Players who Bounced Back in their Second Premier League Season

Premier League can be quite hard for players to adjust to especially on the physical side of things. Many players often struggle in their first season especially with form and injuries that can result in a lot less game time. The latest example of this is Chelsea’s striker, Timo Werner, who struggled to score goals that were expected of him while also missing shocking open goal opportunities. However, there are many players who have bounced back in their second Premier League season to impress their critics. Here is a list of such great players:

João Cancelo (Manchester City)

João Cancelo had a terrific 2020/21 season as Manchester City won the Premier League title and the Carabao cup, while also reaching the Champions League final. The full-back perfectly fit Guardiola’s system often stepping into the midfield and confusing oppositions especially, with his intricate passing and shooting skills.

However, it took Cancelo some time to adjust to the Premier League in his first season, with just 3 blocked shots all season. When Manchester City paid $27.4 million + Danilo to Juventus for the full-back, many critics questioned the move especially after his less than stellar performances in the first season. However, the Portuguese defender has proven all his critics wrong with exceptional performances.

Patrice Evra (Manchester United)

Evra unquestionably became one of Sir Alex Ferguson's finest signings when Manchester United paid £5.5m to recruit him from AS Monaco in 2006. During the 2007/08 season, Evra deservedly established himself as Ferguson's first-choice left-back, ahead of Gabriel Heinze, John O'Shea and Silvestre. Even outlasted the manager, eventually departing for Serie A behemoths Juventus.

However, this wasn’t always the case as his debut came in a traumatising defeat in the Manchester Derby as Manchester City defeated Manchester United 3-1. He’d gone from playing in front of home crowds of 7,000 to around 76,000, and his form was so disappointing that he was dropped ahead of a fixture with Liverpool and missed out on the 2006 World Cup. 

Michael Essien (Chelsea)

Essien became Chelsea's club-record signing when he joined them from Lyon in 2005 for £24.4m. However, the form that made him one of the world's finest midfielders in the late 2000s wasn't displayed during at least his first 12 months at Stamford Bridge.

To accommodate Essien, Mourinho dropped the fluid Eidur Gudjohnsen from a robust team. The quality of Chelsea's football and the results also suffered when, with Frank Lampard and Claude Makelele still at their peak, there was little need for another box-to-box midfielder. However, the Ghanian impressed everyone with his stellar performances next season.

Javier Mascherano (West Ham/Liverpool)

Following the arrivals Javier Mascherano and Carlos Tevez, West Ham lost eight games and drew one of their first nine fixtures. The Argentine became an elite player, but in London the Argentine made just seven appearances when Nigel Reo-Coker and Hayden Mullins were preferred. The poor form and low game time resulted in a move to Liverpool the very next season.

Alongside Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso, his form improved spectacularly. He gradually became a significant figure at Anfield, but for those first few months his best football came in the Champions League. Thereafter, until his 2010 transfer to Barcelona, he was the finest defensive midfielder in England.

 

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