It's just over a month away from the end of the Premier League season. While the title may be decided, the relegation and European battles continue long into the dying weeks.
It might be a bit premature for an 'end of season' list of worst Premier League signings, but we've seen enough. The cat is being thrown out of the bag.
Barring simultaneous hat-tricks from any of these players, these are some of the worst signings this season.
Donny van de Beek
It had to start here. A club as high profile as Manchester United, making a high profile signing, doesn't go unnoticed. The 23-year-old made his move to the Premier League after being a pivotal part of Ajax's Champions League run in 2019. Van de Beek was in a 30-man shortlist for the Ballon D'Or that year.
Fast forward to this season, and the Dutch man has failed to break into Manchester United's rotating first-team squad. Despite some inspiring performances in Europe, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hasn't given him much freedom in the Premier League. He's started just two league matches and his impact will be boiled down to inactivity when it's all over.
Thomas Partey
Despite Arsenal's good run of form as of late, some fingers have been pointed to Arteta's underperforming summer signings. Willian is a strong contender, but a recent lease of life has separated him from the Ghanian international Partey. Injuries have played a factor in his seventeen Premier League appearances this year.
Arsenal legend Martin Keown is amongst the doubters, calling out Partey for his inability to 'boss the midfield' so far in games. His Europa League appearance midweek will have dispelled some of the naysayers. However, he hasn't developed into the box-to-box midfielder that many Gunners would have hoped for.
Rhian Brewster
Some players fail to live up to the hype. Brewster, a Liverpool academy graduate, was certainly one of those that was expected to make an impact from the get go. Sheffield United paid a reportedly £23.5 million for a club record transfer fee for the Englishman. Since then, he has failed to make much of an impact for The Blades.
At 21, his better years may be still ahead of him. Brewster showed glimpses in pre-season friendlies for Liverpool before jetting off for Sheffield. For a club fighting with relegation, goals are paramount for any striker. Brewster hasn't netted yet for his new club, and that's only going to be more of a burden on him as the games go on.
Matt Doherty
It's difficult to put an Irish man in this list, but we have to be honest with ourselves. Matt Doherty's venture to London hasn't been smooth sailing. Whether it's a lack of playing time, a difficulty to fit into Mourinho's system or just a lapse in form is the question. Nonetheless, many had high hopes for Doherty's new run with Tottenham.
The 29-year-old had been in stunning form for Wolves before his move, being deployed as an attack minded right-wing back. Just twelve Premier League starts has hampered his time at Tottenham. You can't turn down an offer to move to a bigger club for big money, but this transfer hasn't planned out as expected for Doherty.
Nathan Ake
An underlying theme in a lot of these selections is a lack of playing time. Nathan Ake is unfortunate to sit back in the pecking order of Manchester City centre-backs. With the likes of Ruben Dias, John Stones and Aymeric Laporte in front of you, it's hard to get a look in. The Chelsea youngster had seen plenty of Premier League action as a starter for Bournemouth.
Ake was one of several players sold off when Bournemouth went down, for a reported fee of £40 million. The Dutch international has just managed ten appearances in all competitions this season. With City's defense in such good form without him, it's likely he'll move on in the summer for more playing time.
Jack Butland
From being in England's World Cup squad in 2018 to not making a Premier League appearance almost three years after. It hasn't been the greatest career move for Butland at Crystal Palace. The 28-year-old has played second fiddle to Vicente Guiata this season and has only played in one game, an FA cup loss to Wolves.
It can be competitive to get the nod as a goalkeeper, but for Butland his resume up until the summer would suggest he was good enough to start somewhere. Crystal Palace just hasn't been the right fit for him. For a player who was highly regarded as a youngster, he's now found himself in no man's land territory as a second choice goalkeeper.
See Also: The Most Exciting Irish Prospect At Every Premier League Club
