Vinay Patel
The new year once again saw the opening of the January transfer window and with Premier League clubs spending approximately £238 million, it is safe to say that England’s top flight division were able to attract some top players to light up 2022.
While many clubs were keen to make their mark in this transfer window, none were more active than Newcastle United, who were top spenders at £93 million. Fresh from their takeover in October, the new owners were keen to bolster a dire Newcastle squad fighting relegation and were quick off the mark in their first signing of Kieran Trippier, from Atletico Madrid, for £12 million. Trippier made an instant impact, scoring two free kicks in his first games, but suffered a big blow when he went off injured against Aston Villa. This was followed by the acquisition of Chris Wood, from fellow relegation rivals Burnley, after triggering his £25 million release clause. With the Magpies’ transfer window far from over, talented Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimaraes was signed from Olympique Lyon for £40 million (including add-ons). Deadline Day saw Newcastle sign Aston Villa’s Matt Targett on a short-term loan and rounding off a fine transfer window with the purchase of Dan Burn, from Brighton, for £13 million.
Runaway league leaders Manchester City had a relatively quiet window, with their only signing being in the name of Julian Alvarez for £15 million. Currently playing at River Plate, the exciting young prospect will stay there on loan until the end of the season before joining his new teammates in the summer. Liverpool surprised many in this transfer window, signing Columbian winger Luis Diaz from Porto for £50 million, and Diaz netted his first goal as a red against Norwich in February.
The arrival of manager Steven Gerrard in November paved way for an exciting transfer window for Aston Villa. Gerrard used his connections to sign out of favour playmaker and former Liverpool teammate Philippe Coutinho, on loan from Barcelona, with an option to buy for £33 million. Coutinho’s presence has vitalised a faltering Villa side, after assisting and scoring as the Villans came back from two goals down to draw 2-2 against Manchester United. Villa also completed the signing of Lucas Digne from Everton that will amount to £25 million.
Everton’s recent managerial appointment of Frank Lampard saw him receive heavy investment from owner Farhad Moshiri. Within hours of appointment, Everton announced the signing of Donny van de Beek, on loan from Manchester United and Dele Alli from Spurs, on a permanent deal that could amount to £40 million.
Spurs manager Antonio Conte, alongside managing director Fabio Paratici, have used their Serie A connections to sign both Rodrigo Bentancur (£16 million) and Dejan Kulusevski from Juventus on loan – who scored and assisted in their brilliant win at Manchester City. The transfer window also saw midfielders Giovanni Lo Celso and record signing Tanguy Ndombele depart on loan to both Villareal and Olympique Lyon respectively.
Unlike their North London rivals, Arsenal’s transfer window was disappointing to say the least, losing record signing and former captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Barcelona on a free transfer. Long-time transfer target Dusan Vlahovic opting to join Juventus from Fiorentina for £63 million and Guimaraes’ transfer to Newcastle only added insult to injury. In a transfer window that only saw outgoings, Arsenal’s top 4 ambitions hang in the balance.
Finally, a transfer that is not only massive for the world of football, but the start of a beautiful chapter for the life of Christian Eriksen. After suffering a cardiac arrest while playing for Denmark in Euro 2020, Eriksen was fitted with a pacemaker, but the device prevented him from playing for Inter Milan in the Serie A as it was a breach of their regulations. As a result his contract was terminated but the Dane has just signed a 6-month contract with Brentford, in a transfer that sees him return to the Premier League after a 2 year absence, but more importantly, a return to playing the beautiful game.
Vinay Patel
Featured image used courtesy of Bex Walton via Flickr. No changes were made to this image. Image use license here.
In article image 1 courtesy of Newcastle United FC via Instagram. No changes were made to this image.
In article image 2 courtesy of Phillipe Coutinho via Instagram. No changes were made to this image.
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