Winners and Losers of the 2024 January Transfer Window
It's said that the January transfer window is not a time for doing deals. Finally, it seems like clubs are listening. The 2024 winter window was bleak if you were excited for big moves to happen.
Restrictions due to financial fair play are curtailing the usual wheeling and dealing we're accustomed to. So, if you're a fan of transfers and clubs splashing the cash, you're going to end up being a loser this year.
Some teams managed to tool up for the second half of the season, though. And others managed to keep their prized assets.
Here are your winners and losers from the January 2024 transfer window.
Winners: Tottenham Hotspur
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The cult of personality around Ange Postecoglu is perhaps making Tottenham Hotspur's current standing seem better than it actually is. The new manager has employed fearless, pacey attacking football after arriving in the job and losing star striker Harry Kane.
Spurs sit fourth in the Premier League, eight points off the top, and won't be winning the FA Cup or the League Cup this season. Things are improving, though.
The excitement injected by Postecoglu's football has earned the team a level of goodwill that is unprecedented for a club that is usually ridiculed for being "Spursy" in pressure situations. That goodwill has been extended by chairman Daniel Levy, who has facilitated a couple of smart transfers to help the season maintain its positivity.
The loan move for Timo Werner is effectively a free shot for the manager. If it works out, he'll look like a genius, particularly as Werner is often derided for the poor finishing we've seen across his recent time at Chelsea and RB Leipzig. If it doesn't work out, the forward goes away quietly at the end of the season.
Radu Drăgușin is an exciting permanent signing who should immediately relieve some pressure on a defence that struggles whenever Cristian Romero or Micky van de Ven are missing.
The Romania international, 21, can quickly force his way into the team, and his versatility will prove useful. Considering Spurs have secured loan exits for the likes of Eric Dier, Japhet Tanganga and Sergio Reguilon, it's fair to say the squad is rapidly evolving.
Postecoglu turning that into trophies will determine how long the goodwill lasts, though.
Losers: Arsenal
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Things feel like they're teetering across north London.
Arsenal are just five points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool, and they have also scraped through multiple matches where they haven't played particularly well, showing a resilience that is keeping them in the conversation.
Losses to Aston Villa, West Ham and Fulham outlined the need for reinforcements in December, but January came and went without that happening.
The main issue is not a new one: Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah are not lethal enough strikers to base a title challenge on. Unless, and it's a big unless, Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard are in devastating form.
Granted, this is a team that spreads the goals about. Nine players have more than three in the Premier League this season, but only Saka has more than five. He only has three in his last 10 games. Add in Martinelli having two in total before his late brace in the recent 5-0 win over Crystal Palace, and it's clear to see the drop-off from last season.
It just feels like manager Mikel Arteta needed something a little extra during the window. Some experience, someone to shoulder some responsibility, to hold the ball up, to bring his talented group into play. Perhaps the mythical Karim Benzema transfer needed to be triggered.
Maybe it was time to get ahead of the game and land Ivan Toney…
Winners: Brentford
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Mention of Toney brings us to Brentford. Their window would have been successful if they had just kept their talisman, who is now back from an eight-month ban.
Thomas Frank's side went further, though, snapping up the useful Reguilon on loan from Spurs, plus youngsters Yunus Emre Konak and Hakon Valdimarsson for cover.
It nearly got even better, as well. The Bees were on the verge of signing one of the continent's hottest prospects in Antonio Nusa, but some fitness worries means they will now put off a potential deal until the summer, per Dom Smith of the Evening Standard.
The 18-year-old would by no means be a direct replacement for Toney, but he's an exciting winger who could thrill Brentford fans with his willingness to make things happen.
The club were right to be cautious, though. A little more clarity, both on the player's situation and whether Brentford are in the Premier League next season, will eventually decide if this happens.
Still, Toney stays. That's all they need.
Losers: Saudi Arabia
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Just five months ago, we named Saudi Arabia as the winner of the summer transfer window.
We listed the major names who decided to join the growing project for vast sums of money. Now, it might not be long until we're listing the major names who have decided to leave.
Jordan Henderson packed in his time in with Al-Ettifaq after half a year. Roberto Firmino and Karim Benzema are rumoured to be following soon. Whether it's cultural differences, dreary attendance numbers or any other reason, it's not the most positive sign that players want to quickly move on.
The mind wanders back to the boom of the Chinese Super League in 2016, to Alex Teixeira choosing Jiangsu Suning over a potential move to Liverpool; a transfer that made him a non-existent entity to many football lovers across the world.
While a future of major television deals and UEFA Champions League crossovers potentially awaits for Saudi Arabia, the same could be happening again.
Winners: Borussia Dortmund
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The window of the loan signing has really paid dividends for Borussia Dortmund.
Not only did they make an excellent pick-up in grabbing Ian Maatsen from Chelsea, but they also swooped to rescue Jadon Sancho from his Manchester United nightmare. Both arrived with something to prove and both have contributed right away.
Some may paint United as losers for letting Sancho stroll back to his old club, but in reality, that relationship is over. Keeping him festering away from the main squad doesn't work for anyone.
It's good to have Sancho playing football again—especially if you're a Dortmund fan.
Losers: Liverpool
6 of 6There's no doubt the biggest transfer news of the window didn't involve a player.
Jurgen Klopp's decision to leave Liverpool at the end of the season will have the biggest impact on football of any story from January. It's a giant moment of change that will take expert planning for the Reds to get over.
It won't be long before he's followed by Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and the remaining players who defined his incredible tenure at Anfield. Whoever comes in next has a hell of a job to maintain the side's brilliance on the pitch and culture off it.
The winter window may have disappointed those who were looking for more memorable deals, but the announcement of Klopp's exit might mark it down as one of the most significant in recent memory.
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