10 Best World Football Transfers Of January 2020 Window
The canniest bargains, the best prospects, all the players Man United missed out on.
As Manchester United unveiled their last-minute capture of a 30-year-old former Watford striker on loan from the Chinese Super League, it was clear that this was not going to be the most gripping deadline day ever. In fact, this year had the lowest net spending on deadline day in a decade.
The January transfer window as a whole was not the most eventful either with United repeatedly failing to land a reliable centre forward and Chelsea baffling everyone by fighting to rescind their transfer ban and then not actually signing anyone.
That doesn't mean, though, that there weren't a few big deals made and big players on the move. And more than a few players who could prove the crucial final piece in a puzzle which tips their team over the thin line between failure and success.
Here, then, are the ten transfers from across the football world during the recent transfer window that are most likely to make the biggest difference, prove the smartest deals and just maybe set their new clubs on a path to glory.
10. Takumi Minamino - RB Salzburg To Liverpool
The runaway Premier League leaders look to already have the title in the bag and were quite probably the best team in the world through 2019, so their squad doesn't appear to be in obvious need of strengthening. Nevertheless this pacy little Japanese winger looks a shrewd purchase.
Minamino only cost Liverpool the £7.25 million needed to activate his release clause from Salzburg, which means that the 24 year old comes without the pressure of a big fee (unlike, say, Man United's Bruno Fernandes) and is relatively under the radar.
He has already impressed in the Champions League for Salzburg, the club where the Reds' current star forward Sadio Mané made his name. His volleyed goal in the 4-3 thriller against his new club in this season's group stage obviously made Liverpool take notice.
While it's unlikely that Minamino will unseat any of Liverpool's unstoppable Mané-Firmino-Salah forward trio from the preferred starting lineup, his speed and energy off the ball gives Jürgen Klopp another option to shake things up.
With the club still competing on three fronts and an invincible season still a distinct possibility, Liverpool will need every player to give it their all. The fresh option provided by their latest signing might be just what they need.