10 Players SMASHING It On Loan In 22/23!

Hello and welcome back to Football Daily, where today we're doing our annual rundown of players smashing it on loan. Let's get into it. 10. Connor Cody Everton might find themselves languishing in the relegation zone at the time of writing, in the midst of a seven-match winless run, but we think the situation would be even worse had they not secured the loan signing of Connor Cody in August. Since returning to Merseyside, the former Wolves captain and England international has featured in all but one game he's been available for, forming a solid defensive partnership with James Tarkovsky, which has helped Everton concede 26 goals in 19 games, the joint ninth best record in the Premier League, and fewer than Spurs, Fulham and Brentford. The fact Tarkovsky and Cody both feature in the top eight for most clearances in the division, with Joachim Andersen the only player to top Tarkovsky's 104, shows just how much firefighting the duo have been asked to do. Currently completing 4.8 long balls per game, eighth for outfield players, Cody's passing has also helped relieve some pressure on the back line. Having scored just 15 league goals at the time of writing, which ranked 88th of the 98 clubs in Europe's top five leagues, it's clear where the Toffees' problems lie. Cody is exempt from criticism in our eyes. 9. Alexander Saulot With Real Sociedad taking the surprise decision to sell Alexander Isak to Newcastle with days of the summer transfer window remaining, to add to the departures of fellow forwards Willian Jose, Adnan Januzaj and Porto, it was clear that there was going to be a lot of pressure on La Real's Norwegian frontman Alexander Saulot as he entered the second year of his loan spell from RB Leipzig. But so far, he's risen to the occasion. After netting just eight goals in 44 games last term, the former Crystal Palace striker has already hit 11, including seven in 13 La Liga appearances, his best return since a 24-goal haul for Trabzonspor in the 2019-20 Turkish Super League season. Supported by summer recruits Bryce Mendes and Takafusa Kubo, who have both hit the ground running, Saulot's threat has soared, with his shots per 90 rising from 0.8 to 2.4 and his expected goals per 90 almost doubling to 0.59, the 10th best record in Spain. With Sociedad gunning for a first top-four finish in 10 years and with a decent chance of progressing deep into the Europa League, manager Emmanuel Alguersil will be praying that this often inconsistent striker can maintain his current form. 8. Akadeus Milik Wherever Akadeus Milik goes, goals follow. Ever since establishing himself at Ajax during the 2014-15 season, the Polish striker has consistently found the net, scoring 133 goals in his last 272 games for Ajax, Napoli, Marseille and now Juventus, where he arrived on loan ahead of the 2022-23 season. Predominantly used as a backup to Dusan Vlaevic when he's available, the 67-cap international has played just over 1,200 league and Champions League minutes, but has still managed to contribute eight goals at an average of one every 152 minutes. Bear in mind that Alvaro Morata averaged one every 258 minutes last term, and it's clear that Milik has more than repaid the faith shown in him. To merely label him as a poacher would be unfair, however, with his balance and physical superiority making him incredibly secure in possession and when he does choose to pass he rarely loses it, with his pass accuracy ranking in the top 11% of strikers. He's also not afraid to put himself about with his defensive actions, be that blocks, tackles, interceptions or pressures leading to an effort on goal standing at 0.1 times per 90, figure topped by just 7% of forwards in Europe. Whether he stays at Juve beyond this season is not yet confirmed, but he's certainly proven himself to be an attractive option once again. 7. Nuno Tavares While Milik may have temporarily left the Stade Velodrome, one player who has made the south of France his home for the year is Arsenal left-back Nuno Tavares. Forced into making 28 appearances for the Gunners last season amidst consistent injuries to first-choice Kieran Tierney, Tavares looked exactly what he was, a naive defender with just 41 senior games under his belt prior to his arrival. Yes, the physical gifts and attacking prowess was there, and he could cause chaos when given space to run into down the flank, but sloppy mistakes in possession and drops in concentration when defending had Arsenal fans cheering when his lone move to Marseille was confirmed. But perhaps unsurprisingly, at a club that has always taken Mavericks to its heart, Tavares has thrived, scoring five league goals, a figure topped only by Alexis Sanchez, while he also ranks first for dribbles and second for tackles. After finishing bottom of their Champions League group and already five points behind PSG in third, the Coupe de France is probably their best chance of securing silverware for the first time since 2011-12. If Tavares can help them win that, he'll go down in Marseille folklore as one of their most successful loans ever. 6. Hasane Kamara and Hamza Chowdhury While Watford have had a disappointing season to date, with the newly relegated side languishing third in the Championship and massive 16 points behind leaders Burnley, two players they have on loan, Hasane Kamara and Hamza Chowdhury, have performed excellently. After spending the second half of 21-22 on loan at Vicarage Road from Nice, Kamara's bought by Pozzo owned Udinese in the summer before being sent back on loan to the Hertfordshire-based club once again. There he was joined by former England U21 international Chowdhury, who had only started eight league games for Leicester across the previous two seasons. Chowdhury has instantly improved them, completing 97 defensive actions to date, one more than Kamara, with the pair ranking 10th and 11th in the Championship in this metric. With their win percentage going up from 30% under Rob Edwards to 50% under Slavon Bilic, the Hornets are trending in the right direction. 11 points behind second-placed Sheffield United, it might be too little, too late for an automatic return to the Premier League, but with Kamara and Chowdhury in this form, they'd have a good chance in the play-offs. 5. Mauro Icardi At PSG, Mauro Icardi was always destined to play second fiddle to Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and eventually Lionel Messi too, so amid a new leadership model and the club's new approach to the transfer market, the Argentine was free to seek a move away. Initially linked with a move to Serie A newcomers Monza, not too far from former home Milan, Icardi eventually signed a season-long loan deal in Turkey with Galatasaray. At 29 years of age, some might deem his career at the top level to be coming to a premature close, but for the striker it's a case of proving he can still perform, after barely 2,000 minutes across the previous two campaigns. And well, he's shown just that, putting up numbers that might still see another top club take a chance on him. In just 564 minutes of action, Icardi has five goals in four assists, with starring roles in 7-0 and 3-0 victories over title rivals Beshak Shaheer and Fenerbahce respectively, as Gala have opened a seven-point lead at the summit of the Super League. If they claim their first title in four years, Icardi will have been crucial. 4. Giacomo Raspadori and Giovani Simeone Of all the new signings that Napoli made last summer, Kovic Ikvar at Scalia has claimed the biggest headlines. But other names have been making an impact too, as Luciano Spalletti's side lead the charge in Serie A, including loan arrivals Giacomo Raspadori and Giovani Simeone. The pair have been introduced slowly to first-team football in Naples, but have made crucial contributions in their limited game time. 22-year-old Raspadori, coming off the back of an impressive campaign with Sassuolo last year, has mostly been used as relief for Victor Ossimen, but bagged a 90th-minute winner against Spezia in October. 27-year-old Simeone, meanwhile, may not have hit the heights many expected him to early in his career, but has proved a useful rotation option for Spalletti, even scoring the decisive goal in a 2-1 victory over AC Milan, which turned the table in Napoli's favour. The club will have to fork out €30m for the promising Raspadori next summer as part of an obligation to buy. Don't be surprised if they also choose to exercise Simeone's option to buy if he keeps popping up at key moments. 3. Nathan Teller One of the revelations of this year's championship season is Burnley. Manchester City legend Vincent Kompany was appointed as manager, although reservations still remained following his unsuccessful stint with Anderlecht. But Clarence fans needn't have worried, with the Belgian transforming them into one of the league's most entertaining sides, tearing away the stereotypes that had long been associated with the Lancashire club. Crucial to that success has been Nathan Teller, who hadn't quite made the grade at Southampton since his 2019 debut. The 23-year-old winger is equally capable of playing on either flank, with Kompany utilising his flexibility throughout the campaign. So far, he's directly contributed to 10 goals, with his eight strikes second to just Jey Rodriguez at Turf Moor. Currently topping the league and holding a 16-point buffer to third place, Teller's time away from the Saints couldn't have gone much better. But with his parent club languishing at the bottom of the Premier League, there is talk Nathan Jones could summon him back to St Mary's. He'd certainly be in line for more game time if he did return. 2. Folloran Balligan Not only is everything going well for Arsenal at the Emirates, with the Gunners sat atop the Premier League by eight points, but they're also getting to watch some of their prodigies impress across the continent. The most notable of these is Folloran Balligan, who has hit the ground running with Stad Rantz in Ligue 1. The 21-year-old striker had an underwhelming stint at Middlesbrough to start 2022, but come 2023 and the England Youth International is challenging the likes of Kylian Mbappé and Neymar at the top of the French scoring charts, having bagged 10 goals to date in north-east France. And for a team expected to be in the lower reaches of the division, his contributions have been pivotal. Without Balligan's 10 goals and one assist, more than half his side's total output, Rantz would be 11 points worse off, dropping them from 11th to 18th. With the league also seeing four sides relegated this season as they downsized to 18 teams, they'll be incredibly thankful for Balligan's performances if they maintain their mid-table mediocrity this campaign. 1. Ahmad Diallo It's fair to say that Ahmad Diallo's spell at Man Utd hasn't gone to plan just yet. Signed in January 2021 for a €25m fee, potentially rising to €40m, he struggled for game time and found himself out on loan at Rangers a year later. And his form in Scotland didn't suggest United had a world beater on their hands, with three goals and zero assists in 13 games showing that the three-capped Ivory Coast International had a lot of developing to do. Signed on loan by Sunderland on deadline day in August 2022, continuing a long line of players that have moved between the clubs including Kieran Richardson, Fraser Campbell, Jon O'Shea and Wes Brown, Ahmad has set about ensuring he'll be as fondly remembered as any of them. His recent form has seen him provide seven goal contributions in his last 12 league games. This has not only marked him out as one of the most talented players in the championship, but as far the sleeping giant he represents into the playoff picture. While a return to the Premier League remains a long shot for the Black Cats, Ahmad Diallo has done more than anyone to ensure his side have a chance. So those were our 10 players killing it on loan this season, but what did you make of our selection and can you name any more? Let us know in the comments below and if we receive enough good suggestions we may do a part two. 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