FEATURE winter 2020 TRANSFERS
Nerazzurri are mounting a sustained title
challenge to try and end the imperious
dominance of Juventus in Serie A, and
Eriksen’s arrival adds further strength in
depth to Antonio Conte’s squad. The Inter
boss is looking for an instant partnership
to develop between Eriksen and Romelu
Lukaku, and that particular axis could give
the Milanese side a great chance of claiming
their first Scudetto in a decade.ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC – LA
GALAXY TO MILAN
Over on the red and black side of Milan,
the Rossoneri snapped up former player
Zlatan Ibrahimovic on a free transfer, after
the Swede’s contract with MLS outfit
LA Galaxy came to an end. Now 38, the
mercurial striker left the San Siro in 2012,
and following successful stints at Paris
Saint-Germain and Manchester United,
plundered 53 goals in 58 appearances for
the Galaxy. His first goal back in the famous
striped shirt of Milan – in a 2-0 win away to
Cagliari – meant he’s now scored in each
of the last four decades, having started his
professional career at Malmo in 1999. It’s a
big ask at his age, but if anyone can inspire
an upturn in the Rossoneri’s fortunes as
they seek a return to European football or
even the Champions League, it’s Zlatan.JAVIER HERNANDEZ –
SEVILLA TO LA GALAXY
The man LA Galaxy have brought in to
replace Ibrahimovic could hardly be much
different from the outlandish, outspoken
Swede. Javier Hernandez is a quiet, humble
footballer who prefers his goals to do the
talking. An out-and-out goalscorer with the
ability to score from almost any angle and
with seemingly any body part, Chicharito
has had a couple of disappointing years.
After thriving with Bayer Leverkusen in the
Bundesliga, his move to Premier League
side West Ham United proved unsuccessful.
A switch to Sevilla last summer yielded only
a single goal in nine La Liga appearances,
but the Mexican has the chance to reignite
his career in the golden Los Angeles
sunshine. It’s almost impossible to envision
‘Little Pea’ failing to gorge on goals in MLS,
and his arrival could inspire the Galaxy to
their first MLS Cup success since 2014 this
season.WAYNE ROONEY – D.C. UNITED
TO DERBY COUNTY
A superstar whose time in MLS was
perhaps surprisingly short, Wayne Rooney
has taken his first steps into coaching by
joining Championship side Derby County.
If that doesn’t make you feel old, nothing
will. In any case, the former England
captain and Manchester United’s record
goalscorer managed 23 goals and 13 assists
in 50 MLS appearances for DC, over the
course of two seasons. He’s now tasked
with inspiring Derby on their rise up the
Championship table, following a poor start
to the campaign. A good run puts them in
contention for the play-offs, with Rooney
and the Rams hoping for a return to the
bright lights and even brighter riches of
the Premier League next season. Just don’t
mention his shirt number.WINTER
BLUES? NOT
FOR THESE
GUYS...
Big money isn’t always spent in
January. Here, Oli Coates highlights the
five biggest January transfers in history,
with a new entry courtesy of 2020.The ‘winter blues’ are a real thing.
Seasonal affective disorder makes lots
of people feel down during the colder,
darker winter months, but there’s
nothing like a huge transfer to a new
club and the massive signing on fee that
goes with it to ease the pain of a long,
hard January.CHRISTIAN PULISIC – BORUSSIA
DORTMUND TO CHELSEA, £57.5M
Premier League side Chelsea paid
a huge fee to secure the services of
United States international Pulisic last
year, before immediately loaning him
back to Dortmund for the remainder
of the season. The most expensive
American in history has enjoyed a
mixed start to life in England, but there
have been numerous glimpses of his
immense potential, not least with a hat-
trick against Burnley in October.OSCAR – CHELSEA TO SHANGHAI
SIPG, £60M
The Blues have been stung in the
January transfer window in the past,
not least in paying £50m for a waning
Fernando Torres. The west London
club pulled off a coup of their own with
this deal though, as they brought in a
gigantic fee in 2017 for a player who
was virtually a reserve. Don’t forget,
this was the transfer window prior to
Neymar and Kylian Mbappe moving
to Paris Saint-Germain, which sent the
market into overdrive, with £60m an
eye-watering figure at the time.BRUNO FERNANDES – SPORTING TO
MANCHESTER UNITED, £67.6M
Although the final figure of this deal is
highly incentivised and based on the
performance of both player and club,
United have still shelled out a huge
fee for the man they hope can bring
the creativity they’ve been severely
lacking. Fernandes contributed an
incredible 33 goals and 18 assists in 53
appearances from midfield last season,
before following it up with 15 goals and
13 assists in 28 games this term. That’s
why the Red Devils have paid the big
bucks.VIRGIL VAN DIJK – SOUTHAMPTON TO
LIVERPOOL, £75M
The best thing you can say about Virgil
van Dijk’s 2018 transfer to Liverpool
is that it doesn’t seem like big bucks.
The Dutchman has risen to a status
as arguably the world’s finest centre-
back under Jurgen Klopp, making what
initially appeared to be an astronomical
fee seem like the bargain of the century.
Van Dijk was a rock as the Reds won
the Champions League last season, and
has been in similarly imperious form this
term as Liverpool romp towards their
first ever Premier League title.PHILIPPE COUTINHO – LIVERPOOL TO
BARCELONA, £142M
The reason Liverpool could afford
such a big fee for Van Dijk? The sale of
Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona in the
same window. This transfer is a case in
point that splashing the cash is far from
a guarantee of success. Coutinho was
a star in the Premier League but failed
to live up to expectations at the Nou
Camp, finding himself shipped out on
loan to Bayern Munich this season with
an uncertain future ahead of him in the
summer.ABOVE:
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
is back in red and
black and looking to
inspire an upturn in
Milan’s form
LEFT:
Javier Hernandez
BELOW:
Wayne Rooney
BOTTOM LEFT:
Virgil Van Dijk
BOTTOM RIGHT:
Philippe Coutinho