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| The January transfer window could make or break a team's season |
January is finally upon us and we all know what that
means; the re-opening of the transfer window. 31 days of gossip fuelled news
and players making the moves from club-to-club, either on loan or permanently.
But, who does need to sign who before February 1st? Find out below.
Arsenal
A stuttering start to the season but Arsenal ended 2011
in the top four. Much of the credit goes down to Robin Van Persie, with the
Gunners winning every league game he has scored in since the 3-0 win over
Bolton Wanderers in September. However, it is therein that the initial problem
lies. When the Dutchman doesn’t score, the top four hopefuls don’t win. Arsene
Wenger needs to bring in a striker that can find the back of the net when his captain
doesn’t and while Thierry Henry may be a temporary answer to a permanent
problem, a front-man who knows how to score is imperative this month,
especially with Gervinho and Marouane Chamakh due to fly out for the African
Cup of Nations shortly.
Furthermore, with mounting injuries problems in both
full-back positions, a short-term loan move may be on the cards for the Arsenal
manager. Wayne Bridge has been linked with a loan move to the Emirates,
something Wenger has claimed he knows nothing about, but he could be a solution
until the likes of Kieran Gibbs and Andre Santos return from injury. AC Milan
left-back Taye Taiwo has also been linked with a move but he has already stated
his intention to remain in the Italian capital. Nevertheless, with the Frenchman
forced into playing centre-backs out of position and with Thomas Vermaelen now
out for a majority of the month, two arrivals could well be a minimum for the
North London side.
Aston Villa
If Aston Villa’s emphatic 3-1 win over Chelsea is
anything to go by, it is that the Villains will be in need of a striker who,
like Darren Bent, knows where the net is. The fact that, despite being 10th
in the league, Alex McLeish’s side have scored less than both Blackburn Rovers
and Bolton Wanderers, the two teams that occupy 19th and 20th
in the Premiership. The England
international is the club’s top scorer with six goals to his name and while
Gabriel Agbonlahor is second behind him with five, both Nathan Delfouneso and
Emile Heskey have just one goal between them this season.
With Bent out injured, the club managed only one goal in
the three games prior to the aforementioned win over the Blues and with a lack
of goals hindering their push up the table, like Arsenal a new front-man may be
a necessity even if it is at the expense of Delfouneso and Heskey. Many
suspected a creative midfielder could be added to the squad but following
Stephen Ireland’s performance on New Year’s eve, the Irishman will be hoping
for an extended run in the team as he looks to replicate his form which saw him
become such a success during his time with Manchester City.
Blackburn Rovers
Where to start with Blackburn Rovers? Four points from
their last two games against Liverpool and Manchester United doesn’t quite mask
the problems happening at Ewood Park, as impressive as the results may have
been. Languishing in the bottom three, and bottom of the table at Christmas,
Rovers are in dire need of some investment to help stop the rut at Ewood Park.
First and foremost, the fans need to back Steve Kean rather than continue to
pressure the under-fire Scot and trust in him to turn the clubs fortunes around
because, if the owners are to be believed, he won’t be getting the sack anytime
soon.
With that in mind, The Venky’s now need to back Kean
financially this month. Some proven Premier League talent will help push
Blackburn out of the relegation zone and as important as that is, tying down
Junior Hoilett to a new contract is essential. The Canadian youngster has been
one of the shining stars for the club this season but, with his contract
expiring in six months time, Blackburn will be hoping to sign him back on
rather than risk losing him on the cheap. Kean already insists he has targets
lined up this month and it is crucial that they move quickly in order to aid in
the clubs fight against relegation.
Bolton Wanderers
The Trotters are in a similar position to Blackburn
Rovers, both in the Premiership and in the fight to keep hold of star men. In
demand Gary Cahill has been courted by the likes of Tottenham and Chelsea over
the summer and the latter are now close to sealing to sealing a switch for the
England international, who is out of contract in the summer. A replacement will
be needed to fill the gap that the centre-back will leave but finding one of
similar quality may be somewhat of an uphill task for manager Owen Coyle, while
bringing in someone to partner him could help having conceded 43 goals already
this year.
The goal situation could be improved as well for Bolton,
with the relegation fodder only scoring 25 goals in the Premiership and despite
the seven goals from Ivan Klasnic sending him to the top of scoring charts, the
next highest scoring striker is summer signing David N’Gog with a measly two
strikes to his name. A big name striker isn’t of the must but one who knows
where the net is to help ease the goal-scoring burden, while firing them out of
the bottom three, will help take the pressure off Coyle. Roman Pavlyuchenko
from Tottenham would be a good acquisition, provided Chris Eagles can continue
to provide the service from the right flank.
Chelsea
If the first five months of the season is anything to by,
Chelsea are in desperate need of some quality centre-backs. John Terry is a
mainstay but David Luiz, at times, doesn’t really look like he knows he is a
defender, Alex is shooting off this month after having a transfer request
accepted last month, while Branislav Ivanovic is too similar to the current
Chelsea captain for them to form a decent partnership in the back four. Gary
Cahill is very much expected to make the move to Stamford Bridge over the next
couple of weeks and his arrival will certainly shore up the Blues leaky defence
with manager Andre Villas-Boas keen on recreating the England defensive
partnership.
Elsewhere, rumours are continuously linking Didier Drogba
with a move away from the West Londoners and even so, the African Cup of
Nations will tear him and team-mate Saloman Kalou away for the rest of January
and, should Ivory Coast make it through to the knockout stages most of February
as well. With Fernando Torres out-of-form, Romelu Lukaku still finding his feet
in England and Nicholas Anelka already packed off to China, a new front-man
wouldn’t go amiss. Edinson Cavani has been strongly linked with move to England
and with Villas-Boas, reportedly, handed a £150m war chest to help strengthen
the clubs position in the league.
Everton
Goals appears to be the problem for a majority of the
Premier League’s top side and Everton are no different. A low of just 20 goals
for the season, an average of almost a goal-a-game sees the Toffees languishing
in the lower half of the table, albeit, with a game in hand over 10th
placed Sunderland and Norwich City in 9th, one point separating the
three teams. Their joint top scorers have just three goals between them and,
perhaps even worse, is the fact that one of them is left-back Leighton Baines. A
natural goalscorer is what David Moyes is in desperate need of at Goodison Park
and he needs to find it sooner rather than later otherwise they run the risk of
falling behind the pack in the hunt for a Europa League spot.
However, elsewhere on the pitch, the Merseysiders appear
to be fine with the club boasting the fifth best defensive record in the
Premiership, the four above them being the top three teams Manchester City,
Manchester United and Tottenham along with locals rivals Liverpool. Everton
just need someone who knows where the net is. However, with the board unwilling
to splash the cash, it is easier said than done for Moyes.
Fulham
Martin Jol’s outfit, despite possessing four players with
five or more goals for the season, still lack a consistent front-man to lead
the line. Bobby Zamora and Andy Johnson have both been linked with respective
exits from the club and despite Clint Dempsey scoring nine goals already; the
aforementioned duo have double that between them. It is unclear as to who Jol
will try and bring in this month; Andre-Pierre Gignac of Marseille has already
been ruled out by the Dutchman while Mounir El Hamdaoui of Ajax is another name
to have been linked with the Cottagers in recent weeks and, more recently, Maxi
Lopez of Catania denied speculation he is set for a move to Craven Cottage.
The platform for success with the West London outfit is
there for all to see but, a lack of consistency at the back has really hindered
their push up the table. Captain Brede Hangeland recently admitted he has
played alongside no less than eight team-mates in the back-four and perhaps all
Fulham need to aid them is for Jol to find a defence and settle on it.
Liverpool
Despite spending heavily in the last 12 months, with the
minimum requirement set to Kenny Dalglish expected to be a top-four finish, Liverpool
currently find themselves three points behind fourth-placed Chelsea. Again,
goals appear to be the hindrance for success like a majority of the teams in
the league. The Reds have hit the woodwork the most out of any team in the
Premiership this season and, creatively, they are fine. The problem remains on
the front-line. Top scorer Luis Suarez has just eight goals to his name and is
currently just beginning his eight-game ban for racially abusing Patrice Evra.
Andy Carroll, bought in to replicate his Newcastle United
form, has scored just four league goals for the top-four hopefuls since his
£35m move and it had been expected that he would be the one to pick up from
where Suarez left off. However, he hasn’t been able to find consistency at his
new surroundings and, as such, looks short of confidence and in return, is
short on goals. Darren Bent has been mooted as a possible arrival and, with his
record for Aston Villa and Sunderland, it is hardly surprising. Like a number
of clubs, they just need a striker to put the ball in the net.
Manchester City
It used to be the case of whoever Roberto Mancini wants,
he gets. However, the Italian recently admitted he will be forced to sell
before he can before in order to comply with the Financial Fair Play
regulations that are set to come into place at the end of the season. He
recently admitted that he needs to make one or two new signings this month in
order to push on for their quest for glory. If that is the case, the priority
must be a new midfielder and centre-back. Both Yaya and Kolo Toure are set to
depart for the African Cup of Nations this week and, like Chelsea striker
Didier Drogba, should Ivory Coast make it through the group stages, City will
be without the brothers for a substantial period of time.
Daniele De Rossi has been linked and, with the Italian
international out of contract in June, could be available at a cut-price. Meanwhile,
a centre-back could come in on a short-term deal to help cover Kolo over the
course of the competition. Up front, the Citizens could be left light-footed
with Carlos Tevez expected to leave this month. Edinson Cavani and Robin Van
Persie have both been linked as possible replacements for the Argentine but any
move for the dup is dependent on Tevez departing the Etihad stadium over the
next three weeks.
Manchester United
The defending champions have failed to replicate the form
that made them such a prolific force last season and saw them out-do Liverpool’s
title winning record. However, any hopes of making it 20 this season have taken
a serious dent this season with rivals Manchester City currently leading the
race for the title. The major flaw in the United set-up this season has been
the lack of quality in the midfield. Following the retirement of Paul Scholes,
many had expected Sir Alex Ferguson to bring in a player of similar ilk to
replace for the former United legend.
However, without bringing in a replacement, the Red Devil’s
title pursuit has stuttered as of late. With Michael Carrick the only match fit
midfielder at the moment; the club appear to be struggling to overcome opponents
who they would have beaten last season. Tom Cleverley started the season brightly
but an ankle injury has kept him sidelined for a majority of the season, Darren
Fletcher will miss the rest of campaign while Anderson is lacking match
fitness. Wesley Sneijder was linked before and, unsurprisingly, has been linked
again this month and the Dutchman can provide the creative spark that the team
have been desperately lacking this season. Meanwhile, a dominant presence in the
middle of the park would help provide the back-four with the necessary protection
that has been lacking thus far. Cheik Tiote has been mooted as a possible
arrival and his displays for Newcastle United has been exactly the ones the
defending Premier League champions have been lacking.
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