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It is the last day of the year 2018 and beyond the resolutions to become a better person and stop procrastination (which get forgotten by mid-May), for football lovers, this signifies that the winter transfer window in Europe is almost set to be open.
Transfer window offers an excellent opportunity for clubs to bolster their squad, coughing up funds to sign players who they feel could solve their problems (either aid their title quest or help avoid the drop).
The window in the summer was the first chance for clubs to make it right in the transfer marker, while the winter window is more or less a quick fix, with many fans pessimistic about January transfers because most of them are usually panic buys who go on to become duds, although there are exceptions to this trend such as Virgil Van Dijk at Liverpool.
With the winter transfer window less than 24 hours away which has left the transfer rumour mill spinning uncontrollably, we take a look at five major transfers which could happen this January in Europe.
#5 Fabregas (Chelsea to Atletico Madrid)
One name which has frequently been in the news concerning a transfer has been that of Spanish international Cesc Fabregas.
The 31-year-old is one of a number of top quality players who could be signed for free in the summer as he has less than six months left on his contract with Chelsea.
The Blues would be keen not to lose his services on a Bosman and as such would love to conduct business in the coming weeks.
Fabregas has proven himself on the biggest stages as a premier midfielder of the highest quality for the last decade and on his day is still one of the best midfielders in the world despite his advancing age.
Owing to the World Cup winner's immense quality, he finds himself not short of suitors with AC Milan and Manchester City interested in his services.
It however looks like Atletico Madrid might beat them both to Fabregas as Simeone had earlier identified the former Arsenal captain as a priority signing.
#4 Christian Pulisic (Dortmund to Chelsea)
The 20-year-old US international has been one of the best young players in the world since he made his BVB debut in 2016, going on to become the youngest foreigner to score a Bundesliga goal.
Pulisic has grown from strength to strength since then and his performances have understandably generated a lot of interest as Europe's biggest clubs had put him under their radar.
Pulisic seems set to make a move this winter and earlier on stated that he turned down a move to Liverpool, with it now appearing that Chelsea are in pole position to land his services.
A fee of £45m has reportedly been verbally agreed between Dortmund and Chelsea, with a cryptic message posted on social media confirming the incident.
Pulisic is an extremely talented player and if the move to Stamford Bridge comes to frution, then there is no doubt that he could be a good fit for Maurizio Sarri.
#3 Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal to Juventus)
Ramsey is another player who might find himself out of contract in the summer having hit a brick wall in contract negotiations with Arsenal.
The Welsh midfielder is all but set to depart on a free in the summer, unless Arsenal reach a deal to sell him during this winter window.
The 28-year-old had initially been destined to join Bavarian giants Bayern Munich with reports emanating that the Bundesliga champions had reached a deal for him, but the club came out to strongly deny those claims.
New reports suggest the Arsenal skipper is on his way to Turin to join the kings of bargain buys (think Pirlo and Pogba) and team up with Ronaldo at Juventus.
Ramsey has been a steady performer for Arsenal since making his debut for them as an 18-year-old in 2008 and if he is to join Juve, he would improve an already scarily dominant team.
#2 Milinkovic-Savic (Lazio to Manchester United)
Milinkovic-Savic has been on United's radar for a while, owing to his impressiveness for Lazio in Serie A and was heavily courted by Mourinho in the past only for the English giants to baulk at his asking price which they felt was too high.
Last season, the Serb had a spectacular campaign which saw him create 12 assists and score three goals in 35 Serie A matches and saw him voted into the team of the season.
Since then, the 23-year-old has suffered a dip in form which concordantly had an effect on reducing his transfer value and this situation has attracted Manchester United to renew their interest in the Serbian international.
Even though results have improved in the three weeks since Solksjaer took over the managerial reins at Old Trafford, if United are to pull through with the deal, it would represent a massive coup as they would be getting one of the highest rated midfielders in Serie A.
#1 Matts Hummels (Bayern Munich to Chelsea)
Having been established in the Bayern and Germany defensive set-up for the best part of the last five years, Hummels has found himself facing increased scrutiny over his dip in form and has been constantly dropped by Bayern coach Niko Kovac.
The 30-year-old came in for intense criticism alongside defensive partner Jerome Boateng for their roles in the shambolic display by Germany at the World Cup and despite repeated backing by Joachim Low, his international manager has since then come out to state that he is not at the standard required.
Apparently, the World Cup winner still has some admirers amidst his detractors, as reports have emanated that Maurizio Sarri is interested in his services, with Bayern Munich asking the Londoners to pay £30m to land the multiple time Bundesliga winner.
Other reports suggest Chelsea are as close to landing Hummels within the next two weeks provided they can match Bayern's valuation of the center-back.
