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Top 5 Transfers of the January 2015 Transfer Window so far!

By on January 15, 2015

Lets be honest, this transfer window has started slower than if Tom Huddlestone and Emile Heskey were in a three-legged race, but there have been some important signings which have taken place in European football so far, which I will now condense down to my top 5:

Transfer number one, please:

Bye Pod!
Lukas Podolski made like a selfie stick and exited the Emirates quicker than a Spurs fan that should’ve gone to Specsavers! Podolski was one of the first departures from the Premier League this January as the German forward left North London to join Serie A side Inter Milan on loan for the rest of the season. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger had previously stated in December 2014, that Inter’s interest in Podolski was “a joke”, but that ‘joke’ soon became a reality as a deal was done for Podolski to head to Italy until the summer at least. The World Cup winner will wear the number 11 shirt at the San Siro and made his debut in Inter’s 1-1 draw with Juventus. Inter Milan look set to have a busy January window, after also signing Switzerland international Xherdan Shaqiri from German club Bayern Munich for an undisclosed fee, thought to be around £12 million. Inter signed Shaqiri knowing that he was the best thing to come out of Kosovo since Rita Ora! If this was The Voice UK, it was the coach of Roberto Mancini who swiveled his chair around and convinced him to be on his team, over rivals coaches such as Mark Hughes at Stoke City.

Transfer number two, please:

Fiesta for Fernando!
As the coming-of-age film Boyhood wins a Golden Globe, Fernando Torres returned to his boyhood club this January, with Atletico Madrid taking the Spain striker on loan from AC Milan. Atletico are receiving an ‘unrecognizable Renee Zellweger like Torres’ from the one that left the Vicente Calderon seven and a half years ago for Liverpool. However, the deal could work out for all three of the clubs involved, as Chelsea finally got the £50 million flop off their books this winter, and as AC Milan made a permanent move to secure Torres from his Stamford Bridge Blues, while AC Milan gained from the Torres to Atletico exchange as well, by sealing the services of Atletico misfit Alessio Cerci on loan themselves. Cerci was a success in Italy, playing for sides such as Torino, before heading for Spain last summer, but struggled to get game time under Diego Simeone. Finally, it may be hard to see how Atletico Madrid gain from signing a striker who has struggled for consistent form for so long, but Torres is a hero at Atletico and if nothing else will provide back up for first choice striker Mario Mandzukic.

Transfer number three, please:

Leicester are set to Kram in the signings!
It is not often that Leicester City beat Chelsea at anything, but they did win the race to sign Croatian striker Andrej Kramaric this transfer window. It was between the Foxes and the Blues to secure the £9.5 million signing of this in form forward, but it was the struggling Premier League side who agreed the deal with Rijeka (after going on tour with Pharrell and now signing Kramaric, Foxes must be Happy!) Kramaric has four caps for the Croatian senior side, but has scored two goals in those four caps and national coach Niko Kovac has likened him to the Croatian legendary striker Davor Suker.  There were some work permit issues with the transfer, but Leicester could have Kramaric’s permit sorted in time for him to make his debut against Stoke City at the weekend. The Foxes have been searching for a ‘fox in the box’ forward eversince the ‘fox in the box’ prototype Kevin Phillips retired to become a coach at the club, and they may have found their man in Kramaric!

Transfer number four, please:

Gerrard of the Galaxy!
The Beatles sang about a hard day’s work in the 1960s, but this line could be appropriate for what Liverpool football club are feeling right now: ‘It has been a hard season’s work… but will it be alright?’ as the second most famous thing to come out of Liverpool is about to sweep America with Gerrard-mania! Liverpool and the nation have only been talking about one thing this January and that is former England and current Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard is heading for America to sign for LA Galaxy; this deal has been confirmed in January, but the move will not take place until the summer. First, OBE receiving actor and star of the new Disney movie ‘Into the Woods’ James Corden leaves us Brits for the States and now Gerrard is heading for a Galaxy far, far away in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a result of Liverpool offering him a new contract a bit too Late Late! These next few months are going to be emotional for both Gerrard and Liverpool as he prepares to say his final goodbyes to English football before linking up with former Anfield team-mate Robbie Keane at LA Galaxy. Gerrard has signed an 18-month contract, from July 2015 to December 2016, to replace Landon Donovan at the Galaxy. There will soon be enough sports stars in LA to rival Guardians of the Galaxy, with Steven Gerrard, Robbie Keane and basketball superstar Kobe Bryant being like the equivalent of Star-Lord, Rocket Racoon and Groot, respectively.

Transfer number five, please:

Man City pay Bony fee to top transfer tree!
Manchester City may have done the deal which could prove to be a game changer in the Premier League title race this season as they have signed Wilfried Bony for a £28 million fee from Swansea City. The Ivory Coast striker will reportedly cost City £25 million in up front cash paid to the Swans, with £3 million more paid to the Welsh side depending on Bony’s performances at the Etihad Stadium. This is most certainly the biggest deal of the window so far, in terms of of both cash outlay and the impact it could have on the remainder of the Premier League season. There is also the impact it may even have in this season’s UEFA Champions League, with Barcelona seemingly in crisis over stories about a possible Lionel Messi departure and City now boosted by arrive of Bony, who is eligible for European competitions, the Sky Blues may see themselves as favorites by the time the Eastlands club and Catalans come to blows in the last-16. Bony has agreed a four-and-a-half-year deal with Manuel Pellegrini’s side and will wear the number 14 shirt vacated by Javi Garcia.

Photo credit: Pixabay and Wikipedia Commons

About Richard Lewis

Richard Lewis can relate almost anything to football and quite often does! You may have seen Richard's previous ideas and work in the BBC Match of the Day Magazine, from 2011 to present. He is a Manchester United and England fan, but has gone to see Leyton Orient play with his O's season ticket in the 2013/14 campaign. Aside from football, Richard has written articles on Doctor Who and studies English Language and Linguistics at the University of Westminster. Aspiring sports journalist.