big hits, bets, Blues who want to revive… What to remember from the winter market

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The summer had been very eventful. The pace was hardly less intense this winter on the transfer market. The month of January brought adjustments and opportunities more than major upheavals. But the clubs have not twiddled their thumbs. Movements have not been lacking, and some big names are involved.

Digne, Martial, Ndombélé: Global objective

With the World Cup in sight at the end of the year, internationals in difficulty were able to use this winter market as an opportunity to improve their CVs in the eyes of Didier Deschamps by changing clubs. Regularly called by the coach, Lucas Digne did not wait for his position to get bogged down at Everton where a bad pass and a bickering with coach Rafa Benitez (since dismissed) had led him to the bench. The left side remains in the Premier League: he has signed up with Aston Villa, a club coached by Steven Gerrard. A transfer estimated at 30 million euros.

The English championship also saw Anthony Martial and Tanguy Ndombélé change dairies. The first, in lack of play at Manchester United (four tenures since the start of the season), will seek to find the light at Sevilla FC, with a six-month loan with no option to buy. Accustomed to the Tottenham bench since the arrival of coach Antonio Conte, Tanguy Ndombélé hoped to sign for PSG for a time. Finally, the midfielder finds Ligue 1, but on the side of Olympique Lyonnais, where he had exploded between 2017 and 2019. He has six months to convince the Rhone club to activate his purchase option. The Spurs – who also extended Hugo Lloris – also carried out a little cleaning during the winter: arrivals of Bentancur, Kulusevski, departures of Alli, Lo Celso and Gil.

The Barça paradox

It was said that FC Barcelona was financially exhausted, forced to demand great financial efforts from some of its executives in order to be able to register its latest arrivals this summer. However, this has not prevented the Catalan club from being one of the great animators of recent weeks. Between injuries in shambles (Fati, Depay, Braithwaite) and the retirement of Sergio Agüero for a heart problem, Barça had to review their offensive plans. Done, and in large widths!

With its 55 million euros (+10 bonus) invested for Ferran Torres, the arrival of the former Manchester City winger is the second most expensive transfer of this transfer window. Another reinforcement on the sides, the former Adama Traoré training center arrives from Wolverhampton in the form of a loan with an option to buy. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang should also land from England, after having agitated the last hours of the transfer window. Neither Arsenal nor Barça have yet formalized the deal, announced by several media (free transfer, but shared salary until the end of the season). This largely renewed attack must now give new impetus to Xavi’s team, mediocre fifth in La Liga. If Barcelona did not manage to find a way out for Ousmane Dembélé, Philippe Coutinho went to revive Aston Villa. Samuel Umtiti, announced as a starter, finally extended.

Newcastle, a measured madness

The Magpies do not (yet?) have delusions of grandeur. Bought by a Saudi consortium which has made it the club with the greatest financial power, Newcastle has shown itself to be generally reasonable. The current 18th in the Premier League has made Lyonnais Bruno Guimaraes his first major expenditure (50 million euros), in the midst of rather targeted recruits who know the Premier League like striker Chris Wood or England international Kieran Tripper.

Admittedly, the Magpies still took advantage of their new financial windfall (more than 102 million euros excluding bonuses), but they did not explode the market as some envisaged. In a winter market of adjustment, the majority of the big names were in any case not called upon to move. Next summer is likely to be much busier on the banks of the Tyne.

Saint-Etienne and Bordeaux bets, smart OM, PSG do not sell

In addition to the departure of Guimarães, Ligue 1 was also not left out in terms of transactions. Some clubs had little choice. Launched in their rescue operation, Saint-Etienne (Mangala, Gnagnon, Crivelli, Bernardoni, Sako…) and Bordeaux (Guilavogui, Marcelo, the promising Amhedhodzic) tried to strengthen themselves.

Marseille, despite its tight budget, may have sniffed out new good deals. Marseille fans will closely follow Cédric Bakambu, scorer in his first match at Lens, Sead Kolasinac, before discovering the unknown French defender Samuel Gigot, who will arrive from Spartak Moscow only at the end of the season.

Paris Saint-Germain was looking for its part to degrease, and as often in recent years did not succeed. Of the many candidates leaving to anticipate his next shopping, only Rafinha (on loan to Real Sociedad) has packed his bags. The championship leader has left Olympique Lyonnais the prize for the most expensive transfer (estimated at 15 million euros) with the arrival of Brestois Romain Faivre. Lille has also been active with the return of Hatem Ben Arfa to L1, and several departures (Ikoné to Fiorentina, Yazici to CSKA Moscow). Also to follow are the performances of Jens Cadjus, the most expensive rookie in the history of the Stade de Reims (10 million euros), or even Patrick Berg, a pretty pickaxe made by RC Lens.

Vlahovic at Juve, Diaz at Liverpool, Alvarez at Manchester City: the leaders anticipate

Who says transfer market says juicy checks, and this month of January is no exception, especially among the big names in Europe. More than the usual last-minute rush purchases, the major winter transfers seem to show that big clubs are preparing for the future. In addition to Ferran Torres at FC Barcelona, ​​​​Juventus Turin, mired in Serie A and in full transition, fell for the latest sensation in the country, the Serbian striker from Fiorentina Dusan Vlahovic (the Italian media speak of a transfer of more than 70 million euros). Orphan of Cristiano Ronaldo, the Old Lady hopes to fill this void with the 22-year-old center forward, who has already scored 17 league goals this season.

The arms race also raged in the Premier League. Liverpool completes the podium of the biggest transfers of the transfer window with some 45 million euros (+15 bonus) invested in the prolific FC Porto winger Luis Diaz (25 years old). In the last hours on Monday, Manchester City offered the nugget of River Plate Julian Alvarez, international with Argentina at only 22 years old. Recruiting in the winter is a good way to get ahead of the competition and limit the surge in prices during the summer.

The free stars waiting

These promises of world football have almost eclipsed the fate of players at the end of the contract at the end of the season, and therefore free to be able to commit wherever they want since January 1. But with the exception of the amazing signing of Lorenzo Insigne, part of Napoli and the Italian selection, in Toronto, the other big names are waiting.

The flirt continues around Kylian Mbappé, still caught between an extension at PSG and an arrival at Real Madrid. Paul Pogba and Ousmane Dembélé stir up Parisian desires. Pushed out this winter after several days of verbal sparring, Dembélé remains in Catalonia, even if there is no guarantee that he will play for the Blaugranas by the end of the season.

The tension is also present in Piedmont, where the Paulo Dybala file drags on and annoys the leaders of Juventus Turin. In Ligue 1, if the Nantes Randal Kolo Muani will join Frankfurt, Boubakar Kamara (OM) remains without a base. A situation that should not last.


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