The winter transfer window opened on January 1 with most of the 20 clubs desperate to make signings that can shape their season. Here we look at the players they hope will arrive in the next month:
Arsenal
Arsène Wenger anticipates that he will be busier fielding inquires about fringe players in his squad – he would be open to moving a few out – but he would be interested in an addition if the opportunity presented itself. The want-away Alexis Sánchez will draw the focus. He might prefer to wait for a Bosman move in the summer but an offer from Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain would change the dynamic. Arsenal would be compelled to consider it.
Possible signings Thomas Lemar (Monaco), Nabil Fekir (Lyon), Ryan Sessegnon (Fulham), Steven N’Zonzi (Sevilla).
Possible outgoings: Alexis Sánchez, Calum Chambers, Theo Walcott, Mathieu Debuchy, Chuba Akpom.
Estimated budget: £50m.
Bournemouth
Eddie Howe has scarcely found joy in January, previously stating the difficulty of getting value for money in the winter transfer window. A growing injury list may force his hand, however: bringing in a defender who can play across the back four would make sense. Harry Arter is of interest to West Ham United but Howe insists the midfielder is going nowhere.
Possible signings: Danny Ings (Liverpool), Firmin Ndombe Mubele (Rennes), Dujon Sterling (Chelsea, loan).
Possible outgoings: Lewis Grabban, Adam Federici (loan), Emerson Hyndman (loan), Connor Mahoney (loan).
Estimated budget: £15m.
Brighton & Hove Albion
Chris Hughton has said he will do minimal business in this window but will at least attempt to ease the burden on the striker Glenn Murray finding the net by pushing through a deal for Moussa Dembélé. They are not the only ones interested in the prolific Celtic forward, though, and may have to fight off Premier League rivals for the Frenchman’s signature. He will not come cheap, with the Scottish champions intent on holding out for around £20m.
Possible signings: Moussa Dembélé (Celtic), Ze Luis (Spartak Moscow).
Possible outgoings Jiri Skalak (loan), Jamie Murphy (loan).
Estimated budget: £15m.
Burnley
Burnley are in a strong position, they have a small but effective squad and have shown themselves able to compete. Money is available should Sean Dyche wish to strengthen – last January they spent a club record £13m on Robbie Brady, who is now out injured for the rest of the season – although short-term fixes are unlikely. Dyche prefers to identify targets who will fit in with the rest of the squad and bring them in when they become available. Panic buying is not Burnley’s style.
Possible signings: Maybe a wide player to cover for Brady’s absence. Central defense is also a potential area of concern.
Possible outgoings: None seem imminent.
Estimated budget: Up to £20m.
Chelsea
Chelsea will effectively resume where they left off back in August, attempting to persuade Ross Barkley to join from Everton and then seeking to recruit a new left wing-back to compete with Marcos Alonso. Juventus’s Alex Sandro, targeted in the summer, may be more inclined to move now, although it is the potential pursuit of Monaco’s Thomas Lemar that is most intriguing. The France international has been courted by clubs in England and the reigning Ligue 1 champions, now with Michael Emenalo as their sporting director after he decided to leave a similar role at Stamford Bridge, may consider a sale albeit for a hefty price. Certainly, Antonio Conte will be pushing for significant reinforcements.
Possible signings: Ross Barkley (Everton), Thomas Lemar (Monaco), Alex Sandro (Juventus), Philipp Max (Augsburg), Alex Telles (Porto).
Possible outgoings: Charly Musonda, David Luiz, Michy Batshuayi.
Estimated budget: Roman Abramovich will find funds.
Crystal Palace
Palace will have to revisit their significant mid-season spending of last term if they are to stave off the threat of relegation, with transfer funds “ringfenced” according to the chairman, Steve Parish, and at least three major arrivals expected. The sporting director, Dougie Freedman, has been charged with securing the deals. The manager, Roy Hodgson, said: “We have only got two goalkeepers in the club, which is nowhere near enough for Premier League football. We have only one recognized center-forward and, in central midfield, we don’t have the amount of cover that is necessary at this level.” Three signings would be ideal.
Possible signings: Tomas Holy (Gillingham), Kevin Trapp (PSG), Diego López (Espanyol), Khouma Babacar (Fiorentina), Danny Ings (Liverpool), Harry Arter (Bournemouth), Islam Slimani (Leicester), Gareth Barry (West Bromwich Albion).
Possible outgoings: Patrick van Aanholt, Jordon Mutch, Lee Chung-yong, Timothy Fosu-Mensah (possible loan return), Freddie Ladapo.
Estimated budget: The club’s major shareholders will find the funds required.
Everton
The pressure is on the director of football, Steve Walsh, to finally produce a replacement for Romelu Lukaku. Ronald Koeman made repeated calls for a proven striker to be included in Everton’s £140m overhaul of their squad in the summer and paid with his job when one did not materialize, and the team floundered. His successor, Sam Allardyce, has reiterated that request and is also seeking left-sided defensive cover – another Koeman wish – while looking to trim what he considers a bloated squad.
Possible signings: Cenk Tosun (Besiktas), Patrick van Aanholt (Crystal Palace), Steven N’Zonzi (Sevilla).
Possible outgoings: Ross Barkley, Davy Klaassen, Sandro Ramírez, Oumar Niasse, Kevin Mirallas, Muhamed Besic.
Estimated budget: £40m, plus player sales.
Huddersfield Town
The club will go into January without a head of football operations, having decided there was no need to rush into an appointment after the departure of David Moss from the role in October. With most of last summer’s record outlay of £40m looking shrewd, major recruitment does not seem to be an urgent requirement, although some positions could do with strengthening. The injury to Elias Kachunga makes a dangerous wide player more of a priority. A central creator would also be welcome, given Kasey Palmer’s injury trouble so far this season, and there is also scope for improving cover for the central defensive pair of Christopher Schindler and Mathias Jorgensenin the center of defense.
Possible signings: Ben Woodburn on loan (Liverpool), Terence Kongolo (Monaco).
Possible outgoings: None planned but interest in Christopher Schindler would be no surprise.
Estimated budget: £20m.
Leicester City
After spending heavily in the summer and climbing up the table on the back of Claude Puel’s appointment in October, Leicester are under no real pressure to throw money at this window, especially as they have a new signing to come into the team in the shape of Adrien Silva, whose £22m move from Sporting Lisbon on deadline day failed to go through in time. One area where Leicester would like to strengthen is at right-back but that is more of a long-term target.
Possible signings: André Almeida ( Benfica).
Possible outgoings: Islam Slimani, Ahmed Musa.
Estimated budget: £15m.
Liverpool
Jürgen Klopp’s patience, and Liverpool’s financial largesse, has paid off with the defensive world record £75m acquisition of Virgil van Dijk from Southampton, the manager’s backline priority from the summer. Another target from the previous window, Monaco’s Thomas Lemar, could also be revisited this month but the most important business is keeping Philippe Coutinho. Liverpool have stood firm in the face of Barcelona’s dogged pursuit and will be expected to maintain that stance with a place in the last 16 of the Champions League secure.
Possible signings: Thomas Lemar (Monaco).
Possible outgoings: Danny Ings, Daniel Sturridge, Marko Grujic, Lazar Markovic, Ben Woodburn, Harry Wilson.
Estimated budget: £100m, plus player sales.
Manchester City
What do you buy for the runaway, record-breaking leaders? A center-back to cover the glaring weakness in a department that includes the chronically injured Vincent Kompany, the currently injured John Stones and the for-sale Eliaquim Mangala. Pep Guardiola is keen to recruit for the position as he continues to compete in all four competitions, including the Champions League, which the manager is intent on impressing in after last season’s dismal last-16 exit. If he fails to strengthen he will be disappointed. And might striking backup be required given the injury to Gabriel Jesus?
Possible signings: Jonny Evans (West Bromwich Albion), Alexis Sánchez (Arsenal).
Possible outgoings: Eliaquim Mangala.
Estimated budget: £100m-plus.
Manchester United
José Mourinho needs a prolific finisher to share the burden with Romelu Lukaku because of his side’s profligacy in front of goal but whether he will move in January is in the balance. He admires Arsenal’s Mesut Özil, who is out of contract in the summer, but the German is hardly renowned for his finishing. Fulham’s 17-year-old Ryan Sessegnon is another potential recruit, although he would be a signing for the future. It is worth adding that Mourinho is no fan of the winter window.
Possible signings: Mesut Özil (Arsenal), Ryan Sessegnon (Fulham).
Possible outgoings: No one, although for the right player Henrikh Mkhitaryan could be a makeweight in any deal.
Estimated budget: £100m-plus.
Newcastle United
In an ideal world, Rafael Benítez would sign a goalkeeper, a left-back, a winger, a No10 and a prolific center-forward. In reality, Newcastle United is not nirvana and Amanda Staveley’s mooted takeover is still to be completed, leaving Mike Ashley controlling the purse strings. Benítez has told the current owner that, without reinforcement, the team will be in real relegation peril this month but Ashley is a high-stakes gambler; will he heed the warning? Let alone the manager’s demand that all transfer business be completed by January 20.
Possible incomings: Uncertain but expect two domestic loans, including Kenedy, the Chelsea left winger.
Possible outgoings: Jack Colback, Aleksandar Mitrovic.
Estimated budget: Unclear. Benítez was hoping for £20m but seems likely to have to settle for considerably less.
Southampton
With Virgil van Dijk finally heading to Liverpool for a £75m fee, Mauricio Pellegrino is targeting at least two signings in a bid to avoid a relegation battle. Despite Van Dijk’s departure, the priority will be to add firepower and attacking creativity, and there are big names available who may be tempted by the chance of pre-World Cup game time. With plenty of underachievers already in his squad and dissent from supporters growing, Pellegrino must choose his new recruits wisely.
Possible signings: Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool), Olivier Giroud and Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), Nicolás Gaitán (Atlético Madrid).
Possible outgoings: Ryan Bertrand, Matt Targett.
Estimated budget: £30m, with some players arriving on loan.
Stoke City
The club have not spent particularly heavily nor particularly well in recent transfer windows but recognize that a failure to trade smart in January would leave them at risk of relegation. They can ill afford more mistakes and they will be keen to bat off any inquiries for Joe Allen or Jack Butland. The most porous defense in the Premier League would benefit, in particular, from a solid right-back, enhanced cover in the center and better protection from midfield. Up front Mark Hughes has long lacked a sharp striker. And there is a shortage of pace in all areas. Overall, the sense is the club will aim to solve their problems on the cheap and ultimately that will be their downfall.
Possible signings: Kyle Walker-Peters (Tottenham), Danny Ings (Liverpool).
Possible outgoings: Joe Allen, Saido Berahino.
Estimated budget: £15m plus loanees.
Swansea City
Favorites to be relegated, Swansea need to spend a small fortune to address all the weaknesses in their ill-equipped squad to have any chance of survival, yet the only money that will be made available in this window is the surplus cash left over from the summer. A creative midfielder, a winger and a proven striker are all priorities for the Premier League’s most toothless team. But, realistically, what caliber of player can Swansea hope to attract?
Possible signings: André Ayewand Diafra Sakho (West Ham), Andy Yiadom (Barnsley).
Possible outgoings: Alfie Mawson, Oli McBurnie, Ki Sung-yueng.
Estimated budget: £10m-£20m.
Tottenham Hotspur
Mauricio Pochettino has the full complement of 17 foreign players in his Champions League squad and that is before Érik Lamela is reintegrated. It means somebody will be squeezed out, possibly Georges-Kévin Nkoudou, and that Pochettino will prioritize the English market for any signings. The manager has said he would like to use January to prepare for the more important summer window, when quick business will be essential, so he would be open to a Dele Alli-style signing with a loan-back option.
Possible signings: Ross Barkley (Everton), Ryan Sessegnon (Fulham).
Possible outgoings: Georges-Kévin Nkoudou.
Estimated budget: £25m.
Watford
The club will assess Nathaniel Chalobah’s recuperation from a knee injury – he is expected to return in late January – before deciding whether they need to recruit a defensive midfielder. They are also seeking alternative options in attack but are not expecting to conduct significant business unless one of their long-term targets becomes available or a particularly lucrative sale boosts their budget. They will not sell any regular members of the starting XI but fringe players are available.
Possible signings: Pontus Dahlberg (IFK Gothenberg).
Possible outgoings: Étienne Capoue, Isaac Success, Stefano Okaka, Brice Dja Djédjé.
Estimated budget: Less than £10m, with loans preferred unless there are significant sales.
West Bromwich Albion
Alan Pardew will have nothing like the lavish transfer pot Tony Pulis was afforded in the summer but his priorities are clear enough. West Brom need a striker and, perhaps, someone else who can play across the frontline or in behind. Neither would come cheap and difficult decisions may be required in order to do the right deals. Jonny Evans remains sought-after and Pardew has admitted he must be “realistic” about the center-back's future. Grzegorz Krychowiak, a thus-far unsuccessful loan signing from PSG, could yet return six months early in order to free up more cash.
Possible signings: Aleksandar Mitrovic (Newcastle), Danny Ings (Liverpool), Rajiv van La Parra (Huddersfield).
Possible outgoings: Grzegorz Krychowiak (return to PSG from loan), Jonny Evans (Arsenal/Manchester United/Everton).
Estimated budget: £5m to £10m – with the potential to rise if players depart.
West Ham United
David Moyes is not happy with the balance of his squad and has told his bosses that West Ham must improve their survival hopes by making a few additions. His team have conceded 38 Premier League goals already, so it is not a surprise that Moyes wants to strengthen in defense and midfield before thinking about reinforcements in attack. However, West Ham have disappointed in recent windows.
Possible signings: Harry Arter (Bournemouth), Lamine Koné (Sunderland), Alfie Mawson (Swansea City), Steven N’Zonzi (Sevilla), André Schürrle (Borussia Dortmund).
Possible outgoings: Reece Oxford, Diafra Sakho.
Estimated budget: £25m – unless there are any sales.
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