LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 04: Fulham’s Clint Dempsey celebrates after scoring his second goal and Fulham’s fifth goal of the match during the Barclays Premier League match between Fulham and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Craven Cottage on March 4, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Scott Heavey/Getty Images)

Top Ten Best January Transfers

There are only a few days left in the January transfer window and while things haven’t really spiced up yet, the January window is an important time for a European to finely touch up their roster and get that final piece of the puzzle to put together a run to the end of the season. We will have our top ten worst January transfers posted soon but for now, here are the top ten best.

 

10) Clint Dempsey – New England Revolution to Fulham – £2 million – 2007

At 24, Clint Dempsey began his European career at Fulham for the fee of £2 million. While it seems like a fair number at the time, Fulham got their moneys worth with 50 goals in 184 appearances and became one of the best American players (not named Tim Howard) to play in the EPL. During his time at Fulham, they reached a high point of 7th in 2009 (highest position ever) and reached the Europa League Final the following year.

 

9) Jermain Defoe – Tottenham to Portsmouth – £6.5 million – 2008

Jermain Defoe had a short but great career at Portsmouth with 15 goals in 31 appearances. After a year, Defoe wanted to leave Portsmouth and Tottenham was interested. Defoe was sold back to Tottenham for almost £16 million. The near £10 million profit Portsmouth achieved as a result of the sale deserves a spot on the list.

 

8) Mats Hummels – Bayern Munich to Borussia Dortmund – 4 million Euros – 2008

What is usually the other way around, this was one of those transfers that resulted in someone coming from Bayern Munich to Borussia Dortmund. Hummels joined the team at 20 and was originally on a loan. After a season, the move was made permanent and Hummels remains the rock of the Borussia Dortmund defense. He also scored two goals for the World Cup Champions Germany in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

 

7) Javier Mascherano – West ham to Liverpool – £18 million – 2007

Liverpool has historically been a rather active team in the January transfer window. They had their hits and misses throughout the years but this was one of those hits. Mascherano commanded the midfield for Liverpool teams of the late 2000’s. After being a part of the Champions League Final team that lost 2-1 to AC Milan. After putting in transfer requests when Roy Hodgson took over control of Liverpool, he was sold to Barcelona and Liverpool essentially broke even on the transfer.

 

6) Mikel Arteta – Real Sociedad to Everton – £2 million – 2005

For £2 million, this was an absolute steal. Mikel Arteta spent seven years at Everton amassing 29 goals in 186 appearances. Arteta was one of David Moyes’ signings as Everton manager as he tried to bargain hunt for talent. This resulted in one of the Moyes’ biggest hits as he was sold to Arsenal in 2011 for £10 million.

 
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About Phillip Bupp

Producer/editor of the Awful Announcing Podcast and Short and to the Point. News editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. Highlight consultant for Major League Soccer as well as a freelance writer for hire. Opinions are my own but feel free to agree with them. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram @phillipbupp

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