Each year, there is a great sense of anticipation as the clock ticks towards midnight on 31 December before the celebrations begin.
Yes, the opening of the January transfer window brings always with it a great deal of fanfare as the rumour mill goes into overdrive with clubs trying to strengthen their squad for the closing months of the campaign.
Whether it be stragglers aiming to pull clear of the relegation dogfight, clubs frantically searching for short-term replacement for the long-term injured or title challengers hoping to give their squad a lift – no club will rule out conducting business this month.
Not every transfer will be a successful one and January is notoriously a difficult time for conducting business, but some of the Premier League ’s most successful ever signings were concluded during the month over the past few years.
Here is a countdown of ten of the very best January transfers in the division.
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10) Jesse Lingard
Lingard hit the best form in his career at West Ham - netting nine goals in his short stintA candidate from 2021 – Lingard netted an incredible nine goals in just 16 appearances for West Ham, on loan from Manchester United.
Lingard also provided four assists for the Hammers as he proved to be an inspirational addition, with David Moyes’s side challenging for a place in the top four. While they missed out on such a finish, Lingard was key in securing European football as he produced the best form of his career. The only regret for all parties is that the loan move was not made permanent.
9) Seamus Coleman
Coleman has spent over a decade in the first-team squad at Goodison ParkThere will be no signing on this list who works out at better value for money than Coleman, who Everton signed from Irish side Sligo Rovers in 2009.
The Irish full-back has eclipsed 400 first-team appearances for the Merseysiders and is now the club captain. Coleman has been an excellent servant for the Blues and has shown there is no shortage of talent, and value-for-money, across Ireland.
8) Nemanja Matic
Mourinho ensured Matic returned to Chelsea in 2014 after three years in PortugalThree years after being allowed to join Benfica, Jose Mourinho insisted that Chelsea swallowed their pride and re-signed Serbian midfielder Matic.
Playing at the base of a three-man midfield, he was the perfect defensive shield that solidified Mourinho’s Blues and helped their comprehensive title win the following year. That was one of two Premier League titles Matic played a key role in for Chelsea, before his 2017 switch to Manchester United.
7) Branislav Ivanovic
Ivanovic was a low-key Chelsea arrival in 2008 but grew into a central figure in their successAnother Serbian arrival at Stamford Bridge, Ivanovic joined from Lokomotiv Moscow in 2008 and despite an initial low-key role, swiftly became a key player.
He would go on to win nine trophies across a glittering nine-year career at Stamford Bridge, netting an impressive 34 goals across his 377 appearances. He joined Zenit Saint Petersburg in 2017 after establishing himself as somewhat of a cult hero at the Blues.
6) Patrice Evra
Evra and Sir Alex Ferguson enjoyed a close relationship during their time at Old TraffordAnother big defensive hit that arrived in the Premier League in January, Evra moved to Old Trafford from Monaco in 2006. The Frenchman endured a difficult opening to life in England, but would go on to establish himself as a key figure on and off the pitch.
“My first introduction to the real Sir Alex was my debut against Manchester City,” Evra told The Guardian in August 2020. “At half-time, he gave the hairdryer for one minute to every player. It was a long 15 minutes. At the end he say to me in five seconds, ‘Patrice, sit down. You will learn how to play in England.’
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“That night my agent said, ‘We made the biggest mistake coming here. I’m sorry.’ I was upset but I was burning.” Evra won five Premier League titles at Old Trafford, making 379 appearances for the club.
5) Philippe Coutinho
Philippe Coutinho spent five years on Merseyside either side of stints at Inter and BarcelonaSigned by Liverpool for just £8.5million in January 2013, Coutinho may consider himself a tad unfortunate to be so low down in this list.
Within five years, he joined Barcelona in a £142million deal – the highest transfer fee ever which involved an English club. The Brazilian blossomed into a top talent at Anfield following his time at Inter, but did not land a trophy during his time at Merseyside.
4) Luis Suarez
Luis Suarez was signed by Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish in January 2012 to help replace Fernando TorresA year before signing Coutinho, Liverpool landed Andy Carroll and Suarez in a dramatic final day after losing Fernando Torres. The Uruguayan bagged the Golden Boot in 2013-14 with 31 goals in 33 Premier League appearances as the Reds fell just shy of a Premier League title.
He left for Barcelona in 2014 and despite all his on-pitch brilliance, his time in England was marred when he was foound guilty of racially abusing Patrice Evra in 2012 – for which the striker was hit by an eight-game suspension.
3) Bruno Fernandes
Bruno Fernandes joined United from Sporting Lisbon in January 2020The Portuguese star registered 45 direct goal involvements – 28 goals, 17 assists – in his first calendar year at Manchester United, after joining from Sporting Lisbon. Arriving at a beleaguered side well adrift in the top four race, he propelled United to a top three finish and second spot the following year.
“From day one he’s come in and wanted to affect the environment, the playing environment, the staff. He’s been a great addition,” former Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said in January 2021.
“He’s such a humble human being, working hard and I think everyone has seen what he’s done on the pitch.”
2) Virgil van Dijk
Van Dijk totally transformed Liverpool's defence after his £75million switch from SouthamptonWell, there is one signing whose arrival lifted their new side even more than Fernandes at United. Liverpool’s £75million investment in Virgil van Dijk in January 2018 lifted the Reds from being a regular top four contender into a back-to-back Champions League finalist and Premier League winners while registering successive seasons in excess of 95 Premier League points.
A serious injury sustained in late 2020 ruled van Dijk out for the season and Jurgen Klopp’s side were not the same thereafter. Indisputably the world’s best central defender for two years prior to the injury – this was one of the best deals in recent times.
1) Nemanja Vidic
Vidic posing with Sir Alex Ferguson after joining United from Spartak Moscow in 2006The best January signing ever – Vidic was a relatively unknown central defender when he joined Manchester United from Spartak Moscow in 2006.
His transfer fee of £7million was less than a tenth of van Dijk’s move to Liverpool, which – coupled with his huge number of trophies won – sees him pip the Dutchman to top spot. The Serbia international won five Premier League titles, three League Cups, the Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup during his eight-and-a-half-year spell at the club.
Vidic and Evra arrived at United in 2006, helping to form half of a defence which would go on to dominate English football for the next seven years – winning five titles and missing out on the other two by a combined total of one point.
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