5 Most Expensive January Transfers in Football History

Frenkie De Jong is set to join Barcelona in the summer, with the deal expected to be around £65.3m from Ajax. De Jong is seen as one of the most promising talents in Europe. The 21-year-old Netherlands international has been a sought after player in this January transfer window with Manchester City and PSG also showing interest in his signature.

The January transfer window has a mixed reaction from managers with some calling it unnecessary while some are signing big players who have made an instant impact at their respective clubs.

Premier League clubs are seen leading the way in most of the big transfers nowadays but European biggies like Barcelona and Real Madrid are not far behind when it comes to improving the squad in January.

Big-money deals are always tough in January with the clubs doing a thorough risk analysis of how much the player can contribute to their squad in the current season. Barcelona led the way with the signing of Philippe Coutinho last season and here they are again paying big in January.

Here is the list of top 5 January transfers in football history.

Also see : Fantasy Premier League , EPL Transfer News, La Liga Transfer News

#5 Christian Pulisic: Borussia Dortmund to Chelsea - £57.5m

Pulisic has signed for Chelsea for Â£57.5m — Pulisic has signed for Chelsea for £57.5m

The first big transfer of the current January window was when Chelsea splashed the cash for Pulisic to bring the talented American in the summer. Pulisic is the golden boy of US football and has a bright future according to major football pundits.

He is finding it tough to get playing time in Germany given the depth of squad which Dortmund has, but come next season Pulisic will show his talent in the Premier League.

With the chances of Eden Hazard leaving for Real Madrid in the summer, Pulisic may well be the ideal replacement, if not a ready-made one. With age on his side, a fee of £57.5m seems to be a bargain in the current market where biggies are willing to pay any amount for star talent.

#4 Oscar: Chelsea to Shanghai SIPG - £60m

Oscar was seen as a legend in the making when he arrived at Chelsea. In fact, Jose Mourinho had decided to build his team around Oscar when he decided to sell Mata to Manchester United.

Oscar made over 200 appearances for Chelsea and scored some stunning goals and created many others. Oscar was one of the first talents who decided to move to the Chinese league for big money, and it was surprising, as his age was the right one to peak in Europe. In the 29 games that the Brazilian has played in the Chinese League, he has scored 12 and provided 18 assists which are good numbers for an attacking midfielder.

Many think that his international career is over as coaches sometimes oversee a player plying his trade in lower leagues of the world, but Oscar still has the talent and time to again sign for a European biggie in the near future.

#3 Frenkie de Jong: Ajax to Barcelona - £65.3m

Spanish giants Barcelona again made transfer headlines when they signed the Dutchman for a big amount. Given that they had signed Coutinho in a record deal in the last January transfer window, it shows the riches the club is sitting on signing top talents one after the another.

Manchester City were also in the race to sign the Netherland International, but Guardiola said that when the competition is against the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona, most clubs will come second. De Jong has played 65 times for the Amsterdam club and he will become the 20th Dutchman to sign for Barcelona.

De Jong will spend the rest of the season at Ajax, meaning he will be able to face Real Madrid in the coming knockout round of the Champions League, a fixture which will become a regular one for him once he starts playing in the La Liga. He is Barcelona’s fourth signing of this January transfer window.

#2 Virgil van Dijk: Southampton to Liverpool - £75m

Virgil van Dijk has proved to be a great signing for Liverpool

Liverpool were a good attacking side under Klopp, but Klopp and the team management soon realized that they cannot be serious title contenders unless they have leadership at the back. Out came the chequebook and Virgil van Djik became the most expensive defender in football history.

Manchester City had again shown interest in the top talent but they thought the asking price was a bit too much to justify. But 12 months later, it is the Merseyside club which is reaping the benefit of paying big for a defender. With just 10 goals conceded in 21 League games this season, van Djik seems to be the difference between Liverpool and Manchester City.

van Dijk has not only shown great performances in big games but he has transformed the mentality of the Liverpool back four who now are adept at facing the big attacking teams that too with ease. If Liverpool win the league this season, Klopp has to be credited for the vision he showed in getting the deal done

#1. Philippe Coutinho - Liverpool to Barcelona: £142m

Coutinho has failed to justify his price tag at Barcelona

Coutinho has failed to produce his Liverpool performances in the Barcelona colors and the Barcelona management is growing frustrated with the lack of consistency from the Brazilian.

The transfer value of Coutinho is unlikely to be broken in the near future and Barcelona would hope he starts firing as soon as possible. At Anfield, he scored 54 goals in 201 matches and was the fulcrum of the side netting some brilliant goals in his time in England.

Coutinho scored Barcelona’s first goal in the 5-1 thumping of Real Madrid in October. The money received from the Coutinho deal was enough for Liverpool to sign Van Djik and Alisson, both of whom are proving to be title-winning talent and the 2018 transfer window may well be known as the Klopp transfer window in the future if Liverpool pip City in the title race.

Only time will tell if Coutinho’s transfer record will be broken in the coming January transfer windows or not.