AuthorBoth Outcasts The January transfer window is only a few weeks away which means that right about now clubs, managers and fans all throughout the English Footballing Pyramid look to the window for potential new signings to improve the club fortunes, save jobs or provide a much needed injection of quality to keep (or get) the good times going. The EPL ploughs on through the winter break (unlike the other big leagues in Europe) and it is the most intense period of games of the season, with multiple matches each week coming thick and fast, so the potential addition of new recruits to sides is always worth a look. So where does each team potentially need to bolster to improve their season and what potential signings could be made? Below are where we think the clubs may look to improve and we highlight a potential player that we reckon may come in:
AFC Bournemouth Eddie Howe and Bournemouth have been playing fantastic stuff so far this season; they play fast and flowing football that’s quite often a joy to watch. Howe has already revitalised one English players career this season in Jack Wilshere, so why not another one that has been struggling with injuries (much like Wilshere) for years as well? Jay Rodriguez from Southampton is a quality player that was very much on the cusp of the England team a few years ago until injuries have stalled his career. A move along the south coast could do the player some good and provide some much needed firepower for the Cherries. Howe just had a good look at Rodriquez too after he scored for the Saints against Bournemouth this past week. Potential Signing: Jay Rodriguez Arsenal They have had a few wobbles but overall it has been a pleasing season so far for Arsenal. At the time of writing Arsenal were the second top scorers and third best defence in the league. Arsenal also have Per Mertesacker to come back in New Year to bolster the defence, but it is in attack that Arsenal potentially have issues should Alexi Sanchez get injured, or worst case scenario, burn out. Wenger has traditionally not spent large during the January window (or at any other time!) and I think we can expect the same again. However, should Arsenal dip into the market two potential targets are Julian Draxler and Macro Reus. Draxler is the most likely as he is transfer listed at the moment. Reus would be tricky and is more likely to be a summer signing, but either of these would certainly be a big improvement over Giroud. Potential Signing: Julian Draxler Burnley At the time of writing Burnley were in 13th and have made Turf Moor a difficult place to go, but one thing they are lacking is goals with only 15 scored this season so far. Sean Dyche would be one of the first to admit it is difficult for Burnley to attract the same calibre of name that other teams around them can and that is why we think a dip into the Championship is needed. A striker that we think would be good fit for them is Scott Hogan who has 13 goals for Brentford this season and would likely be available for around $2.5million. Bargain! He would certainly add competition to Vokes and Gray who have been decent but far from prolific in front of goal this season. Potential Signings: Scott Hogan Chelsea Top of the league at writing and with the joint best defence, Conte has done wonders with his three man defence and with players that he didn’t really want. Chelsea are looking ominous, combining a strong defence with lightning fast counter attacking football. If Conte was to dip into the market then a defender from Italy is the most likely option and we think Antonio Rudiger from Roma would be a likely candidate. Rudiger has been great for Roma this season and is still only 22 and would fit in well into the three man defence and we think would be big upgrade on Gary Cahill. Potential Signing: Antonio Rudiger Crystal Palace Palace is in a relegation fight, but on paper they do have a strong squad. Scoring goals have not been a major problem for Palace, they have scored 28 goals this season, they are fifth in the scoring charts but it is in defence they have serious issues. They have let in 31 goals this season and we think a potential good signing for them would be Ben Davis from Spurs. Davies has come back from injury recently and would be looking for game time and a loan at a fellow London club could be good for both parties. Davies had a good spell at the Euros with Wales and would provide a quick full back in a sometimes slow defence. He can also provide overlap in attack quite well as a bonus. Potential Signing: Ben Davies Everton Koeman has had a decent start to his Everton managerial career; however the club lacks strength in depth. For the first time in a while, money shouldn’t be an issue now with new owners in place. Back-up for Lukaku is needed, but it is likely that Koeman will attempt to pick up two unwanted players from Manchester United. Principal of those is Morgan Schneiderlin and he would certainly add to the midfield. Schneiderlin would add steel to the Everton spine and potentially improve upon the 20 goals conceded. The other player Everton are likely to be looking at is Memphis Depay to add some more firepower to the attack. Depay hasn’t really made it at United but a potential loan move to invigorate his career might be a good option for both clubs. Potential Signing: Morgan Schneiderlin Hull City The season started off so well but has very much gone downhill and now the Tigers sit second from bottom. The team has had rotten luck with injuries and if a few of those players come back then it will certainly feel like new players. The team has a poor defensive record with 38 goals conceded and only 14 scored. Here at Football Outcasts we very much think defence keeps you in the EPL and that’s where we think Hull should target. However, Phelan has indicated a striker is whats needed and with a lack of funds the Championship might be the best option to look to. Rudy Gestede could be a possible signing with Steve Bruce at Aston Villa looking to make his mark on the Villa Squad by trimming it down, so there could be some business there to be done. Potential Signing: Rudy Gestede Leicester City The party has well and truly ended (well in the EPL anyway) and the Foxes are likely to become the worst defending champions in the EPL history. At least they have the fairy-tale of last season fresh in the memory and this seasons Champions League adventure to enjoy though! The majority of the squad have been kept together, but Kante leaving and not being adequately replaced appears to be a major factor. The Foxes are looking at that matter now and a potential signing is Wilfred Ndidi from Genk. The defensive midfielder should provide stability and better cover for a defence that is leaking goals. Leicester will be hoping that Ndidi will kick start the Vardy party again. Potential Signing: Wilfred Ndidi Liverpool The fun times are back at Liverpool and they should very much be considered title contenders, but the defence is still a concern. Although Klopp has indicated he won’t address the defence in the window, should they look to a new defender then going back to a favourite hunting ground of the club would be sensible choice. Virgil Van Dijk has plenty of suitors after some stellar performances for Southampton and a partnership with Matip would be very strong indeed. A sticking point might be Van Dijk saying he would like to join Man City though! Potential Signing: Virgil Van Dijk Manchester City It all started so well, win after win and no one looked to be able to stop them but recent performances have seen the wheels come loose. The wheels may not have completely fallen off, with that win over Arsenal certainly helping, but we feel that teams going to Manchester know that they can score against this team. City doesn’t look to be a team capable of holding onto leads. After the poor recent displays we wouldn’t be surprised to see Pep go in for a full back and centre back in this coming window and our money would be on Aymeric Laporte, although the player has been injured a bit this season the rumoured €65million buyout clause probably wouldn’t frighten off Cityand he may be available at a lower fee due to his injury record. We think full backs will be the summer’s job though. Potential Signing: Aymeric Laporte Manchester United On paper Utd have one of the strongest squads in the EPL, but Jose Mourinho doesn’t appear to know his best side still. The results so far have been mixed, with peaks and troughs up to this point of the season and Mourinho has defended his charges as per his MO. However, one player that has been singled out for criticism is Luke Shaw, so we think a potential new left back is on the horizon. Rumours abound, but when Zlatan talks about a left back who is a fellow Swede and one that is doing very well at Benfica you have to take notice! We wouldn’t be surprised to see Victor Lindelof turn up at Utd this window. Lindelof is young and so would suit the new blood coming through at Old Trafford. Potential Signing: Victor Lindelof Middlesbrough Middlesbrough is playing well and they have been difficult to beat this season. They have good defensive record of only 19 goals being conceded this season too. However, its upfront that they are struggling. Someone who can be a targetman and put the ball in the net is needed. A man inform that could be available would be Glenn Murray at Brighton in the Championship. Murray scored some important goals for Palace last season and has got 14 goals this season for his new club and would act as a great off the bench player for Boro if brought in. He would likely be a cheap option and a good stopgap until the summer too. Potential Signing: Glenn Murray Southampton As with every transfer window in recent memory the most important thing for Southampton is try to keep hold of their best players! Claude Puel likes to play an attacking line up with interchanging between Tadic, Redmond and Austin/Long, so another attacking midfielder to put pressure on those players would be a sensible addition to the squad. We think the Malaga attacking midfielder Juanpi would be a good choice for this. The 22 year old has 10 appearances so far for Malaga and one goal and would fit in quite nicely with the set up on the south coast. Potential Signing: Juanpi Stoke City The perception that Stoke are still a defensive team is still engrained in football fans psyche, but Mark Hughes has undergone an overhaul of the team that has turned them into a more attacking force. This has led to somewhat of a fragility to the Stoke side that most of us would consider uncharacteristic and so more defensive cover is potentially an option for Hughes. A potential player that would fit the bill would be Danilo Pereira from FC Porto. Likely a move on loan would be appropriate and given Bruno Martins Indi’s loan at the club, there is precedent. Pereira would certainly add strength and skill to the Stoke midfield and could put him in the shop window for some of the larger teams in the league. Potential Signing: Danilo Pereira Sunderland It could be a long window for Sunderland fans having been told that there is no money to spend. Loans might be the Black Cats only hope and with Yann M’Vila also indicating he has no intention of joining up with Sunderland its all a bit depressing for Black Cats fans. However, with Moyes they do have a manager that’s used to working in a tight budget and so there is hope that a few loans may come in to bolster the youth players that Moyes has been blooding. Sunderland does have one of the most potent strikers in the EPL in Defoe (even at his age), so potentially a move for defensive cover would be appropriate. A man that Sunderland were interested in the summer was Domagoj Vida but were put off by the price. We doubt the defender will move for less in the mid-season, but you never know. More likely a loan raid for unwanted Manchester Utd players is on the cards….. that or Peter Crouch!. Potential Signing: Peter Crouch Swansea City It will be interesting to see how Bob Bradley handles his first transfer window with Swansea. It is likely that the American owners will provide some funds for him to spend. Swansea at times has been good this season but has failed to capitalise. They have looked devoid of confidence at times and worse devoid of leaders. The sale of Ashley Williams at the beginning of the season has really hit them hard. However, the strikers purchased at the beginning of the season have not met expectations and so a potential transfer offer of Leonardo Ulloa could be on the cards. Ulloa is fourth choice at the Foxes and so a move could be good for both player and clubs and provide Swansea with some extra firepower. They still need someone with some fight though. Potential Signing: Leonardo Ulloa Tottenham Hotspur Put simply Spurs find it very difficult to score when Harry Kane is not playing and so a striker is required. Jansen is a good player but has yet to find his feet and Son is not an all-out striker. A move for a very inform striker could be the way to go and we think Torinos young striker Andrea Belotti would fit the bit nicely. The 22 year old would fit in quite well with the young guns at Spurs and having scored 10 goals in 13 games for Torino this season we think he would make a prefect addition to White Hart Lane. Potential Signing: Andrea Belotti Watford Watford has been steady but unconvincing generally in defence this season, certainly 28 goals conceded is pretty average for the league at the moment. Daryl Janmaat has been a great addition to the Watford side – in attack, but in defence the right back hasn’t convinced and so Walter Mazzarri may look to upgrade. While we expect loans from Europe being likely a potential right back that would be worth a look would be Derbys Cyrus Christie. The right back is fast and strong and with Derby potentially having issues with financial fair play in the future they may cash in. Potential Signing: Cyrus Christie West Bromwich Albion At the time of writing West Brom are 7th in the league, that’s just a brilliant first half of the season from them. West Brom are known for being tough in defence and have a striker in Rondon that can hold the ball and score goals and so we think a creative player in midfield, a box to box type would greatly help the cause. The potential loan signing of Fabian Delph from Manchester City could be just the right player for them. Delph needs game time with it being restricted through injury and the players ahead of him at City it would make sense for him to drop down and be a big fish in a small pond again. Potential Signing: Fabian Delph West Ham United It’s been a horror season for West Ham, they are struggling for goals and in defence. Letting James Tomkins go in the summer without replacement was a foolish decision in hindsight. Unfortunately the loan signing of Zaza has not gone according to plan and it does appear that Payet might also be looking to go. We think it will be a busy window for the Hammers and two potential signings would be Lamine Kone from Sunderland for the defence and Daniel Sturridge from Liverpool in attack. Kone would likely be easier to convince to join but with Sturridge no longer the main striker at Liverpool there is a possibility. Potential Signing: Daniel Sturridge Where do you think your team needs to strengthen and what players would you like to see? |
AuthorsJust Some Fans Writing About Football. Archives
June 2018
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