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out of what appears to be a very cheap

deal for Haaland due to the demands of

the player’s notorious agent, Mino Raiola.

There were also reports that suggested his

father, former Leeds United and Manchester

City midfielder Alf-Inge Haaland, wanted

a sizeable cut from any future transfer his

son would make. While Haaland’s free-

scoring start to life in the Bundesliga makes

that decision look more questionable with

each passing week, the Red Devils were

persuaded to stump up a huge fee for

Sporting Lisbon’s captain, Bruno Fernandes.

After a protracted negotiation, the Portugal

international eventually arrived at Old

Trafford just before the window closed, but

on the back of a dismal January for United.

Should he reproduce his goal and assist-

laden form that we saw at Sporting, the

creative playmaker could drag his new team

back into the Champions League. Solskjaer

will hope Fernandes can link up to good

effect with Nigerian striker Odion Ighalo,

the former Watford man who joined United

on loan from Chinese Super League side

Shanghai Shenhua – taking a massive pay

cut in the process.

STEVEN BERGWIJN – PSV

EINDHOVEN TO TOTTENHAM

HOTSPUR

Former United manager Jose Mourinho

took over from Mauricio Pochettino at

Tottenham towards the end of November

and brought in Steven Bergwijn to bolster

his attack during the transfer window. With

Harry Kane set to miss the majority of the

season following hamstring surgery, there’s

plenty of pressure on the 22-year-old

Dutchman to perform right from the off. He

couldn’t have done much better, scoring

a lovely debut goal to give Spurs the lead

in their win against defending champions

Manchester City. Should he and loan signing

Gedson Fernandes hit the ground running,

Tottenham could claim that all-important

Premier League fourth spot and a place at

Europe’s top table.

CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN –

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR TO

INTER

Another reason why Mourinho was forced

to dip into the transfer market was Christian

Eriksen’s desire to leave the club. The

Danish playmaker has been one of the

Premier League’s most creative forces since

arriving at Tottenham back in 2013, but

told his new manager in no uncertain terms

that he wouldn’t be signing a new contract

to stay in north London beyond the end

of the current campaign. Performances

have dipped since last season’s Champions

League final defeat, and Spurs got a decent

fee for a man who was set to leave for

nothing in June.

Tottenham’s loss of their main man when

it comes to assists is Inter’s gain. The

ALMOST DONE

Scores of transfers were wrapped

up in January but not every club got

the players they wanted. Oli Coates

picks out some of the moves that

collapsed and players and clubs left

disappointed...

EDINSON CAVANI

Uruguay international Cavani has

been one of the most prolific strikers

in Europe for more than a decade.

Injuries have hampered him this term

after helping himself to 193 goals in

278 games in his first six seasons for

Paris Saint-Germain, but having turned

33 on Valentine’s Day, this long-haired

Adonis is looking for a new challenge.

Atletico Madrid looked like they were

close to sealing a deal for a man who

has a half-century of international

goals to his name, but refused to meet

PSG’s asking price for a player whose

contract is up at the end of the current

campaign. There’s a good chance he’ll

still end up at the Wanda Metropolitano

next season, but could MLS expansion

side Inter Miami sneak in to steal him

away across the Atlantic before a deal is

done? Only time will tell.

PAUL POGBA

Another player whose season has been

beset by injury, World Cup-winning

midfielder Pogba has barely played

for Manchester United this term. Some

reports suggested he was using an

ankle injury to engineer a move away

from Old Trafford in the January

window, but this failed to materialise,

despite the best efforts of his agent.

Mino Raiola openly criticised the Red

Devils and even went as far as saying:

“I wouldn’t take anyone there, they

would even ruin Maradona, Pele and

Maldini. Paul needs a club and a squad,

one like Juventus was before.” With

Juve and Real Madrid continually linked

with the skilful Frenchman, his days

in the Premier League appear to be

numbered.

CHELSEA

Speaking of the Premier League, one

of the strangest things to happen

in the January transfer window was

Chelsea’s failure to do any business

at all. The Blues fought to have their

two-window transfer ban reduced on

appeal, but even though he was unable

to strengthen his squad in the summer,

Frank Lampard decided to stick with

what he had. While the manager’s trust

in his youthful squad may be admirable,

deciding against reinforcing a squad

that’s had an Eden Hazard-sized hole

since the summer may come back to

haunt the west London outfit as they

look to finish in the top four this season.

TOP:

Steven Bergwijn

LEFT:

A soon-to-expire

contract meant Inter

got the bargain of the

window in Christian

Eriksen

BOTTOM:

Paul Pogba’s time at

Manchester United

seems to be coming to

an end.