Premier League signing of the season: David Luiz, Victor Wanyama and Zlatan Ibrahimovic contenders

With the dust now settled on the 2016-17 Premier League campaign, IBTimes UK's sport writers can now begin dishing out the awards highlighting the best and the worst of the English top flight this season. Here, we pick the players who rocked up at their new clubs last summer and wasted little time in becoming fundamental to the cause.

Nick Howson: David Luiz (Paris Saint-Germain to Chelsea)

There has arguably never been a signing made in the Premier League that has been more derided and absorbed with less seriousness than Luiz's return to Stamford Bridge. During two-and-a-half years with the Blues he at best looked like a competition winner living the dream at the heart of the Chelsea defence.

But Antonio Conte would have the last laugh. The Brazil international has been a calming and consistent presence in the second meanest back-line in the top flight; in stark contrast to the cavalier individual who had lurched his way through club and international football either side of his career in west London.

George Flood: Victor Wanyama (Southampton to Tottenham Hotspur)

Awards of this nature are always highly subjective and dependent on a specific set of criteria. Arguably no new signing has made as great an impact as N'Golo Kante at Chelsea, as evidenced by him becoming the first player to win back-to-back Premier League titles with different clubs in addition to scooping a whole host of individual gongs including PFA Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year.

However, few summer purchases represent such stonkingly great value for money as Wanyama to Tottenham. Signed for a paltry £11m fee after entering the final year of his contract at Southampton, the Kenyan international has quickly become an integral member of Spurs' midfield since reuniting with Mauricio Pochettino at White Hart Lane. While the likes of Dele Alli and Harry Kane inevitably draw the lion's share of plaudits, Wanyama is often equally as pivotal to their success.

Tony Mogan: Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris Saint-Germain to Manchester United)

Let's not delude ourselves with notions that Zlatan's arrival in Manchester was free of charge; United made him one of the best players in the league last summer. But they have certainly got their money's worth. 28 goals and nine assists in all competitions is a remarkable return for the 35-year-old who wasted little time in shooting down suggestions his chance to make the Premier League his playground had been and gone.

United's attack has looked out of sync and cumbersome at times this season amid Anthony Martial's struggles and Wayne Rooney's continued decline, but the former Sweden international has been a saviour of sorts. The veteran has scored winners against Southampton, Crystal Palace and West Brom this season along with vital equalisers against Liverpool, West Brom and Everton. That's 12 points he's responsible for. Take him out of that side, and Jose Mourinho's first season at Old Trafford is a whole lot bleaker.

Eduardo Fernandez-Abascal: Fernando Llorente (Sevilla to Swansea City)

The Spaniard joined Swansea as a free-agent and has been the key to keeping the Welsh club in the Premier League in a season where they have had three different managers. The former Juventus star has scored 15 of Swansea's 45 goals this season and no one has scored more headers than him (8) in the Premier League.

Rhod Cannon: David Luiz (Paris Saint-Germain to Chelsea)

Derided when he arrived, Luiz has bowed and listened to the demands of Antonio Conte and has transformed into a pivotal figure at Stamford Bridge. Defensively sound with costly mistakes largely cut out, The Brazilian's distribution and ability to spread the ball has proved vital to Chelsea stretching compact defences. He may have been playing with a knee injury since December, but Luiz has not allowed that to dilute the quality of his performances.