The transfer window closes in five days and clubs up and down the Premier League must move fast to get their business done. There will be moves happening right up until the final seconds of the window so let’s assess which late deals could be on the cards, and how they will help teams over the remainder of the season.
Chelsea (7/1 to win Premier League title) have been linked with a £52m double bid for Atletico Madrid striker Sergio Aguero and defender Diego Godin, though the club have been quick to dismiss reports. The other big transfer gossip surrounding Carlo Ancelotti’s side is they had a £17m bid for Benfica defender David Luiz turned down, but the Blues are confident of pushing through a deal.
If Chelsea hold out any hope of catching Manchester United, a club who have already stated they do not intend to bring anyone in, a new defender would be crucial to their hopes as their back four have looked more susceptible than in many years. A new top striker like Aguero would also make a massive difference as Anelka and Drogba are not getting any younger and have gone off the boil in recent months.
Arsene Wenger has been linked with a number of targets during the window, but what has to be his top priority is a central defender as Arsenal (13/5 to win title) are wafer-thin for centre-backs. It would be a massive surprise if Wenger moved for Jonathan Woodgate, as reports suggest, but it seems the boss might not be willing to splash the cash despite Lille midfielder Eden Hazard and Southampton’s teenager Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain being heavily linked with the Emirates. Many Gunners fans will be disappointed to hear Wenger ruling out bringing in new faces, leaving the Carling Cup as possibly Arsenal’s best chance of ending their wait for silverware this summer.
One transfer link that has refused to go away all January is Liverpool (28/1 to finish in top four) moving for Luis Suarez. There is no doubting the addition of the Uruguayan striker would improve Liverpool drastically, but with both clubs struggling to agree on a price it would not be a shock if no deal were done before the window closes. The same can be said of Liverpool’s interest in Charlie Adam as Kenny Dalglish seeks to improve a struggling Reds side for the second half of the season. New players are needed to inspire Liverpool so Dalglish could be busy right up to the closing moments of the deadline.
Sunderland have money to burn following the sale of Darren Bent, which despite the inflated price could be the smartest deal of the window as Aston Villa needed a goalscorer and that is exactly what Bent (20/1 to be top Premier League goal scorer) is, and so there are likely to be incomings in addition to the capture of Ricardo Fuller. Freddie Piquionne has been linked with a £3.5 million move, but he is not a patch on the goal-scoring talent of Bent, while Sulley Muntari seems to be on his way from Inter Milan. Sunderland have had a great season to sit in sixth, but unless they get a truly quality replacement for Bent they are likely to drop down the table.
Villa have done the second-biggest deal of the window with the capture of Bent, with Manchester City’s £27 million signing of Edin Dzeko looking likely to ensure they are United’s biggest threats for the title (City 12/1 to win Premier League), and Gerard Houllier could still be a busy man. He has been linked with Spurs’ forgotten midfielder Jermaine Jenas, who would offer a good attacking threat through the middle, and he would replace the under-performing Stephen Ireland – who seems likely to head out on loan, possibly to Newcastle. There is no doubting Ireland’s ability and if he got his head back in line then his talent would be a great addition to compliment Kevin Nolan and Joey Barton in Alan Pardew’s side.
The Robbie Keane saga continues to rumble on and there is no conclusion about where he is going to end up. A move to Birmingham failed to materialise, the likes of Wolves, Newcastle and Sunderland have all been linked, and now West Ham (4/7 to be relegated) are the latest suitors for the Spurs star. With seemingly half the Premier League interested in him it might be a case of just picking a name out of the hat, but it continues to look nailed on he will be wearing a new shirt by the end of the month.
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