The chilly winter transfer window came with a lot of speculation, rounds of negotiation and money changing hands as it finally came to an end late last night. All though there weren’t many big blockbuster deals, there ware some surprise moves & money being spent on the potential for some hotly tipped youngsters.
Join us as we have a look at some of the most interesting deals across Europe:
1) Higuain to Chelsea (AC Milan to Chelsea – On loan)
Along striker saga involving five clubs finally came to an end with Chelsea announcing the loan deal for Gonzalo Higuain. As a result AC Milan got Piatek from Genoa and blues shipped Alvaro Morata on loan to Atletico Madrid. The deal was complicated as the Argentine was already on loan at Milan from his parent club Juventus.
2) Frenkie De Jong (Ajax to Barcelona – £65m)
Barcelona secured the signing of one of the hottest young prospects in world football for a huge fee of £65m + add ons. Paris Saint-Germain & Manchester City were also interested in the midfielder who will join on July 1. Reports in Netherlands suggested that the player earlier had made up his mind to join Pep Guardiola in Manchester.
3) Leandro Paredes (Zenit Saint Petersburg to PSG- £35m)
The Argentine midfielder was rumoured to be on his way to Chelsea but was signed instead by the french champions. Maurizio Sarri was looking for a midfielder to replace Cesc Fabregas, but the club hierarchy didnt think he was worth Zenit’s valuation.
4) Krzysztof Piatek (Genoa to AC Milan – £31m)
Gonzalo Higuain’s loan move to Chelsea led to AC Milan sealing the permanent signing of striker Krzysztof Piatek from Genoa on a four-and-a-half year contract. Piatek has been in terrific form so far in the Serie A, scoring 19 goals in 21 appearances for Genoa, and he netted twice on his first start for Milan to secure a 2-0 Coppa Italia victory over Napoli.
5) Alvaro Morata (Chelsea to Atletico Madrid – loan)
The out of favour striker was looking to end his nightmare in London & Atletico Madrid came to his rescue. After spells around, he has finally returned to the club where he started his youth career. Diego Simeone will hope his competition with compatriot Diego Costa will bring out the best out of both.
6) Kevin-Prince Boateng (Sassuolo to Barcelona – loan)
Arguably the most surprising move of the January transfer window saw former Tottenham and Portsmouth midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng join Barcelona on loan from Sassuolo. His experience & versatility makes him a valuable squad addition at the Nou Camp as Barca look to solidify their place at the top of La Liga
7) Benjamin Pavard (Stuttgart to Bayern Munich – £30m)
Bayern Munich have bolstered their defence with the signing of French World Cup winner Benjamin Pavard from Stuttgart. The 22-year-old will join Bayern in the summer, having signed a five-year deal, with reports suggesting the Bundesliga sides have agreed a transfer fee of around £30m.
8) Pepe (Free agent to Porto)
Former Real Madrid and Besiktas defender Pepe signed a two-and-a-half year deal with Porto, rejoining the Primeira Liga club 12 years after leaving. The 35-year-old Portuguese spent three seasons at the Estádio do Dragao between 2004 and 2007, winning two league titles and subsequently joining Real Madrid
9) Mario Balotelli (Nice to Marseille – free)
Former Liverpool and Manchester City striker joined Marseille on a six-month deal after reportedly falling out with Nice manager Patrick Vieira. The 28-year-old’s move was a free transfer. Balotelli continued his impressive run of goalscoring debuts on his first appearance for Marseille in Ligue 1, netting in a home defeat to Lille.
10) Brahim Diaz (Man City to Real Madrid – £15.5m)
Brahim Diaz followed in Jadon Sancho’s footsteps in becoming another teenage talent to leave Manchester City in search of first-team football. The 19-year-old, who signed a six-and-a-half-year deal at the Bernabeu, was left out of City’s Premier League squad for the 2018-19 season and was set to become a free agent in the summer.
