Top 10: January transfers that blew us away

"The sage says: Transfer window closes, but transfer market’s never over", those were the words of renowned Italian transfer reporter, Fabrizio Romano to millions of football fans around the world on January's transfer deadline day. 

With the window now shut, football fans, as well as clubs prepare to see their new purchases in action come February. But before that happens, we cast our minds back to the top 10 winter transfers that stole the headlines in January.

Nigerian striker Kalu completed a move from Ligue 1 side Bordeaux to the Premier League on January 26th for a deal reported to be around £3 million. He becomes the sixth Nigerian to be on the payroll of the Hornets this season and is expected to be at the Vicarage Road until 2025. Fellow Nigerian internationals William Troost-Ekong, Emmanuel Dennis, Peter Etebo and on-loan talents such as Maduka Okoye and Tom Dele-Bashiru, are all familiar faces the 24-year-old is expected to play alongside.

After having an initial loan offer rejected by Manchester United, Sevilla reached an agreement on January 25th to sign Anthony Martial on loan for the rest of the season. The Manchester United striker, despite interests from Juventus and Barcelona, settled for a move to Seville in a bid to find regular playing time.

It was a fairytale return to a club Traore once called home on January 29th, as he completed a loan move to Barcelona from the Premier League. The deal comes with an option for the Catalan giants to sign him on a permanent deal worth £3 million should they choose to at the end of the 2021-22 campaign.

The 26-year-old winger began his career in Barcelona's famed La Masia youth system before moving on in 2015.

Coutinho got reunited with his former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard at Aston Villa on January 7th, four years after he left Anfield for Camp Nou. The Brazilian, who struggled to fit in at Barcelona, is expected to play on loan at Villa Park until the end of the Premier League season.

Despite being a target for Premier League clubs Arsenal and Tottenham for months, Vlahovic completed a transfer move from Fiorentina on January 28th that sees him remain in Serie A. The signing, one worth £66.6 million, will see the 22-year-old Serbian striker play for Juventus for the next four-and-a-half years.

Everton made a big statement on transfer deadline day as they followed the earlier announcement of Lampard as their new manager, with the signings of, first, Van der Beek on loan from Manchester United, and then Alli on a permanent transfer from Tottenham Hotspur.

For Lampard, the task is now to transform Everton's fortunes on the pitch following their dismal run of form over recent months, in which they have won just one of their last 14 matches in the Premier League.

Torres was the first player to move clubs in the January transfer window.

The 21-year-old completed a switch from Manchester City to Barcelona in the week leading up to Christmas. The deal, which cost £46.3 million, plus a further £8.4 million in add-ons, will see the forward stay in the Catalan capital for the five-years until 2027.

Any attempts to prise him away before then would see the interested party cough out a whopping buyout clause of £841.7 million (€1 billion).

Newcastle United announced on January 7th that England full-back Trippier had signed for them from Atletico Madrid.

The 31-year-old, who joined the Premier League club on a two-and-a-half-year deal for a fee of £12 million, became the club's first senior signing under its new club's owners and new head coach Eddie Howe.

After seven months of football inactivity due to suffering a cardiac arrest suffered while playing for Denmark at Euro 2020, Eriksen was offered a path back to active football on transfer deadline day.

The former Inter Milan midfielder, who signed for Brentford on a six-month deal, is set to become the first footballer to play with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) device in the Premier League. This comes after the 29-year-old was suspended by the Italian medical authority from playing in Serie A due to a rule prohibiting the use of an ICD.

Barcelona signed Arsenal striker Aubameyang on a free transfer on deadline day.

The Premier League club willingly allowed the 32-year-old to leave after stripping him of the captaincy in December following a disciplinary issue. Aubameyang, who scored 92 goals in 163 games for the Gunners, leaves the Emirates Stadium just 18 months from the end of his £350,000-a-week contract.

11. Tanguy Ndombele - Tottenham to Lyon, loan (Deadline Day)

12. Bruno Guimaraes - Lyon to Newcastle, £40m (January 30)

13. Luis Diaz - Porto to Liverpool, £49m (Deadline Day)

14. Rodrigo Bentancur - Juventus to Tottenham, £21.5m (Deadline Day)

15. Aaron Ramsey - Juventus to Rangers, loan (Deadline Day)