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Top 10 Winter Transfers
Join Goal.com for a look at the best transfers of the winter transfer window.
Feb 2, 2010 12:35:00 PM
By Ewan Macdonald
The winter transfer window has come to a close, with only a modest amount of movement across Europe and the world at large.
Nonetheless we at Goal.com are excited at the prospect of seeing some of the big movers take to the pitch at their new clubs. Indeed, some already have done just that.
Several of those who made a switch did so on a free basis. Others did so on loan, most notably in the UK, where big spending was scarce to say the least.
In fact it was on the Eastern side of the continent that we saw some of the biggest moves, not least at CSKA Moscow, and a couple at Zenit to boot.
Across the rest of the world activity has been more muted, with just a few high-profile players leaving Africa. Meanwhile the likes of Stephen Worgu have yet to cement their own moves within the continent.
With that in mind, here are Goal.com International's top ten picks from the winter transfer window...
Nonetheless we at Goal.com are excited at the prospect of seeing some of the big movers take to the pitch at their new clubs. Indeed, some already have done just that.
Several of those who made a switch did so on a free basis. Others did so on loan, most notably in the UK, where big spending was scarce to say the least.
In fact it was on the Eastern side of the continent that we saw some of the biggest moves, not least at CSKA Moscow, and a couple at Zenit to boot.
Across the rest of the world activity has been more muted, with just a few high-profile players leaving Africa. Meanwhile the likes of Stephen Worgu have yet to cement their own moves within the continent.
With that in mind, here are Goal.com International's top ten picks from the winter transfer window...
| Rank |
Player |
About |
| 1 |  Goran Pandev |
From: Lazio To: Inter Price: Free The FYR Macedonia international comes to San Siro with rich pedigree, but above all with no price tag around his neck. A sparkling performance in the Milan derby underlines his worth to the Nerazzurri. |
| 2 |  Ruud van Nistelrooy |
From: Real Madrid To: Hamburger SV Price: Free Another freebie, Ruud's recent seasons have been interrupted by a spate of injuries, not to mention the form of Gonzalo Higuain. But even when his appearances were limited, his goals were not. He is not one who requires long to settle in - as soon as he plays, the goals will flow in Hamburg. |
| 3 |  Robinho |
From: Manchester City To: Santos (loan) Price: Free Just two short years ago Robinho could say with a straight face that he aimed to be the best in the world. Many believed that he could be. Those plans appear to be on a back-burner for now as he heads home to Brazil, but Santos will reap the benefits when this attacking talent hits the pitch. |
| 4 |  Adam Johnson |
From: Middlesbrough To: Manchester City Price: £8m Managers love the cliche "one for the future" - it gives them a ready-made excuse if a player doesn't immediately perform. That Johnson has been given this tag at City may be to do him a disservice, as the England hopeful has been in sparkling form for Boro. |
| 5 |  Landon Donovan |
From: LA Galaxy To: Everton (loan) Price: Undisclosed Donovan's abilities have seldom been in doubt, but that changed when he went on loan to Bayern Munich last year. It's fair to say his second spell in the Bundesliga was underwhelming. But at Everton he has shown that he can hit European heights: the only downside to this transfer is that the Toffees only have him until March. |
| 6 |  McDonald Mariga |
From: Parma To: Inter Price: Co-ownership swap Had the stars aligned slightly differently, this transfer could have Manchester City's name on it. However, bureaucratic wranglings mean that the Kenyan star remains in Italy, where Parma received a job lot of players in exchange for his services. Inter have potentially stolen a march on the rest of Europe with this signing. |
| 7 |  Robbie Keane |
From: Tottenham Hotspur To: Celtic (loan) Price: Free Keane's arrival at Parkhead brings to mind Craig Bellamy's short-term tenure in the Scottish Premier League. The Welshman proved too good for his environs; Keane is set to do likewise, and with Spurs waiving a loan fee it's a true bargain for the Bhoys. But will it be enough to take them past resurgent Rangers? |
| 8 |  Oleksandr Aliyev |
From: Dynamo Kiev To: Lokomotiv Moscow Price: Undisclosed The Ukrainian international had fallen out of favor at Dynamo, his long-time home, and as such Loko were able to pick him up for a relatively low (yet formally undisclosed fee.) Dynamo's loss is the Russians' gain, as the classy midfielder brings plenty of European experience. |
| 9 |  Mario Bolatti |
From: Porto/Huracan To: Fiorentina Price: €3.5m Something of a sleeper hero, Bolatti raced back into the public consciousness after two years in the wilderness on Porto's bench with a brilliant season at Huracan of Argentina. Now he's back in Europe with Fiorentina, and having hit maturity at the age of 24 the dominant midfielder could fill the gap left by Felipe Melo in summer. |
| 10 |  Keisuke Honda |
From: VVV-Venlo To: CSKA Moscow Price: €9m Few expected any club to meet Venlo's asking price for their Japanese skipper, but they hadn't reckoned on the appearance of a Russian club. Honda becomes CSKA's flagship winter signing; the goalscoring midfielder is very likely to justify his price tag in the RPL. |
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