Football teams often need to purchase and sell players during the winter transfer window in January. Some clubs invest in players that are truly needed, while others make hasty and often costly decisions. Some clubs identify their weaknesses early in the season and make strategic purchases in January. However, there are desperate teams that spend a lot of money to sign prominent players in order to save their season. January is always full of surprises and excitement. Premier League clubs, in particular, have a lot of money, and some spend a lot of money on new players in January.
Most expensive January signings in the Premier League –
1. Enzo Fernandez – £105m
In 2023, Enzo Fernandez became the most expensive player signed during Todd Boehly’s time. Chelsea paid £105m for him after he did really well in the 2022 World Cup with Argentina. They hoped he would help improve their struggling season under Graham Potter’s management.
This signing set a new record for the highest transfer fee in Britain and is the most expensive move by a Premier League team in a January transfer window. However, Enzo didn’t make an immediate impact as expected. Chelsea only won three out of their last 18 games that season, ending up in 12th place on the table, their worst position since 1994.
2. Virgil van Dijk – £75m
Getting Virgil van Dijk was a huge moment for Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool. It changed the team from just being good enough for the top 4 to being a title contender. People made fun of the £75m they spent on him, which was a world record for a defender back then. But he proved he was worth it in the years that came after.
Right away, he fixed a defense that was causing problems for the strong attack. Then, when Alisson and Fabinho joined in the summer after, Liverpool looked ready to win trophies. Thanks to Van Dijk, they won the Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League title the next year. In 2023, he became the club captain.
3. Mykhaylo Mudryk – £62m
Chelsea is in the transfer news for the third time in a row, and this is the first time it happened under Todd Boehly’s ownership. Before this, in the summer of 2022, Chelsea had already spent £275m to sign nine new players for their main team. Surprisingly, they decided to spend even more money in January.
Mykhaylo Mudryk, a young player known for his super-fast speed and good dribbling, was being noticed by many top clubs, including Arsenal. It seemed like Arsenal was about to sign him, but Chelsea moved quicker and spent £62m to bring him in from Shakhtar Donetsk. However, an even bigger signing was still on the way.
4. Christian Pulisic – £58m
In 2019, Chelsea was going to be told they couldn’t sign new players for two times, so getting Christian Pulisic in January was really important. They paid £58m for the young American but let him stay and play for Borussia Dortmund for a bit. When he finally came to Chelsea in the summer, it was like having a new player when they couldn’t get any more.
His first season at Stamford Bridge was good, with 11 goals and 10 assists in 34 matches. But in the next seasons, he didn’t do as well, scoring only two goals in the 2022/23 season. Because of this, Chelsea sold him to AC Milan at the end of the season.
5. Aymeric Laporte – £57m
In January 2018, even though Manchester City was already doing really well in the league, their coach Pep Guardiola thought they needed another good player. So, they spent a lot of money, £57m, to get defender Aymeric Laporte from Athletic Bilbao. His playing style helped City easily win the league with a record-breaking 100 points that season. They did it again the next year, and Laporte played in 51 games. But later on, he didn’t play as much because of injuries and because other defenders on the team were doing well. So, in August 2023, he left and joined Al Nassr.
