January Transfer Window: Ranking World Football's Top 50 Available Players

Michael CummingsJun 7, 2018

The winter transfer market is starting to heat up, but scores of talented players are still available.

This is a ranking of the 50 best players available.

Before we get to the list, though, we need to go over a few rules.

First, what do we mean by "available"?

That's a tough one. We really don't know for sure whether most players actually are available until they've already transferred. So to make this easier, we went with the old-fashioned eye test. If they legitimately seem available for a transfer, they made the list. If not, they didn't.

That's why you won't find Neymar, Mario Götze, Hulk, Wesley Sneijder or Eden Hazard in these rankings. Simply put, we're pretty sure those guys aren't going anywhere.

Hulk's release clause is worth something on the order of $100 billion. Neymar is making soda commercials on the beaches of South America and poking fun at the whole of Europe. Wesley Sneijder…well, he's Wesley Sneijder. Eden Hazard and Mario Götze are going to transfer to a bigger club eventually, but it most likely won't be this month.

Leaving those guys out made the compilation of this list a bit harder, but we felt it was right for credibility's sake.

Second, this is not a ranking of the talents of each player. We took several factors into account—from talent, to value, to hype, to the amount of money that potentially could be spent in a hypothetical deal. Throw all those together and you get a highly scientific formula that accurately ranks every player.

Just kidding. Rankings, of course, are highly subjective, and we know you'll tear apart every pick with gusto.

Finally, we know we included one player that has already signed. Sue us. We didn't want to change the list.

With those things in mind, let's get to the list.

50. Liam Ridgewell

1 of 50

Club: Birmingham City

Country: England

Age: 27

Position: Defender

Reportedly Wanted By: West Brom

Ridgewell was the subject of transfer speculation last summer. Now he's in the news again. Back then it was Celtic. Now it's West Brom.

His club, of course, is saying there have been no inquiries.

49. Salomon Kalou

2 of 50

Club: Chelsea

Country: Ivory Coast

Age: 26

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Arsenal

Kalou's contract with Chelsea ends after the season. Arsenal need strikers.

Apparently, the two are a match.

48. Papa 'Baba' Diawara

3 of 50

Club: Maritimo

Country: Senegal

Age: 24

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Celtic

Celtic reportedly made a move for Diawara last summer, but the Senegalese striker stayed in Portugal with Maritimo. Apparently undeterred, Celtic are reportedly interested again this winter.

TOP NEWS

Real Madrid CF v Girona FC - LaLiga EA Sports

Bleacher Report1w

Real Betis V Real Madrid - Laliga Ea Sports

Bleacher Report1w

47. James Tomkins

4 of 50

Club: West Ham United

Country: England

Age: 22

Position: Central defender

Reportedly Wanted By: Newcastle

West Ham have rejected multiple bids from Newcastle for Tomkins, a former England Under-21 international. Club officials have ruled out a move, but you know how these things go.

46. Olivier Giroud

5 of 50

Club: Montpellier

Country: France

Age: 25

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Newcastle, Arsenal

Giroud has been one of the key players in Montpellier's surprising run near the top of France's Ligue 1 this season. Now he's apparently too big for a club like Newcastle.

Maybe not for Arsenal. But at £40 million, he might be too expensive.

45. Carlos Kameni

6 of 50

Club: Espanyol

Country: Cameroon

Age: 27

Position: Goalkeeper

Reportedly Wanted By: Malaga

Kameni was reportedly coveted by Roma last summer but stayed with Espanyol. Now it seems he's a target of moneybags Malaga.

44. Victor Moses

7 of 50

Club: Wigan Athletic

Country: England

Age: 21

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Liverpool, Tottenham

Wigan pulled off a coup by signing Moses in 2010. Now they're facing a fight to re-sign him, especially with Premier League giants Liverpool and Tottenham reportedly interested in his services.

Moses is Nigerian by birth but has represented England at several youth levels.

43. Florent Malouda

8 of 50

Club: Chelsea

Country: France

Age: 31

Position: Winger

Reportedly Wanted By: PSG

Malouda, who's on the wrong side of 30, is reportedly looking for a move away from Stamford Bridge in the hopes that he can improve his standing with France ahead of Euro 2012.

Except that more recently he reportedly said he wants to stay and fight for his place. Who knows?

42. Tomasz Kuszczak

9 of 50

Club: Manchester United

Country: Poland

Age: 29

Position: Goalkeeper

Reportedly Wanted By: Olympiacos

Kuszczak hasn't played in what seems like a decade, but he's still a solid keeper. Olympiacos reportedly want to end his awful spell at Manchester United.

41. Junior Hoilett

10 of 50

Club: Blackburn Rovers

Country: Canada

Age: 21

Position: Winger

Reportedly Wanted By: Tottenham, Stoke, Bolton

Everybody wants Junior Hoilett. Well, at least a few English clubs want him.

The list includes Spurs, Stoke and Bolton, so decide for yourself which team leads the pack.

40. Wilfried Zaha

11 of 50

Club: Crystal Palace

Country: England

Age: 19

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Liverpool, Newcastle

Zaha, who has represented England at the Under-19 level, is reportedly drawing interest from Liverpool and Newcastle after some strong performances this season in the Championship.

He recently signed a new contract, meaning a transfer would be much more expensive.

39. Kieran Richardson

12 of 50

Club: Sunderland

Country: England

Age: 27

Position: Winger

Reportedly Wanted By: Arsenal

The whole thing sounds wacky, but Arsenal are reportedly interested in bringing Richardson, a 27-year-old Manchester United reject, to London.

It would make some sense, though, since Richardson can fill in as an emergency full-back. Arsenal, as you know, need full-backs badly.

You be the judge.

38. William Gallas

13 of 50

Club: Tottenham Hotspur

Country: France

Age: 34

Position: Defender

Reportedly Wanted By: PSG, MLS

Gallas reportedly turned down the overtures of PSG, only to express interest in a potential move to MLS or Qatar.

OK, Willie, you got us there. What do you want to do?

37. Alex

14 of 50

Club: Chelsea

Country: Brazil

Age: 29

Position: Defender

Reportedly Wanted By: QPR, Juventus, Santos

Alex is out of favor at Chelsea, but he's apparently popular in the transfer market. QPR have shown interest, as have Juventus and Santos.

36. Andy Polo

15 of 50

Club: Universitario

Country: Peru

Age: 17

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Various

Polo, a 17-year-old Peruvian prodigy, has been on the radar screens of European clubs for some time now. Arsenal and Tottenham reportedly showed interest late last year, while Liverpool and Manchester City have also reportedly joined the chase.

Polo, for his part, apparently fancies Barcelona. But who doesn't?

35. Martín Cáceres

16 of 50

Club: Sevilla

Country: Uruguay

Age: 24

Position: Defender

Nearly Signed By: Juventus

This one is reportedly almost done. Cáceres, who can play across the back four, is reportedly close to signing with Juventus from Sevilla in a €10 million move.

He should be a valuable addition.

34. Dedé

17 of 50

Club: Vasco Da Gama

Country: Brazil

Age: 23

Position: Central defender, sweeper

Reportedly Wanted By: Real Madrid, Juventus

Dedé is yet another young Brazilian star who's reportedly drawing interest from Europe. Juventus reportedly chased him late last year. More recently he has been linked with Real Madrid.

33. Andre-Pierre Gignac

18 of 50

Club: Marseille

Country: France

Age: 26

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Fulham

This one ranks No. 33 on entertainment value alone.

It's not secret that Fulham have been after Gignac—for a long, long, long time. The mystery is exactly how the two sides haven't been able to agree a deal.

The latest news? Oh yeah, the deal is apparently off again.

32. Isaac Cuenca

19 of 50

Club: Barcelona

Country: Spain

Age: 20

Position: Winger

Reportedly Wanted By: Manchester United

Cuenca recently forced his way into the Barcelona first team after spending all of 2010 with Barcelona B. Nonetheless, he has reportedly attracted interest from a few English clubs, especially Manchester United.

Cuenca, no surprise, wants to stay with Barca.

31. Benjamin Corgnet

20 of 50

Club: Dijon

Country: France

Age: 24

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Liverpool

Corgnet was playing amateur football in 2010. Now he's being linked with a move to Liverpool or Newcastle.

How's that for a turnaround?

30. Nilmar

21 of 50

Club: Villarreal

Country: Brazil

Age: 27

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: AS Roma, various Brazilian clubs

Nilmar appeared set for a transfer to Roma as recently as December. Now he's saying he wants to stay with Villarreal.

If he does want to leave, multiple Brazilian clubs are reportedly interested.

29. Lucas Ocampos

22 of 50

Club: River Plate

Country: Argentina

Age: 17

Position: Winger/forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Chelsea, others

Various English clubs, especially Chelsea, have been linked with Ocampos for a few months now. But the Argentine teen starlet is going nowhere, according to his club.

This sounds like a familiar story.

28. Luuk De Jong

23 of 50

Club: Twente

Country: Netherlands

Age: 21

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Fiorentina, Liverpool

De Jong reportedly turned down a move to Fiorentina recently, saying he wanted to stay with Twente. But that hasn't stopped the rumor mill from cranking out stories about a potential move to Liverpool.

27. Alan Dzagoev

24 of 50

Club: CSKA Moscow

Country: Russia

Age: 21

Position: Attacking midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Manchester United

Dubbed the "Russian Messi," Dzagoev earns a spot on this list almost solely on the strength of that hyperbolic nickname. Anyway, Manchester United are apparently interested, and Arsenal were linked to him last summer.

26. Marco Reus (Signed)

25 of 50

Club: Borussia Mönchengladbach (soon Borussia Dortmund)

Country: Germany

Age: 22

Position: Midfielder/forward

Signed By: Borussia Dortmund

Yes, we know he has already signed, but we're including him anyway, for three reasons. First, he won't join Dortmund until the end of the season. Second, his transfer might mark a shift in the balance of German football. So that's kind of big.

Third, we've been working on this list for a while. We didn't want to change it. Sorry.

25. Rasmus Elm

26 of 50

Club: AZ Alkmaar

Country: Sweden

Age: 23

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Manchester United

Rasmus Elm (almost) shares a name with a Renaissance humanist and is reportedly drawing interest from Manchester United. The stories suggest a summer move, but with United's midfield being in the shape it's in, a deal could happen sooner.

Oh, and CSKA Moscow supposedly had a chance as well.

24. Frank Lampard

27 of 50

Club: Chelsea

Country: England

Age: 33

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Manchester United, others

Lampard is 33, so this ranking might have more to do with nostalgia than anything. Regardless, Frankie thinks he's still good enough to start somewhere, while his manager clearly thinks Lampard is more effective as a sub.

We're with the manager, but no one asked us. Manchester United reportedly lodged an improbable bid. Even more improbably, West Ham are reportedly showing interest as well.

23. Didier Drogba

28 of 50

Club: Chelsea

Country: Ivory Coast

Age: 33

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Various

Drogba is another of Chelsea's golden oldies. Every now and then he plays well, but it's probably for the best that he's available for a transfer.

Offers are reportedly flowing in from around the globe.

22. Jack Rodwell

29 of 50

Club: Everton

Country: England

Age: 20

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Chelsea

And here's one of the young'uns who would dare to replace Chelsea's old guard. After a strong start to the season with Everton and a couple of England caps, Jack Rodwell has reportedly drawn interest from Chelsea. For £20 million.

Shockingly, Everton are denying the link. Shockingly.

21. Nikica Jelavic

30 of 50

Club: Rangers

Country: Croatia

Age: 26

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Liverpool, others

Jelavic leads the Scottish Premier League with 12 goals this season. That must mean he's headed to England.

Apparently so. Liverpool (and Chelsea) have been linked with the Croatian international. And he's apparently batting his eyelashes back at them.

20. Cheick Tioté

31 of 50

Club: Newcastle United

Country: Ivory Coast

Age: 25

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Various

Few people had heard of Ivorian midfielder Cheick Tioté when he joined Newcastle from FC Twente in 2010. Now everybody wants him, apparently.

Manchester City (no surprise there) lead the chasing pack, according to reports, though others are interested.

19. Álvaro Pereira

32 of 50

Club: Porto

Country: Uruguay

Age: 26

Position: Full-back

Reportedly Wanted By: Chelsea

Pereira, a Uruguayan wing-back, helped Andre Villas-Boas win a glut of trophies with Porto. It's hardly surprising, then, that AVB is now reportedly interested in bringing Pereira to Chelsea.

Chelsea and Arsenal both tried to sign Pereira last summer.

18. Esteban Granero

33 of 50

Club: Real Madrid

Country: Spain

Age: 24

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Everyone

The papers aren't afraid of any Esteban Granero story, no matter how crazy it sounds.

The Sun reported that Granero was headed to Arsenal, which seemed to make enough sense. But then it got crazy.

The Mail Online then included Granero in a wacky Frank Lampard-to-Madrid swap deal. Finally, the Mirror capped off the crazy with a rumor sending Granero to Blackburn.

17. Riccardo Montolivo

34 of 50

Club: Fiorentina

Country: Italy

Age: 26 (turns 27 on Jan. 18)

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Manchester United, Arsenal

Montolivo has not signed a new deal with Fiorentina, so that means the rumor mill is on high alert. He's been linked with United and Arsenal, possibly on a free transfer next summer.

Fiorentina, of course, are saying he's going nowhere this month.

16. Nicolás Gaitán

35 of 50

Club: Benfica

Country: Argentina

Age: 23

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Manchester United

Sir Alex Ferguson keeps saying United won't buy anyone this month, but United keep finding themselves linked with big-money moves.

One such link is to Gaitán, an attacking midfielder at Benfica who would reportedly cost United £30 million.

Word is that Gaitán is interested.

15. Christopher Samba

36 of 50

Club: Blackburn Rovers

Country: Congo

Age: 27

Position: Central defender

Reportedly Wanted By: Tottenham, QPR

Samba is a powerful, 6'4" defender for Blackburn, but probably not for long. The Congolese defender has been linked with Tottenham (which would seem to be a good fit) and QPR (heh).

For a player as big and strong and valuable as Samba, £8 million seems like a reasonable deal.

14. Gary Cahill

37 of 50

Club: Bolton Wanderers

Country: England

Age: 26

Position: Central defender

Reportedly Wanted By: Chelsea, others

Cahill is an up-and-coming England international (seven caps) who could be on the move this winter. Bolton and Chelsea reportedly agreed a £7 million fee (which would be a good deal) for his transfer, only for the deal to stall over personal terms.

That apparently opened the door for Manchester United, who need defenders.

13. Kaká

38 of 50

Club: Real Madrid

Country: Brazil

Age: 29

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Tottenham Hotspur, others

Kaká is clearly not the player he once was (Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year winner). But he's still a talented attacker who could be a great signing for the right club.

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp reportedly wants Kaká. PSG and Chelsea are also in the mix.

12. Gonzalo Higuaín

39 of 50

Club: Real Madrid

Country: Argentina

Age: 24

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Arsenal, others

El Pipita is being linked with a surprise move to Arsenal, among others. Not that we expect it to happen, but if it did, this would be a huge move.

11. Lukas Podolski

40 of 50

Club: Köln

Country: Germany

Age: 27

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Arsenal, Liverpool

Regardless of how well Thierry Henry started his second stint at Arsenal, he's only going to be there for a couple of months. That means Arsenal still need strikers.

The most likely option is Podolski, who has been an on-again, off-again target of the Gunners.

Then there's Liverpool.

10. Demba Ba

41 of 50

Club: Newcastle United

Country: Senegal

Age: 26

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Various

Demba Ba is a hot name right now in England. The Senegalese forward has drawn interest from several clubs for his cracking displays this season, especially in Newcastle's recent 3-0 win over Manchester United.

Also sparking interest is speculation that Ba's contract has a cheap buyout clause.

Ba sits second in the Premier League scoring charts behind Arsenal's Robin van Persie.

9. Leandro Damião

42 of 50

Club: Internacional

Country: Brazil

Age: 22

Position: Forward

Reportedly Wanted By: Various

Everybody knows about Neymar, but you here's another up-and-coming Brazilian name: Leandro Damião.

Damião's club, Internacional, are asking a reported £28.5 million for him, but that hasn't stopped several clubs from showing interest.

8. Ganso

43 of 50

Club: Santos

Country: Brazil

Age: 22

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Various

And here's another up-and-coming Brazilian.

Paulo Henrique Ganso, or just Ganso, plays for Santos, the same club as Neymar. And like Neymar, he's drawing interest from Europe, especially Tottenham Hotspur.

7. Xherdan Shaqiri

44 of 50

Club: FC Basel

Country: Switzerland

Age: 20

Position: Winger

Reportedly Wanted By: Manchester United, Porto

Shaqiri might not have the talent ceiling of players like Ganso or Leandro Damião, but he's already shown he can compete at the highest level in Europe.

Speaking of which, Manchester United reportedly became interested the Basel starlet after the teams met this season in the Champions League.

Porto have also shown interest.

6. Daniele De Rossi

45 of 50

Club: AS Roma

Country: Italy

Age: 29

Position: Midfielder

Reportedly Wanted By: Manchester City

Unrelated: Anybody else see Snooki wearing that De Rossi jersey last Thursday on Jersey Shore?

No? OK, moving on.

Anyway, this one is iffy. De Rossi is reportedly close to signing a lucrative extension with AS Roma, the only club of his professional career.

But it's hard to rule out Manchester City and their seemingly unlimited millions. Even if they're doing just that.

5. Eric Abidal

46 of 50

Club: Barcelona

Country: France

Age: 32

Position: Full-back

Reportedly Wanted By: Arsenal

This one is intriguing. Abidal plays for Barcelona and would probably like to stay there. But he hasn't agreed to a new contract yet, and that has reportedly alerted Arsenal of the possibility of a transfer.

Considering how badly Arsenal need full-backs, this deal would be huge.