Eight Fun January Transfers You Might Have Missed

For the majority of clubs around Europe, the January transfer window reached a serene conclusion on Monday evening.

No major sagas needing settling on Deadline Day, nor did a desperate club reach in for one last bite of the cherry. Raheem Sterling remains unsigned, while Jhon Durán and Moussa Diaby stayed put. The majority were disciplined, resisting temptations to appease grumbling supporters keen to enjoy one more dopamine rush.

The prominence of social media and the rise of transfer ’experts’ in football discourse means it’s hard for anything to pass you by. However, there are always a few things that slip through your net in transfer season.

For those who aren’t notified every time Fabrizio Romano posts, this one’s for you. Here are eight transfers you may have missed during the January transfer window.

Thiago Silva: Fluminense to Porto

Okay, so you might’ve got a grasp of this one because Thiago Silva’s move to Porto was completed in December.

The Portuguese club was Silva’s port of call when he ventured to European shores for the first time in 2004. However, he failed to make a single first-team appearance for the Champions League holders, instead slogging it out in the reserves for a year.

He’s since developed into one of his generation’s finest defenders, and perhaps an all-time great. In his twilight, the Brazilian has refused to skip a beat, and he played a key role in Fluminense’s deep run at the Club World Cup last summer.

Now 41, Silva joined Porto on a deal lasting until the end of the season, but the current Primeira Liga leaders have the option of keeping him for another year. Five years older than head coach Francisco Farioli, Silva could aim to repeat Pepe’s late-career heroics at the Dragão.

Ciro Immobile: Bologna to Paris FC

Welcome to Paris, Ciro Immobile 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/x9aJ3cItPf
— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) February 1, 2026

The long-time Lazio centre-forward and four-time Capocannoniere has struggled to settle since departing Rome in 2024.

After a year in Türkiye with Beşiktaş, Ciro Immobile returned to Italy last summer and signed for Vincenzo Italiano’s Bologna. However, a hamstring strain compromised the first half of his 2025–26 campaign, and he played just six times in Serie A for the Rossublù without scoring a goal.

Despite his sluggish start, there was no expectation that the 35-year-old would leave the club this winter. However, Immobile received a surprise proposal from the emerging Paris FC in Ligue 1. The newly-promoted side were seemingly keen to add experience to their frontline, and they were able to sign the Italian, who has over 250 career league goals, on a free transfer.

Immobile signed on an 18-month contract and, if he can stay fit, may well have a shot at emerging as Paris’ starting striker for the remainder of the season. Willem Geubbels and Jean-Philippe Krasso have shared the bulk of the minutes up top so far, with the former scoring nine Ligue 1 goals.

Giacomo Raspadori: Atlético Madrid to Atalanta

Never before have Atalanta faced off against Atlético Madrid in a competitive fixture, but the two clubs certainly got to know each other during the January window.

Before working out a deal to send to the once-disgruntled Ademola Lookman to the Spanish capital, Atalanta agreed to welcome Giacomo Raspadori back to his homeland after a forgettable spell in Spain.

The former Sassuolo starlet is back in Serie A with Raffaele Palladino’s re-emerging La Dea, having spent a couple of years in the wilderness. Not imposing or prolific enough to shine as the leading up top, but also not brilliantly subtle as a playmaker to flourish as a ’trequartista,’ there’s a sense that Raspadori hasn’t yet delivered upon his early-career promise.

However, being back in Italy should help, and you can envisage him developing a stellar relationship with Charles De Ketelaere between the lines. Raspadori scored on debut against Parma.

Timo Werner: RB Leipzig to San Jose Earthquakes

An array of German greats have jetted across the Atlantic to see out their careers.

Lothar Matthäus signed for the MetroStars (a precursor to the New York Red Bulls) in 2000, Bastian Schweinsteiger appeared 85 times in Major League Soccer (MLS) for the Chicago Fire, while the greatest of them all, Franz Beckenbauer, had two spells with the New York Cosmos in the North American Soccer League (NASL).

Marco Reus and Thomas Müller are now plying their trade in the States, and they’ll be joined by a modern-day German football icon in Timo Werner. Okay, maybe that’s a bit strong, but at one point, Werner was his country’s most prolific centre-forward and perhaps their next great hope.

However, a move to Chelsea in 2020 ultimately shot his confidence and thrust Werner on a downward trajectory. A return to RB Leipzig failed to ignite "Turbo Timo", and he became a figure of mockery at Tottenham Hotspur.

Now, he’s hoping for potentially one last hurrah in a part of the world less familiar with his demise. The San Jose Earthquakes are one of MLS’s poorest-performing franchises and were wretched in 2024, but perhaps Werner, away from the limelight, will catalyse a resurgence.

Edin Džeko: Fiorentina to Schalke

39-year-old Edin Džeko is another who returned to familiar lands over the winter. Before the Bosnian became a two-time Premier League winner with Manchester City, he was scoring goals for fun in Lower Saxony.

Džeko isn’t back with Wolfsburg, but he‘s returned to Germany with one task: to get Schalke back in the big time.

The veteran striker has been prolific no matter the environment, and it took just 20 minutes for Džeko to score on his Bundesliga 2 debut. "You never forget how to score goals,” he said after his superb finish ignited Schalke’s salvation of a point against Kaiserslautern.

Donning the No. 10 shirt once worn by Julian Draxler and Ivan Rakitić, Džeko seemingly has a huge role to play at his new home. Schalke’s lead at the summit is slim.

Alex Freeman: Orlando City to Villarreal

Versatile, potent, elegant, young, brave and quick.

A new model that fits Villarreal perfectly: Alex Freeman.

pic.twitter.com/fc45bR9F2O
— Villarreal CF English (@VillarrealCFen) January 29, 2026

This time last year, Alex Freeman had yet to make an MLS appearance. Now, the USMNT star looks poised to play a leading role for Mauricio Pochettino’s side at this summer‘s World Cup, having spent the previous six months in La Liga.

It’s been quite the rise for the dynamic full-back, who started out in Orlando City’s reserves before making his MLS debut in March 2025. An impressive athlete with standout attacking instincts considering his position, Freeman featured for the MLS All-Stars last summer, was named MLS Young Player of the Year and later nominated for the USMNT Player of the Year award.

Villarreal’s proposal was one Orlando City certainly couldn’t turn down, as they received a club-record fee for a homegrown player ($7 million, £5.1 million) and a sell-on percentage as part of the deal. With the World Cup looming, Freeman has sacrificed guaranteed minutes in MLS for the uncertainty of Spain, but Poch is unlikely to overlook his full back this summer, given his body of work in 2025.

Mohamed Kader Meïté: Rennes to Al Hilal

Jhon Durán and Gabri Veiga both boasted burgeoning reputations when they swapped a premier European division for the Saudi Pro League.

Teenager Mohamed Kader Meïté hasn’t yet been thrust into the limelight like the aforementioned pair, but he’s nonetheless regarded the Gulf as the ideal next step in his career. Learning from Karim Benzema, who completed a controversial move to Al Hilal on Deadline Day, certainly won’t do him any harm.

Like Durán and Veiga, Kader Meïté isn’t expected to be at his new home for very long, with Europe’s elite unlikely to go away. Manchester United had been tenuously linked this winter.

The striker could be the latest superstar to emerge from Rennes’ venerated academy. His former teammate, Jérémy Jacquet, has completed a £60 million ($82 million) move to Liverpool, and he’ll join the Reds this summer.

Lorenzo Insigne: Free Agent to Pescara

"I watched it as a fan: people thought I was envious, but that's not the case," said Lorenzo Insigne, who watched from Toronto as Napoli claimed their first Scudetto since 1990 under Luciano Spalletti, just a year removed from his departure.

"I was sad not to be in the city to celebrate. But from afar, the pride grows even more. I will remain the number one fan, win or lose," the Italian winger added.

While an injury crisis saw Napoli target attackers this winter, a reunion with Insigne didn’t cross their minds. Antonio Conte doesn’t strike you as the most sentimental type.

Anyway, there is a sense of romance surrounding Insigne’s calcio comeback. He’s back with Pescara, where he spent the 2011–12 season on loan and teamed up with Immobile and Marco Verratti. The triumvirate dazzled under revolutionary coaching figure Zdeněk Zeman, helping Pescara return to the top flight for the first time since the late 80s.

Returning in his glorious twilight, Insigne is aiming to keep the Dolphins in the second tier.