January transfer window 2022 predictions: Crazy Newcastle rumours, Gomez to Leicester and Man Utd waiting game

Premier League clubs often choose to be quiet in the January transfer window, leaving the long-term squad building until the summer.

But with the race to stay in the division and finish in the top four likely to be tight – and with clubs forced to fit in a huge number of matches thanks to Covid-19 cancellations – every manager may want to go shopping.

Here’s what we can expect from every club this month:

Arsenal

Before Arsenal played Leeds United on 18 December, you might have thought that Mikel Arteta would spend January trying to persuade the club to buy him a new striker. With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang persona non grata – and Arsenal would surely be happy if someone rid them of his wages in January – Arsenal looked short of a frontline attacker. Cue Gabriel Martinelli scoring twice at Elland Road.

Arsenal would surely still proceed if a high-class option became available; Dusan Vlahovic has been linked repeatedly. But the reality is that Arteta has tried to buy players of a certain age and certain type and those deals are very hard to get done midseason. Other than the departure of a couple of fringe players, and barring a major sale, it would be no surprise if they ended the January window with virtually the same first-team squad that started it.

Aston Villa

Given Aston Villa’s spending over the last couple of years, and factoring in the fact that Steven Gerrard is new to his position and would probably be better off spending the next few months assessing his current squad, January is likely to be pretty quiet.

But there are possible exceptions. The injury to Marvellous Nakamba and tweak in Douglas Luiz’s role to become a box-to-box player leaves space for a defensive midfielder, while a backup to Matt Targett at left-back wouldn’t go amiss. Still, don’t expect Villa to splash the cash as they have in previous windows.

Brentford

There are two obvious requirements, even if Thomas Frank accepts that business will be difficult to do. Brentford need a natural right wing-back, which would allow Sergi Canos to play higher up the pitch and get the best out of his attacking attributes, and a central midfielder who excels when carrying the ball into the final third; so much of Brentford’s threat comes down the flanks.

In addition to that, there are several potential options that go on the “ideally, but no panic if not” list: A loan goalkeeper to cover for the long-term loss of David Raya, another central defender to provide competition for places and another centre forward to give support for Ivan Toney. If Frank gets two of these five issues solved, he will be a happy man.

Brighton

Look, you know what I’m going to say and everyone who has ever watched Brighton knows what I’m going to say. This club has been crying out for a prolific centre forward to lift the natural glass ceiling of their achievement for three years, and nothing has changed.

Brighton rank eighth in the league for shot-creating and 18th in the league for shot accuracy. In terms of shots taken per goal, a rough evaluation of a player’s finishing aptitude, Brighton have one representative in the top 80 in the Premier League.

It isn’t easy to recruit dependable goalscorers. Almost half of the Premier League wants one and shopping in January can quickly lead to buyer’s regret. But Brighton have to try. Since the summer of 2019 they have recruited two forwards: Danny Welbeck on a free transfer from Watford and Andi Zeqiri, currently on loan at Augsburg. Enough is enough.

Burnley

A very vague brief, but some signings who represent an attempt to have a little more fun wouldn’t go amiss. Burnley find themselves deep in relegation trouble as we head into January, but the form of Maxwel Cornet is enough to give supporters hope that there may be a way to extricate themselves from trouble other than backs-to-the-wall defending and gritty 1-0 home wins.

Cornet’s problem is that he is alone. He has contributed a few spectacular goals, but Dwight McNeil ranks 70th in the Premier League this season for shot-creating actions and only one other player makes the top 130; that’s Ashley Westwood.

The suspicion is that Burnley have become a little too easy to defend against. They rank bottom of the league for shots and shots on target (albeit with games in hand). It is time for Sean Dyche to follow-up the Cornet signing with a couple of others who can give Burnley a much-needed element of unpredictability without their manager feeling as if he is sacrificing control.

Chelsea

A month ago, any sense that Chelsea might need to use the January transfer window to address suspicions of stagnation would have appeared ludicrous. But heading into Christmas, Chelsea won just one of five matches in all competitions, scraping past Leeds with a last-minute penalty. Suddenly supporters are wondering how Thomas Tuchel will change the mood in January.

The only obvious option is to purchase a new central defender, with Antonio Rudiger’s contract still unsigned and with Thiago Silva unable to play every week. One option would be Bayern Munich’s Nicklas Sule, himself available on a free transfer in the summer and so possibly going cheap next month.

Anything else appears fanciful. Of course Chelsea could find room for another central midfielder, left-back or attacking midfielder, but that surely cannot happen unless players are sold. Getting more out of Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Hakim Ziyech, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Christian Pulisic is the preferable solution.

Crystal Palace

There are two obvious gaps in Patrick Vieira’s squad, although it would be no surprise if he were only able to solve one in January. The first is a striker, even after the summer arrival of Odsonne Edouard. Christian Benteke is a grafter but not prolific enough and, as a substitute option, is a better fit for a team trying to close out a game than chase one. Jean-Philippe Mateta’s long-term loan deal from Mainz just hasn’t worked out.

More important might be a holding midfielder, particularly if Palace are determined to give Conor Gallagher full licence to roam forward for the duration of his loan. Will Hughes was excellent when starting against Everton, but Vieira would do well to look at other options given Luka Milivojević’s slight decline and the age of Cheikhou Kouyate and James McArthur.

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Everton

It largely depends how much money there is to spend, to which the obvious answer is “whatever you can find down the back of the sofa”. Rafael Benitez has been managing with both hands tied behind his back but there isn’t any great certainty that he will still be in place by the end of the season. Everton have repeatedly paid the price for signing players for managers who subsequently leave shortly afterwards.

If allowed, Benitez would surely bring in another striker; Salomon Rondon hasn’t worked out and Dominic Calvert-Lewin has been out for so long that he must be protected even when fully fit. A progressive central midfielder would also make sense; most of Everton’s options are protectors rather than creators.

If Everton do need to sell to buy, it’s worth keeping an eye on the future of Lucas Digne, given his apparent fall out with Benitez. Selling him to free up funds for other gaps on the pitch would make some sense.

Leeds United

An incredibly complicated situation. It’s pretty clear that Leeds need cover in just about every position, given their struggles this season and the injury crisis that has engulfed the club. We’re now past the point of wondering what happens “when everyone is back” because that simply might not be a reality until it’s too late.

But it’s not quite that simple. Marcelo Bielsa has exacting standards of the type of player he likes to recruit, typically that is able to meet his physical demands but also able to be moulded by a manager. That’s hard to find in January because it leaves little time for them to acclimatise to Bielsa’s system and because Bielsa has been so reluctant to use the transfer market in January.

But then Bielsa’s own future plays into this. If there’s a chance that he might leave, either before or at the end of the season, are you spending money in January to recruit players who might well not fit his successor’s plans? And will those potential targets who do want to come to Leeds be put off by either a relegation battle or the fact that the manager they are signing for might not be around in six months’ time?

Leicester City

Another central defender is the No 1 priority. Wesley Fofana is likely to miss the entire season, Jonny Evans’s fitness is hit and miss when he has to play twice a week and Caglar Soyuncu’s form has declined badly. Leicester’s struggle to defend set pieces is a problem of system rather than personnel, but that doesn’t mean that the personnel isn’t an issue.

Basically, if we have to watch Leicester play with the brilliant Wilfred Ndidi in central defence because there’s nobody else to do it, it will make us sad. Go and tell Joe Gomez that you want to rebuild his England career.

Liverpool

Liverpool’s transfer window is likely to be dominated by players leaving, not arriving. Loris Karius (yes, he’s still there), Nat Phillips, Gomez, Takumi Minamino and Divock Origi are all possible departures. Jurgen Klopp is not prone to making major January signings (Virgil van Dijk was the exception and even then they first targeted him in the summer); he’s unlikely to compromise on that strategy now.

The status of January’s Afcon is a complicating factor. It seems unlikely that Klopp would sign another forward just to account for Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah missing six weeks of football (the only way that would change if a longer-term target became available), but there’s a good chance it kiboshes any hopes fringe attackers have of seeking regular football elsewhere. It will be all hands on deck in January and February.

Man City

Pep Guardiola is not immune to January signings – Aymeric Laporte and Gabriel Jesus both joined in the winter window – but it seems highly unlikely that Manchester City repeat that trick in 2022. The general rule is that January is the reactive window, patching up leaky holes in your season-long strategy, and the summer is the proactive window.

City have won nine league games on the spin, have decent options in every position and have almost everyone in their first-team squad fit. Left-back is the only possible position that looks due an upgrade in January and even that can wait until June. Why change anything when it’s going so swimmingly, even if Ferran Torres makes them £50m?

Man Utd

Like Liverpool, a January transfer window that will be dominated by rumours of players leaving Manchester United. Unlike Liverpool, there is so much perceived deadwood in this squad that plenty of them will actually go.

Take a deep breath: Edinson Cavani is reportedly interesting – and interested by – Barcelona; Jesse Lingard could leave but might run down his contract until the summer; Phil Jones desperately needs first-team minutes; Anthony Martial wants out after dropping down the queue; Donny van de Beek’s agent must be running out of stamps; Dean Henderson and Amad Diallo are two of a number of players who would probably be happy to leave on loan; who knows what’s happening with the Paul Pogba situation.

In terms of incomings, defensive midfield remains the big gap in the squad and Ralf Rangnick would surely be happy for his club to invest if the right option is available. But if United are so keen on Declan Rice or Kalvin Phillips, they’re going to have to wait until the summer.

Newcastle

Hoo boy. From the moment Newcastle’s takeover was announced, it was clear that the new owners would look to use January as a means to immediately stamp their authority on the club. Quite how bad Newcastle’s league position was would dictate the extent of their ambitions; the answer is that there’s a pressing emergency.

Newcastle will want at least one full-back (Kieran Trippier), at least one central defender (Nat Phillips, Sven Botman, James Tarkowski and Steve Cook have all been mentioned) and one defensive midfielder to try and give this team some steel. How many of those they sign depends largely on how much they want to get value for money or whether they are happy to try and buy their way out of trouble.

And then there’s the other rumours, which link Newcastle with just about every player you can think of who is struggling for starts at an elite, or just below elite, club and commands high wages. A non-exhaustive list: Dele Alli, Philippe Coutinho, Aaron Ramsey, Anthony Martial, Donny van de Beek, Jesse Lingard, Ross Barkley, Georginio Wijnaldum.

Norwich City

Norwich appointed Dean Smith to get more out of what they had rather than to oversee a rebuild before the summer. This club has always worked on a budget (they have the least rich owners in the Premier League), so do not expect them to splash the cash in January even if relegation is an obvious danger.

But there are things that can be done. Smith would probably like another central defender to account for the raft of injuries in that position and a reliable goalscorer would be welcome (but then which club wouldn’t say the same thing?). But it’s not an easy sell to potential targets that may have other Premier League options. Getting Todd Cantwell back to his best form is a priority, unless Norwich are intending to sell him and spend the proceeds.

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Southampton

“I think we did a very good job during the summer and the better the job you do in the summer, the less you have to do during the winter transfer window,” said Ralph Hasenhuttl worrying recently. If this half season is Southampton after an excellent transfer window (they have 20 points from 18 games), it’ll be fun to see how it goes after a bad one.

But Hasenhuttl is right to play down any hopes of a serious January spend. Southampton would like to get another creative midfielder in and could conceivably move for Dean Henderson on loan, but what they have is pretty much what they will keep. Is that enough to keep them out of trouble?

Tottenham

One of the more intriguing clubs heading into January. There are several reports – and they are only reports – suggesting that Antonio Conte might persuade Daniel Levy to open the purse strings in January to fund an assault on a top-four place that seemed highly unlikely when he was appointed. Tottenham fans would concur; what point is there appointing such a high-class manager if you aren’t going to give him the tools to make good on his promise to rebuild Spurs?

Conte would probably prefer to focus on the spine of his team. Joe Rodon may well be allowed to leave and Davinson Sanchez has just not developed as the club would like, leaving a spot open for a central defender. In midfield, the departure of Harry Winks and Dele Alli would leave at least one position open for a creative central midfielder. Most Tottenham fans point to their inability to replace Christian Eriksen as the reason they became so reliant upon Harry Kane and Son Heung-min. And then there’s the rumoured right wing-back target, with Matt Doherty deemed surplus to requirements. Expect to see Tottenham’s name in a lot of headlines next month.

Watford

This is Watford, so there will be deals. This is Watford, so there will be signings that you have never heard of, some of whom prove to be brilliant value for money and some who you forget about within three months. This is Watford, so goodness only knows if they have the same manager who signed them at the start of next season.

But there’s no secret as to what Watford need most. They have used six different players as centre-backs this season: William Troost-Ekong, Craig Cathcart, Francisco Sierralta, Christian Kabasele, Nicolas Nkoulou and Danny Rose. How many of those are good enough – or good enough anymore – to play that position in this division successfully? Claudio Ranieri will want at least one recruit, ideally with Premier League experience. Would they take a chance on Phil Jones?

West Ham

West Ham need bodies across their squad. They seemed to have successfully juggled Europa League and Premier League football between August and October, but there have been signs since that energy is dipping and they are reliant on the continued fitness of two of three key players. David Moyes’ side have taken five points from their last seven league games; now is the time to try and kick on from the platform established in the autumn.

But it’s not as simple as spending for its own sake. West Ham lost their way when they became transfer market magpies, signing expensive players on expensive contracts before working out whether they would fit the club’s culture. They should look to their established markets (Championship and Czech League) or players they know can fit in (Jesse Lingard) rather than pursue big-name targets.

Wolves

“We need to understand the financial part. January is sometimes a difficult month, so we need to understand the best deals. If the best deal comes with the right player, for me it’s good. The main point for January is that everyone should continue with us. For me, no one goes. Everyone continues with us. Maybe we need one or two players to improve our squad.”

Bruno Lage has made his feelings clear. No player will be allowed to leave Wolves in January, but expectations should be low for those potentially coming in. That rules out a departure for Adama Traore, but you do wonder whether Lage would like another wide midfielder or a central defender to cover for the loss of Romain Saiss and Willy Boly to Afcon in January.

from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3EAB5ua

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