There's been some incredible business done in the winter window over the years – but which players had the biggest impact on their new clubs?
Leandro Trossard’s remarkable start to life at Arsenal has seen him voted the club’s Player of the Month for March. The Belgium international came in from Brighton in January and has made a huge impact for the Gunners, helping them maintain their surprise Premier League title charge.
Trossard has made 13 top flight appearances for Arsenal since joining, with just seven of those being starts. But in that time he has scored once and set up seven goals for Mikel Arteta’s pacesetters, who are looking to be crowned champions for the first time since 2004.
It’s been an incredible start to life in north London for Trossard, and it got us thinking at GOAL about which January signings over the years have made the biggest immediate impact for their clubs in the Premier League.
We've taken a look – did we miss anyone out?
15Paolo Di Canio (West Ham)
Di Canio made himself a legend at West Ham following his move from Sheffield Wednesday in January 1999.
He arrived with his reputation disgraced having shoved referee Paul Alcock to the floor after being sent off in a game against Arsenal. The Italian never played again for Wednesday after that, but Harry Redknapp took him to West Ham after he had served his suspension and he made a massive impact.
He scored five goals in 13 games for the Hammers during the closing months of the 1999-2000 season, and then netted 18 in the following campaign.
There can’t be many players who have made such a big impact at West Ham as quickly as Di Canio did.
Advertisement14Andrey Arshavin (Arsenal)
Technically, Arshavin wasn’t actually a January signing. Arsenal fans had to wait until early February for confirmation that his move from Zenit St Petersburg had gone through.
But the diminutive Russian playmaker was certainly worth the wait.
Arshavin may not have gone on to hit the heights many were hoping for in north London, but his impact over those first few months was huge.
Arsene Wenger’s side were five points adrift of the top four when Arshavin signed, but they lost just one game following his signing and comfortably went on to secure a fourth-placed finish and Champions League qualification.
He scored six goals in 15 games between his debut and the end of the season, including all four goals as Arsenal drew 4-4 with Liverpool at Anfield.
Getty13Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle)
When Newcastle signed Guimaraes from Lyon in January 2022, it was a signal of intent to the rest of Europe.
Fresh from being taken over by The Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, this was a sign that the new owners at St James’ Park meant business.
Newcastle were in relegation trouble at the time, but Guimaraes’ arrival sparked a dramatic upturn in form.
He scored six goals in 17 appearances and helped steer the Magpies away from any relegation trouble, setting them up for the season they are now enjoying towards the top of the table.
Getty12Christian Eriksen (Brentford)
Eriksen joining Brentford in January 2022 was one of the great footballing stories.
Just half a year earlier, the playmaker had to be resuscitated on the pitch after suffering a cardiac arrest while paying for Denmark at Euro 2020.
Most thought that was Eriksen’s career over, but after being fitted with an implanted cardioverter-defibrillator (a type of pacemaker), he was determined to come back.
After cancelling his contract with Inter, he made the move to Brentford in January and went on to provide four assists and score one goal in 12 games for the west London club, proving he could still perform at the very highest level.
His performances were enough to then earn him a summer move to Manchester United. One of the great January signings, both in terms of the impact he had on the pitch for Brentford and the story behind it.
