The Premier League’s big guns failed to make signings on a painfully quiet transfer deadline day that left supporters, even at leaders Arsenal, wondering if an opportunity had been missed.
Crystal Palace’s capture of Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Jorgen Strand Larsen for up to €56m, and Jean-Philippe Mateta’s failed medical at AC Milan, were the only major headlines in the end. Even though all the top six look like they need strengthening and have multiple issues with injuries.
Arsenal’s experience summed up a day on which journalists desperately searched for drama that didn’t exist.
They were one of many clubs to keep their powder dry and there was a nervous tension in north London as a result.
Did they miss an opportunity to improve their chances of ending a 22-year wait to be champions by failing to find a replacement for the injured Mikel Merino? The midfielder could be out for the rest of the season with a fractured foot, and he’ll be a big miss.
Manager Mikel Arteta hinted in his pre-match press conference for the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg against Chelsea that he wanted to spend.
“When you lose a big player like this with four months to go, and all the competitions to play for, you need to look and we need to do everything we possibly can to see if a player is available. We need to find solutions and try.”
The question is, did Arsenal try hard enough?
They were linked with a surprise bid for Newcastle’s impressive midfielder Sandro Tonali, a rumour that had the Gunners fan base on tenterhooks. But it turned out to be a very long shot – or even a hoax.
By the end of the day, Newcastle were saying he wasn’t for sale and hadn’t been offered to anyone – and, unusually, even the player’s agent came out to quash the rumour.
Giuseppe Riso told Sky Italia: “Newcastle were never going to let Tonali leave in January. There’s absolutely nothing in it. We didn’t even talk about it.”
Counter-claims in north London suggest Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta considered the idea but never contacted Newcastle. So, perhaps it’s one that could be revisited in future. At 25, Tonali is the kind of age and profile that fits Arsenal’s recruitment strategy.
It’s clear that doing business in January is getting more difficult for everyone, especially with clubs trying to spread their financial outlay across the season in order to navigate financial restrictions from both the Premier League and UEFA.
A loan in January with a view to a permanent deal has been popular as a result. Liverpool, with a €70m bid for Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet, took that route – although the centre-back won’t arrive until the summer and didn’t need to agree terms before the deadline.
Manchester United, now revitalised under caretaker manager Michael Carrick, also opted to keep their powder dry having spent big in August. Their decision to keep Kobbie Mainoo was more important than finding new recruits at this stage.
It means that Arsenal and Liverpool have not signed anyone at all in winter for four seasons in a row, while United’s capture of Patrick Dorgu in 2025 has been their only winter business over the same period.
Perhaps Tottenham and Newcastle, who both surely needed help, are suffering the same malaise. They failed to find late deals this time – and even Chelsea kept quiet having spent so big in recent windows.
Tottenham captain Cristian Romero added to the tension at his club, and only once the window had closed, with an Instagram message that appeared to criticise their lack of investment.
He said, referencing the 2-2 draw against Manchester City: “Great effort from all my teammates yesterday, they were incredible.
“I wanted to be available to help them even though I wasn’t feeling well, especially since we only had 11 players available – unbelievable but true and disgraceful.”
Aston Villa, who had already brought in Tammy Abraham and Douglas Luiz, were similarly nervous on deadline day as fans who had taken the day off to watch the ‘action’ dozed off on sofas across the world.
Manchester City fans however, can feel happy with their club’s business. The Cityzens may not have been active on deadline day, but they had already snapped up Antoine Semenyo, €74m, and Marc Guehi, €23m – two of the best signings of the window.
That left struggling Crystal Palace, who sold Guehi to City, to earn the title of deadline day kings with their capture of Strand Larsen – and the unexpected bonus that Mateta is staying too (although the want-away French international, who desperately wanted to leave to boost his World Cup hopes, may be difficult to re-integrate).
It’s all quite different to January 2023 when Chelsea alone spent €324m in the winter window and everyone was throwing money around.
It means we’ll have to wait until June for the real show. But how many clubs will look back and think they should have pounced when others were resting?
