La Liga Transfer Report: Best of the Summer Sales

The Winter transfer window is opening up soon. The clubs are ready, willing and able to sell, but are the buyers ready? Have they made up their minds that their Summer signings are booming or busting? That's up to individual interpretation, but before you consider needs in the Winter market, you need to consider the effectiveness of your Summer signings. Which team and which player has benefited the most? All others need to reconsider.

What ever the result, to determine a player's worth over the Summer signings, you either have to look at the league leaders and see if any new signing has contributed the most at that level, or look at which player has made the most difference to teams at mid-table or recently promoted. You can talk about Nelson Valdez or David Trezeguet at Hercules CF and the impact they've made, beating Barça at the Camp Nou, but they are only 5 points out of relegation. Joseba Llorente has been a relevation in his return to Real Sociedad, and they've secured sixth place for now, but he's only as influential as the players who get him the ball, and 4 goals for a striker to date, is no great feat. Their success is more to do with what they already had in place rather than any additions in the Summer, and that means Raul Tamudo to boot. For the same reason, I can't really decide if David Villa or Javier Mascherano deserves the case for best Summer signing. Both have been instrumental in several games so far, but both have struggled to adapt to their new club. Mesut Ozil for Real Madrid then? He's the only one of the slew of Mourinho signings that have actually made a difference to the side that played before last year. Ricardo Carvalho? There's a synergy there with his Portugal colleague Pepe, so is it one or the other or is the duo in tandem that has shut the Real Madrid door at the back. I can't say that Carvalho is anymore valuable than Filipe Luis for Atleti, Aldo Duscher for Espanyol, or Drenthe for Hercules.

What I do know is that the one club that has benefited the most from the Summer transfer window is Valencia CF. They have been able to maintain their relative position despite losing some of the best players to have ever walked out onto the Mestalla pitch. Lose David Villa to Barcelona, but pick up Aduritz and Soldado as subs? Great. Lose the more important Silva, sure, but gain Topal and Tino Costa, well that's genius in the market. They even picked up goalkeeper Guaita from Recreativo Huelva as Cesar's eventual replacement. Hats off to Los Che.

As for the best individual signing of the Summer, well that that goes to Villarreal CF. Borja Valero came through the Real Madrid cantera and as all canteranos at the capital club, they are eventually either sold or loaned to gain experience. He spent two years at Real Mallorca either owned or on loan, with a stint at West Bromwich Albion inbetween, and now he is on-loan at Villarreal. Not a true permanent signing, but the Yellow Submarine are very interested in keeping his services, the midfielder has also drawn attention from much larger clubs than Villarreal CF. With Marcos Senna on his last legs, Borja has taken to the small-market giants like a duck to water.

There are more high profile signings. Greater salaries and transfer fees spent on more media-centric personalities, but this year, so far, Borja Valero's loan-deal for Villarreal has been the best Summer signing to date.