The January transfer window closed last night and late developments in the market could potentially shape Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers’ thinking going into Gameweek 22 and beyond.
Here are the confirmed incoming deals that could present Fantasy bosses with new targets or hurt existing assets.
TRANSFER DEADLINE DAY – AS IT HAPPENED
12:30 am – ENZO FERNANDEZ (Benfica to Chelsea, £105m)
January’s biggest transfer saga has finally been concluded, as Benfica midfielder Enzo Fernandez joins Chelsea for an eye-watering British transfer record fee of £105m.
He has only been in Lisbon since the summer – having arrived for just €10m from River Plate – but the gigantic profit is largely based on Fernandez’s impressive World Cup campaign. Named ‘Young Player of the Tournament’, the 22-year-old scored against Mexico and went on to play a huge part in Argentina’s glorious success.
On the ball, Fernandez is a technically sound and confident passer, yet he also does the defensive work brilliantly. He’s a tough tackler and deep-lying playmaker, which will improve Chelsea as a team but probably won’t put him under much FPL consideration.
Over 75% of his shots for Benfica in the current campaign have been from outside the box and there’s also been just one league goal.
Five assists have already arrived in 2022/23, with his minutes-per-chance-created average of 46.3 solid if not spectacular.
12:30 am – Paul Onuachu (Genk to Southampton, £22m)
Southampton have completed the signing of striker Paul Onuachu from Belgian club KRC Genk.
He’s averaged a goal every other game in his decade or so as a senior pro, first with Danish side Midtjylland and then with Genk.
The towering forward netted 17 goals in 22 appearances in the Belgian top flight in 2022/23, a total that no-one else can better.
A reminder though that Deniz Undav (£5.1m) was the Golden Boot winner in that league last season – and he hasn’t exactly set the Premier League alight since…
“Paul is a significant signing for us and completes what has been an extremely positive month in terms of recruitment.
“He’s a handful to play against, has got a tremendous record throughout his career and he’s also someone who brings great experience with him, so he’ll be a really positive addition to the squad.” – Nathan Jones
12.30am – Cedric Soares (Arsenal to Fulham, loan)
Cédric Soares (£4.2m) has moved to Fulham on loan from Arsenal.
Soares reunites with Marco Silva, who he worked with previously at Sporting Clube de Portuga.
Chiefly a right-back but also with a fistful of game-time on the opposite flank, Cedric would appear to be swapping one substitute bench for another given that Kenny Tete (£4.4m) and Antonee Robinson (£4.4m) are clear current first choices at full-back.
With only two domestic loans permitted per season, Fulham have had to make erstwhile loanee Shane Duffy’s (£4.3m) deal permanent in order to meet the Premier League’s requirements.
12:20 am – Kamaldeen Sulemana (Rennes to Southampton, £22m)
Incomings of Mislav Orsic (£5.5m), Carlos Alcaraz (£5.0m) and James Bree (£4.5m) have been followed by the £22m capture of 20-year-old Kamaldeen Sulemana, who opted for Southampton over Everton.
The fast dribbling winger is one of many top young talents to recently emerge from the highly-rated FC Nordsjaelland ranks, moving to Rennes in 2021 but struggling to take game-time from their other quality attacking talents.
Two of this season’s 14 Ligue 1 appearances have been from the start, so the Ghanaian international will certainly be hoping that the Saints offer more minutes.
12:10 am – Marcel Sabitzer (Bayern Munich to Manchester United, loan)
With news emerging earlier today that influential midfielder Christian Eriksen (£6.3m) will be injured for three months, Man United have quickly brought in an extra body on loan.
Bayern Munich midfielder Marcel Sabitzer was much coveted after some productive years at RB Leipzig but his game-time has been restricted in the presence of Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka, with just 11 starts from 27 squad appearances this season.
The versatile 28-year-old Austria international has played in pretty much every position on the park during his career but more recently we’ve seen him operating as a central midfielder, and it’s there where we’ll surely see him after the blow of Eriksen’s unavailability.
Two goals and two assists in 54 appearances for Bayern suggests he’s not going to be a sought-after FPL asset.
A total of 59 attacking returns in 145 Bundesliga appearances for Leipzig is more eye-catching, although it should be noted that he spent plenty of his time there operating further forward on the right flank or in a more advanced central midfield role.
11.30pm – Harry Souttar (Stoke City to Leicester City, £15m)
Stoke City and Australia centre-back Harry Souttar has moved to Leicester City for £15m, boosting a defence that has conceded ten times in five post-World Cup matches.
The 24-year-old arrived at Stoke in 2016 but made his league debut for them in 2020. Although an anterior cruciate ligament injury stole most of his 2022, Souttar recovered in time to register an impressive World Cup campaign with Australia.
Fixtures are about to toughen for Leicester, who visit a rejuvenated Aston Villa before consecutive outings against Spurs, Man United and Arsenal. Likely to blank in Gameweek 28, Souttar is unlikely to be a target for FPL managers.
11.05pm – Keylor Navas (Paris Saint-Germain to Nottingham Forest, loan)
Guess who? Forest again.
Steve Cooper’s side have completed the signing of Keylor Navas from Paris Saint-Germain, with the veteran shot-stopper signing on loan for the remainder of the 2022/23 campaign.
The 36-year-old Costa Rica international has been brought in to cover Dean Henderson (£4.7m), whose recovery from a thigh injury was estimated between four and six weeks.
Navas previously played for Real Madrid before joining PSG, where he was named in the Ligue 1 Team of the Year as recently as 2020/21.
But a jobshare with Gianluigi Donnarumma in the following campaign preceded this current season of playing second fiddle to the Italian goalkeeper, so Navas now hops across the English Channel for the first time in his career.
It all spells bad news for Wayne Hennessey (£3.9m), whose stint in the Forest side now looks even shorter than initially thought.
11.00pm – Jonjo Shelvey (Newcastle United to Nottingham Forest)
Newcastle have accepted a small fee from Nottingham Forest for Jonjo Shelvey (£4.8m), who had just six months left on his Magpies contract.
A key player in Eddie Howe’s first half-season on Tyneside, a combination of injuries and team success means he is without a league start in this campaign. A calf problem currently sidelines him although he isn’t too far away from a return.
However, when fully fit, Shelvey’s experience and passing ability could play a vital role in Forest’s attempt to avoid immediate relegation back to the Championship.
Chiefly operating as a deep-lying number six during Howe’s time at Newcastle, he’s never really offered much in the way of goals and assists in the last two seasons.
He’ll also perhaps have a tough time cracking the Forest starting XI initially, with competition fierce in the engine room.
10.55pm – Pedro Porro (Sporting Lisbon to Tottenham Hotspur, £39m)
Already full of wing-backs, Spurs have at least balanced this loan (with obligatory purchase) by allowing Matt Doherty (£4.6m) and Djed Spence (£4.1m) to join Atletico Madrid and Rennes respectively.
Pedro Porro was signed by Manchester City in 2019 but never made an appearance, immediately sent to Valladolid followed by two years at Sporting CP. The latter triggered a buyout clause over the summer, meaning they’re quickly making a big profit on the Spaniard.
Above image from fbref
In this season’s Primeira Liga, Porro leads the way for assists (six) and expected assists per 90 (0.41), whilst in second place for crosses (107). This is promising for Harry Kane (£11.7m) owners, whose 28 headed goal attempts are only bettered by Aleksandar Mitrovic (£7.0m).
10.00pm – Albert Sambi Lokonga (Arsenal to Crystal Palace, loan)
Crystal Palace’s midfield has been short on numbers this season and the Eagles have further sought to address that with the loan signing of Albert Sambi Lokonga (£4.3m).
He’s managed a grand total of zero goals and assists in over 1,300 minutes of game-time for Arsenal over the last two campaigns, rarely getting a look-in in 2022/23.
Signed more as a number six (and indeed having previously talked up his own credentials in that position), he’s never really convinced as a holding midfielder.
We did see him deployed in a more advanced role for the Gunners in pre-season, when he registered two goals and three assists, so it’ll be interesting to see how Patrick Vieira utilises him in south London.
9.55pm – Hamed Traore (Sassuolo to Bournemouth, loan which will become permanent in the summer)
After being rejected in an ambitious move for Roma’s Nicolo Zaniolo, Bournemouth have moved on to sign Sassuolo midfielder Hamed Traore for £21m.
The Ivorian moved to Italy at a young age, progressing through Empoli’s academy before joining Sassuolo in 2019.
A versatile attacking midfielder, he has played centrally and out wide on both flanks during his time in Serie A.
Above image from WhoScored
A total of 16 goals have arrived in three-and-a-half seasons but five of Bournemouth’s next half-dozen opponents are currently in the top six. It’s a tough ask for Traore to immediately hit the ground running, considering the circumstances.
9.45pm – Felipe (Atletico Madrid to Nottingham Forest)
The new names just will not stop arriving at Nottingham Forest. Next up is 33-year-old centre-back Felipe, arriving from Atletico Madrid for around £2m.
Much-improved Forest have kept three clean sheets from their last six matches, so the Brazilian won’t necessarily walk straight into Steve Cooper’s next XI – especially as he’s started just two league matches all season.
9.06pm – Naouirou Ahamada (VfB Stuttgart to Crystal Palace, £10.5m)
Crystal Palace have signed 20-year-old Naouirou Ahamada on a three-and-a-half-year deal, subject to international clearance.
The box-to-box midfielder has impressed in the German Bundesliga this term, starting 17 games for VfB Stuttgart, scoring twice.
8:33pm – Illia Zabarnyi (Dynamo Kyiv to Bournemouth, £24m)
Bournemouth’s big spending continues, with 20-year-old centre-back Illia Zabarnyi arriving from Dynamo Kyiv for around £24m.
He has already amassed 22 Ukraine caps and 84 competitive club appearances, which would’ve been more were it not for current global events.
There has been only one clean sheet from the Cherries’ last 12 league games, which explains why none of their defensive assets have over 0.5 per cent ownership
8:03pm – Jorginho (Chelsea to Arsenal, £12m)
The final 24 hours of a transfer window often throw up surprise deals and one of these is Jorginho’s (£5.8m) move from Chelsea to Arsenal. With his contract expiring in the summer, a £12m fee has tempted the Blues to sell to a London rival and add experience to their title bid.
“Jorginho is a midfield player with intelligence, deep leadership skills and a huge amount of Premier League and international experience. Jorginho has won in his career, but he still has the hunger and huge willingness to contribute here.” – Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta’s side has avoided major injuries in central midfield so far but, should they occur, Jorginho is able to step in and offer calmness during an unprecedented situation for this young side.
If he gets a run in the side, Bukayo Saka (£8.2m) owners could be nervous about penalty-taking duties. He has scored his last three but Jorginho is well-known for spot kicks, netting six of them for Chelsea last season.
7:30pm – Sasa Lukic (Torino to Fulham, £8m)
Serbia international midfielder Sasa Lukic has landed at Fulham in an £8m deal, which is more likely to affect the FPL minutes of Harrison Reed (£4.4m) and Joao Palhinha (£5.0m) than Andreas Pereira (£4.5m).
The 26-year-old has played 162 times for Torino since his 2016 transfer, scoring 14 times.
10:00am – Harrison Ashby (West Ham United to Newcastle United, £3m)
The high-flying Magpies have followed up their big-money Anthony Gordon (£5.2m) purchase with a lower-profile addition.
Right-back Harrison Ashby (£3.9m) arrives to provide back-up to Kieran Trippier (£6.1m), although the 21-year-old has only ever played 365 minutes of first-team football – six of which in the Premier League.
LAST NIGHT – Matias Vina (Roma to Bournemouth, loan)
Late on Monday night came the confirmation that Roma left-back Matias Vina has joined Bournemouth on an initial six-month loan with the summer option of making the move permanent.
He follows Dango Ouattara (£5.0m), Darren Randolph (£4.0m) and Antoine Semenyo (£5.0m) through the door at Dean Court, with hopes that he won’t be the last addition.
The 25-year-old Uruguay international made two cameo appearances at the World Cup.
