheated a bit here and included two players but their narratives were fairly similar. In our opinion that counts and we won’t hear any arguments otherwise. It also means you all get two players for the price of one, so what’s not to like?

Malen’s fellow Dutch internationals Calvin Stengs and Myron Boadu were key cogs in an exuberant AZ Alkmaar side last year but they’ve both secured moves to warmer climes in Ligue 1 Uber Eats. Stengs and Boadu are both exciting attacking talents with bags full of promise; Stengs is most natural sitting just behind the striker(s), while Boadu is a clinical, out-and-out striker.

AS Monaco and OGC Nice figure to be two of the three sides best-placed to take the fight to PSG's superstar squad this season – getting the most from their new Dutch arrivals will be crucial to their success. 

Lukas Podolski to Gornik Zabrze

You can call us sentimental, but we’re suckers for a good homecoming story. 

German striker Lukas Podolski has always been passionate about his Polish roots and close to a decade ago indicated his desire to play for boyhood club Gornik Zabrze before hanging up his boots. He’s now realised that dream, joining the Ekstraklasa outfit after a spell in Turkey.

At 36, he might not be as quick as he once was but he still offers pedigree, a wealth of international experience and an absolute rocket of a left foot. The 14-time national champions will be hoping their newest addition is able to strike gold and fire them up the table. To be honest, we think it’d be lovely if he could. 

Saido Berahino to Sheffield Wednesday

Homecoming stories are second only to great tales of redemption in the pantheon of things that makes us feel all fuzzy inside. And a smashing third kit. Everyone loves a good third kit.

When Burundi international Berahino got his big breakthrough at West Bromwich Albion in 2010, many of football’s most knowledgeable people tipped him for a bright future. Sadly, it never really worked out that way and the forward has spent the last two years playing in Belgium.

Now 28, Berahino should be entering the peak of his powers and he’s got another chance to prove himself to English fans at Sheffield Wednesday. The Owls were relegated to Sky Bet League One last season, in no small part due to the points deduction they found themselves battling against. However, they look well-equipped to secure an immediate return to the second tier under the watchful eye of Darren Moore, a respected coach who has recruited very well. Moore was one of those who helped Berahino enter the spotlight 11 years ago; could be the key to getting the best performances yet from the striker?

Olivier Ntcham to Swansea City

Another new face in the EFL with a point to prove this season is French midfielder Olivier Ntcham. 
The 25-year-old was a central figure in his first three seasons with Celtic but a series of issues in the last campaign derailed his momentum and saw him clubless when the transfer window opened. 

The Swans, Sky Bet Championship play-off finalists last season, snapped him up and he’s settled quickly, scoring in just his third appearance. We expect Ntcham to produce the sort of form that drew him so many admirers while he was strutting his stuff in Scotland. 

Tammy Abraham to AS Roma

From one player making their debut in the English league system to one leaving its confines for the first time in the shape of striker Tammy Abraham.

The rangy, six-foot-three front man has shown his ability to lead the line in patches throughout his fledgling career but with playing time in London restricted, he bet on himself and took his chance abroad, moving to AS Roma in one of the summer’s most interesting deals. 

The Giallorossi are one of the most interesting sides to watch in Italy this season. One of the Italian clubs that invested the most during the summer, they’ve managed to craft a playing squad that also includes a number of the Azzurri’s successful summer stars. 

In Roma’s first few games, Abraham has been asked to perform a different role to anything we’ve seen from him before. Rather than coming deeper and looking to help link the play, the capital club are looking for him to hang off the shoulder of the last defender and run the channels. He’s taken to it well though, and we can see his gamble paying off with a hatful of goals and assists come the season’s end. 

Denzel Dumfries to Inter Milan

Also now playing in the Italian top flight for the first time is rampaging Dutch full-back Denzel Dumfries.

The 25-year-old former PSV Eindhoven man showed his class at both ends of the pitch during the summer’s continental action and unsurprisingly wasn’t short of suitors when his national team commitment’s came to an end.

He opted for the reigning Italian champions; a busy off-season at the San Siro means that he’s already a firm fixture in their starting XI. We can’t wait to see what heights he reaches now. 

We hope you’re as excited about these moves as we are. Where will you be starting your managerial journey in FM22? Let us know on social media.