January Transfer Window 2016: Ranking the Top 5 Deals
That’s it. The transfer window has shut and Premier League clubs are left with the players at their disposal for the remainder of the 2015/16 campaign.
Whether they are additions to help challenge for the title, push for Europe or stave off relegation, the new signings have the potential to completely change the story of their club’s campaign, but which have been the most impressive arrivals?
Let’s rank the top five.
5. Alberto Paloschi, Chievo to Swansea City
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Swansea City have struggled to score goals all season, and as head coach Francesco Guidolin has joined up for their relegation battle, he’s brought in a fellow Italian to help him out.
Alberto Paloschi, formerly of AC Milan, Parma and Genoa, has been a consistent goalscoring force for Chievo for the past few seasons, and he’ll bring a different element to a Swansea attack which was too often let down by Bafetimbi Gomis running offside.
With the full backing of his manager—who can help him settle into his new club by instructing him in Italian—Paloschi will be looking to thrive on service from the likes of Andre Ayew, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Jefferson Montero, making up a skilled quartet which should have more than enough to keep them in the division.
4. Charlie Austin, QPR to Southampton
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It was always a case of when rather than if Charlie Austin would leave Queens Park Rangers, with one of last season’s top Premier League performers seemingly waiting for the right time to make his move.
He could have stayed in west London until the summer and allowed his contract to run out, thereby earning a lucrative free transfer somewhere else, but his move to Southampton seems to have come at the right time for everyone.
Graziano Pelle hasn’t quite been firing on all cylinders this season, with his patchy form contributing to an up-and-down Saints season. The arrival of Austin—and his guaranteed goals—has just given Ronald Koeman a lift at a vital time.
3. Steven Naismith, Everton to Norwich City
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It was a decent window for Norwich City, and surely their best addition was Steven Naismith from Everton.
The Scotland international doesn’t just bring footballing ability with him—although he showed that with his debut goal in that crazy game against Liverpool—but he also adds a huge dash of character to a squad who are going to be in desperate need of it if they are going to stay up.
Naismith’s ability to buzz around a football pitch and be effective in the final third is hugely underrated, and he’ll be vital in the closing months of the campaign.
2. Benik Afobe, Wolves to Bournemouth
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Bournemouth have impressed many people this season, but as the campaign enters the business end, they still find themselves just above the relegation zone.
It sounds simplistic, but to get out of that situation they are going to need goals, and so the addition of a recognised goalscorer had to be a key priority in January.
As well as signing Lewis Grabban and Juan Iturbe, manager Eddie Howe was also able to bring in the former Arsenal forward Benik Afobe, following a season-and-a-half of repeatedly finding the net for MK Dons and Wolves.
Questions could be asked over his ability to score at highest level, but strikes against relegation rivals Norwich and Sunderland show that he certainly knows where the net is, and he could be the difference between the Cherries going down and staying up.
1. Mario Suarez, Fiorentina to Watford
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Watford fans must be marvelling at the transformation achieved by head coach Quique Sanchez Flores in such a short space of time, with the addition of Mario Suarez showing just how far the newly promoted club have come.
Tapping into the fact that everyone wants to play in the Premier League, Flores has been able to attract names that would have been previously unattainable to the Vicarage Road club, with the former Atletico Madrid midfielder Suarez becoming just the latest.
Suarez has three caps for Spain and won La Liga and the Europa League with Atletico, and he’s likely to become Flores’ man in the centre of midfield—much more than, say, Ben Watson—as the Hornets’ revolution continues.
