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The 2019 January transfer window is in full gear, with the attendant rumors and speculations associated with it meaning fans have no shortage of transfer updates both real and fictitious as tabloids get their hearts pumping over reported targets that their clubs are interested in.
There have already been some confirmed deals such as Brahim Diaz joining Real Madrid from Manchester City, Christian Pulisic arriving Chelsea from Dortmund, as well as Nathaniel Clyne and Dominic Solanke both moving over to Bournemouth from Liverpool.
Along with the done deals, there are others which are reportedly nearing conclusion such as those of Cesc Fabregas to AS Monaco, Aaron Ramsey to Juventus and Callum Hudson-Odoi to Bayern and while most of these transfer speculations are largely expected due to one reason or the other, chiefly lack of playing time and contract expiration, there are other transfer speculations which were largely unforeseen.
In this piece, we would be taking a look at five shocking transfers which no one saw coming that might happen during the course of this winter transfer window.
#5 Alvaro Morata to Sevilla
Having found playing time hard to come by at Real Madrid, Alvaro Morata sought a transfer away from the reigning European champions and found sucour in the way of Chelsea, with the Blues spending a club record fee of £60m to sign him in the summer of 2017.
The Spaniard was expected to fill in the central striker role at the club and help the London team challenge for trophies on all fronts by banging in goals, but it has largely not gone according to plan for the former Juventus man.
Despite beginning his first season at Chelsea in impressive fashion, scoring and providing an assist on his debut as well as scoring a hat-trick a month later, it soon began to fall apart for the 26-year-old, as he faced a lot of criticism for his profligacy in front of goal as well as his unsuitability to the physical nature of the Premier League, with his tendency to fall down at the slightest contact drawing the ire of fans.
By January, the club management had gotten tired of him, leading to the winter transfer arrival of Olivier Giroud.
Morata ended his first season as a Chelsea player with just 15 goals from 48 matches in all competitions, with only 11 of those coming from 31 Premier League matches, which contributed in no small measure to Chelsea's under performance in the PL last season.
It was believed that Morata would pick up this season, with the birth of his child and switch to number 29 expected to give him an extra lift, but once more those hopes have been dashed.
He has scored just nine goals from 24 matches in all competitions this season, which is significantly beneath the standards of a striker leading a club the size of Chelsea.
Having previously defended Morata, manager Sarri seems to have run out of patience with him, questioning his mental strength in addition to leaving him out of team lineups in recent weeks.
Contrary to popular opinion, the 26-year-old has never actually been a prolific striker (his goal ratios at both Juventus and Real Madrid back this up), so his struggles should not come as a surprise to anyone who has followed his career closely.
Rumors emanating indicate that Spanish side Sevilla are interested in bringing Morata back to Spain and have reportedly met with his agent to discuss a potential move.
The Andalusians currently find themselves short of a striker, having lost Luis Muriel on loan to Fiorentina and thus would be keen to replace him.
Things are currently not working according to plan for Alvaro Morata at Chelsea and while there is still the potential for him to turn things around, a move away from Stamford Bridge to more familiar surroundings might just be in his best interest.
#4 Paulo Dybala to PSG/Bayern/Man City
Dybala broke through at Palermo, earning a move to Italian giants Juventus in 2015 and since then, the Argentine has grown from strength to strength, forging his reputation as one of the best attacking midfielders in the world.
Quick, technically brilliant, wonderful at set-pieces and adept at picking teammates out with exquisite passes, Paulo Dybala is almost the definition of a complete midfielder and is a real asset to any team, as on his day he can hold his own with any playmaker anywhere in the world.
However, due to the arrival of Ronaldo in Turin as well as a host of other wonderfully talented players in the squad, the 25-year-old has found himself on the bench on some occasions this season, but his class has still shone whenever he has been called upon.
The impending arrival of Aaron Ramsey means that there would be even stiffer competition for spaces in the Bianconerri midfield and as such, Dybala's position is not as surefire as it once was.
Juve reportedly have an interest in signing Kylian Mbappe and have placed Dybala as the sacrificial Lamb to make that deal happen, with it emerging that the club is willing to listen to offers for the Argentine maestro.
Reports emanating suggest that the trio of PSG, Bayern and Manchester City have all made enquiries over the player who the club values to be worth over £90m.
If this move goes through, whoever pulls it off can count the gains of having a genuine world class player in its ranks, while Juventus could well pay the price for letting such a priceless gem slip through their fingers.
#Malcom to Lazio
Malcom was one of the most sought after young talents in Europe over the last two seasons thanks to his displays with Bordeaux in Ligue 1 and as such it was seen as only a matter of time before he moved on to a bigger club in a bigger league.
As of July last year, all indications appeared that that club would be AS Roma in the Serie A, with the Giallarossi even going as far as to announce his arrival on its official twitter page, while expectant fans thronged the international airport pending his arrival.
In a shocking twist of events however, the Brazilian ended up signing for Barcelona instead, as it emerged that the Spanish club made a last minute offer, leaving Roma hanging with their tails in between their legs.
The 21-year-old must have expected that his development would be massively enhanced by playing alongside some of the greatest players of all time, but that has not been the case since his arrival at Nou Camp.
The winger has made just nine appearances for Barca in all competitions, with his only starts coming in the Copa Del Rey as a result of an extremely tough competition for places in the Blaugrana attack.
With Ousmane Dembele (who it was expected Malcom would replace) showing signs of improvements and indispensability (amidst his disciplinary problems) so much so that Coutinho currently finds himself on the bench, the signs are looking like Malcom is surplus to requirements at Camp Nou barely six months after arriving in controversial circumstances.
Reports suggest that he could be on his way back to Rome though this time it would be with Roma's bitter rivals Lazio as the Italian club have reportedly made an offer to bring his Barcelona misery to an end.
Even though the player's agent came out to describe the allegations as 'fake news', there might be some element of truth to it and if this move comes to fruition, it would represent a double blow to AS Roma.
#2 James Rodriguez to Arsenal
The breakout star of the 2014 World Cup, James Rodriguez captured the imagination of the world with his displays for Colombia, winning the Golden Boot in addition to that year's Puskas award for his stunning goal against Uruguay in the round of 16.
His performance earned him a mega move to Real Madrid, with whom he won everything and cemented his position as one of the best midfielders in the world.
James however soon found himself out of the starting picture and got a loan move to Bayern Munich where despite initially being an integral member of the squad has found himself used less frequently since Niko Kovac was appointed at the beginning of this season.
The 27-year-old clashed with his manager in the dressing room after a sub-par performance in a UCL match, reportedly telling him that this is not Frankfurt, while also calling out Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzvic.
The Colombian has increasingly found playing time hard to come by, leading to speculation that he is tired of life in Bavaria and is seeking an exit.
Rodriguez is still technically a Real Madrid player and reports have emanated that Arsenal have made an offer of £63m for the play maker.
If this move pulls through, it would be one of the most shocking transfers in a while yet, but there is a possibility of it happening, seeing as Ramsey is reportedly on his way to Juventus, while the Ozil situation continues to drag on.
#1 Krzysztof Piatek to Real Madrid
Genoa CFC v SPAL - Serie A
Despite possessing some of the best players in the world and being three times defending champions of the UCL, Real Madrid are struggling badly this season, having failed to recover from the loss of Ronaldo and Zidane last summer.
Remarkably, for a club with the attacking talents at its disposal, Real have found themselves faltering in front of goal, registering a paltry 26 goals from 18 matches in La Liga, which is almost half of the 50 managed by Barcelona in the same number of matches.
Karim Benzema has been the major culprit, although he is ably supported by a poor cast including Gareth Bale and Marco Asensio who have all failed to step up this season.
Step in Piatek. The 23-year-old has been one of the revelations of the season in Serie A and indeed all of Europe, taking the Italian league by storm as he currently sits second on the scorers chart on 13 goals behind the great Ronaldo.
The Polish international has also added in six goals from just two Coppa Italia matches for god measure and his feat is made all the more amazing considering that no one batted an eyelid when he arrived the Serie A owing to his relatively obscure past.
Los Blancos are reportedly interested in bringing Piatek to the Bernabeu on loan for the rest of the season in a bid to see if he could be the club's answer to their woes in front of goal.
Even though it might be too early to tell if Piatek is a one-season wonder or not, his move to Real Madrid has the potential to come through on the strength of his achievements this season which is not bad for a man who a year ago was playing for Cracovia in the Polish league.
