5 of the best January transfers in EPL history
The 2019 January transfer window has officially been open for the last six days, offering teams the opportunity to shop for players to help them continue their assault to achieve their season's objectives.
It also offers players the chance to move elsewhere in search of regular playing time, with the result being that the tabloids are always spinning in full circles with transfer speculations at this time of the year over who is going where and who is interested in who.
The timing of the winter window in mid-season means that there is an unspoken panic mode attached to most transfers, as some of the clubs who desperately seek out players are usually in dire need of them, handing all the cards to the selling team, who take advantage of the situation to hike the prices of their intended targets.
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Another factor which comes into play is the fact that very rarely do clubs release their important players in January, as it could cause destability in the team, which has the potential to derail their season as replacing such important players are nigh impossible.
The results of these factors is that most January transfers are usually tagged as flops, as they are either ridiculously overpriced or substandard. There are numerous examples of January arrivals who fall into this category, but for every January transfer flop, there have been undeniable hits. In this piece, we take a look at five players who play(ed) with distinction despite being January arrivals at their respective clubs.
#5 Phillippe Coutinho
Inter Milan - Liverpool
Date of arrival - 30 January 2013
Transfer fee - £8.5m
Having failed to nail down a regular spot at Inter Milan, Phillippe Coutinho arrived Liverpool in January 2012 for a rather meager sum of £8.5m, and to say that the Brazilian made an impact at Anfield would be a massive understatement.
Over the next five years, the 26-year-old cemented his reputation as one of the best midfielders not just in the league, but also in the world, wowing fans with his exquisite array of tricks and close control, while also mastering the art of curling the ball into the back of the net from distance, scoring one screamer after another in this manner.
Coutinho firmly established himself in the Liverpool lineup and was an integral part of The Reds' side which entertained us massively over the last few years, proving a useful part of the Liverpool armoury with his vast array of flicks, tricks, close dribbling and wonderful technique.
Even though he might have fallen out with some fans of the club owing to the acrimonious nature in which he tried to force his Barcelona transfer, there would be no denying the fact that Coutinho was a massive hit for Liverpool.