Alexis Sanchez combining with Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling in a Liverpool counter attack. Xherdan Shaqiri running into space behind Manchester United’s defense with Mesut Ozil and Theo Walcott in front of him. James Rodriguez alongside Cesc Fabregas playing through passes for Diego Costa to run onto at Chelsea. Toni Kroos playing quick give and goes with Lionel Messi at Barcelona. Deandre Yedlin playing in crosses for Francesco Totti at Roma.

For those influenced by Moneyball decision making, these transfers should only occur in the imagination or on Football Manager. It’s in the Soccernomics manual for why transfers fail at number 3: stars of recent World Cups or European Championships are overvalued and best ignored. Watching these games with heightened sensibilities, we all get carried away. Most post tournament transfers end up closer to Milan Baros than Ronaldinho. But did you see Shaqiri’s pace?

Yet if soccer market value theorist Arsene Wenger falls victim to the World Cup transfer fallacy, then none of us had a chance in the first place. These players include:

Alexis Sanchez and Joel Campbell: French winger Antoine Griezmann seemed an obvious choice before the World Cup to move to Arsenal. This following Wenger’s effusive praise, comparisons to Robert Pires, and playing on the same club team as former Gunner and perennial rumored target Carlos Vela. Arsenal did get their winger and goal scorer in the form of Chile’s Alexis Sanchez. 

Sanchez’s individual dynamism was shackled by Barcelona’s team system. That Sanchez remained productive is a testament to his skill, but it wasn’t Sanchez at his best. If we forget how dominant Sanchez was at Udinese, his World Cup performances reminded us of how he can carry a counterattack on his own through sheer power and speed of his dribbling. 

What Sanchez was for Chile, Joel Campbell was for Costa Rica. Campbell isn’t a new signing for Arsenal, but with three seasons spent on loan, he could have been another player in the long line of youth prospects who passed through without any meaningful impact or moments. His World Cup performance showed that surely, he was ready to spend a full season at Arsenal, and beyond that, make a contribution. Along with Sanchez, Arsenal’s attacking front four between Ozil, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Santi Carzola and Lukas Podolski must collectively be the fastest in Europe. 

So where does Griezmann go? It’d be harsh to say he didn’t live up expectations at the World Cup since they may have been unreasonable in the first place. He did legitimately change the match when brought in at halftime in France’s knock out stage match against Nigeria. For those efforts, he’s rumored for Atlético Madrid or Monaco.  

Luis Suárez: We all have our conspiracy theories, so I’ll throw one out there: after coming close to leaving Liverpool last season, Luis Suárez bit Giorgio Chiellini in the final group stage match and subsequently getting suspended from footballing activity for the next four months in order to force a move to Barcelona. Any takers? 

Most every club would build their team around Suárez. But Barcelona are one of a handful of teams blessed (or cursed) with enough individual talent to rue the signing as Johan Cruyff did. An attack of Neymar, Messi and Suarez looks both unstoppable and nonsensical at the same time. The fear is that Neymar and Suarez will have to tone down their instinctual play for the team as Sanchez did. Luis Enrique’s first challenge is to get the best from the front three. It’s a riddle that can either sink managers or turn them into champions.

Coupled with the signing of Ivan Rakitic, the duo may signal a direct era in Barcelona. It may not be 40 passes and a goal, but Suárez in open space with late runs into the box from Rakitic could win titles, too. The Xavi-era sought soccer transcendence through rhythmic passing. This side may be at its best bludgeoning opponents.

Keylor Navas & Guillermo Ochoa: Signing Guillermo Ochoa on a free transfer is a quintessential Atlético Madrid move. In Ochoa, they had somewhere between the best and fourth best keeper in the World Cup, who put on somewhere between the best and third best individual performance (Ochoa vs. Brazil, Howard vs. Belgiu, and Navas vs. Greece in some order). It’s destiny for Ochoa to become one of the top keepers in the world next season under Simeone.

Likewise, Bayern Munich rumored interest in Keylor Navas was very Bayern, with Navas eventually ending up at Real Madrid. Navas should have gone to an underdog side, relegated to making 10 saves a game, with GIFs and Vines retweeted thousands of times. That’s how I want to appreciate Navas. And instead of spending over $100 million for Toni Kroos and a rumored James Rodriguez (you could see Real coming from a continent away, couldn’t you?), Soccernomics is only $12. Does Florentino Perez have a public Amazon wish list?

Deandre Yedlin: Yedlin deserves a special spot on this list for turning a 15 minute cameo against Portugal into interest from Roma and Liverpool. If there was a metric for minutes played per transfer figure raised, Yedlin would be first in efficiency. 

Dirk Kuyt: Kuyt’s rumored transfer to Manchester United was amusing, highly unlikely, but revealing. The idea was born from Louis Van Gaal’s imagination. No way Sir Alex Ferguson and David Moyes consider Kuyt. But Van Gaal? If it were practical, if Kuyt was out of contract, or two years younger, then maybe. Kuyt’s ability to seemingly play every position and never get tired gives Van Gaal the tactical flexibility he needs to unlock opponents. Moyes’ transfers for known quantities Marouane Felliani and Juan Mata will be curbed. If transfer windows were described as characters, United and Van Gaal’s summer window will be clever and cunning. It’ll be a series of Dirk Kuyt’s – head scratching at first, but essential for the subtle tactical tinkering required over the next season.  

It’s difficult imagining the likes of Suarez, Sanchez and Navas failing with their new teams as we’ve seen their quality throughout the years. Beyond that, we’ve seen single performances from Sanchez, James Rodriguez, and Navas especially, during the World Cup where they kept their side in matches they had no business being a part of. Moneyball soccer aside, these players may be vastly overrated and unable to replicate tourney success – but better we find that out first hand.