With the January transfer window coming to a close, many will feel excited with their club’s business, whilst some may feel underwhelmed with the lack of ambition. It's been a window of big moves, but certainly across the Premier League. The window has been one of fan-favourite departures and shock returns.
In the Premier League, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City have been in the headlines throughout the window as they completed deals for both Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi. Semenyo had caught the eyes of many of the Premier League’s top clubs coming into this window with reported interest from multiple Premier League sides. But ultimately it was Guardiola’s side that convinced the Ghanian to move, Semenyo’s versatility across the frontline and recent form has made him an attractive asset for any club this season, with an agreed fee of £65m. After the signing of Semenyo, with what was regarded as an injury ‘crisis’ for the Citizens in defence, they sought after the services of Crystal Palace’s captain Marc Guehi. In a move considered to be around £20m, Guehi previously linked with Liverpool put pen to paper on a deal until June 2031.
At the other side of London, Tottenham Hotspur completed the signing of former Chelsea midfielder, Connor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid. With reported interest from Spurs and Aston Villa, it was Thomas Frank’s side who eventually completed the move for £35m. Gallagher left Chelsea in 2024 for Atletico Madrid and has described the move back to London as the “next step in my career at an amazing club”. The 25-year-old has since made his debut; Gallagher will be hoping that the move back to the Premier League will help him impress Thomas Tuchel as he looks to feature in England’s squad this summer’s World Cup.
It’s been a busy window for Crystal Palace mostly due to the departure of Marc Guehi and the heavily rumoured departure of Jean-Phillipe Mateta who is heavily linked with AC Milan, given Palace the room to strengthen in certain positions. Early in the window, Brennan Johnson agreed to move to South London from Tottenham for a fee around £35m to add that strength out wide. The move caused confusion amongst the Spurs fanbase as Johnson was a crucial part of Tottenham’s Europa League winning campaign last season finishing the campaign as their top scorer. With the departure of Mateta looking likely, the Eagles have turned to Wolves’ Jørgen Strand Larsen as his replacement after a £50m deal was agreed between the two clubs. Larsen is eager to push the move through and complete the switch to Palace, the Norwegian’s season in front of goal has been underwhelming with only 1 goal in 21 league games.
Tammy Abraham re-joined Aston Villa after 8 years away from the club for around £18m. Abraham last played for Villa in the 2018-19 season where his 25 goals helped the Villains secure promotion to the Premier League. The 28-year-old is expected to provide competition to Ollie Watkins but also provide an aerial threat. Since leaving Chelsea for Roma, Abraham hasn’t settled anywhere and left Besiktas for Villa to hopefully give himself a chance of featuring in England’s World Cup squad this summer. Another return hit the Midlands, with Aston Villa also bringing back former midfielder Douglas Luiz from Juventus on loan until the end of the season with an option to buy included. Luiz has been brought in to bolster Emery’s midfield options, with Boubacar Kamara and John McGinn sidelined for the next few months.