It was a quiet transfer window but some astute signings could prove the difference between staying up or going down
Sébastien Bassong
Tottenham to Wolves, loan
The Tottenham Hotspur centre-half has gone on loan to Wolverhampton Wanderers and Mick McCarthy’s craving for new blood in the middle of the back four is understandable. The situation is delicate since Roger Johnson is captain and, in theory, mainstay. In practice, his form has been uneven and Wolves are in too much trouble to exercise patience indefinitely. Bassong will be a rival if not a replacement. This area of the side is critical for those at risk since it is unlikely they will save themselves from relegation by embarking on a scoring spree. McCarthy, a pragmatist by nature and circumstance, will see that a little improvement in the back four could bring great dividends.
Gary Cahill
Bolton to Chelsea, £7m
The very notion of Chelsea being worried about the core of the defence is disconcerting at a club who once prided themselves on security. Wear and tear were bound to take their toll of John Terry to a degree and David Luiz, for all his talent, does not always look so accomplished when dealing with the basics. Cahill has a far less prestigious background and no one feted him, even if £7m was a notable fee for a Bolton Wanderers player with only half a season left on his contract. With luck, the absence of expectation will allow him peace to show he can be an effective if low-profile figure at Stamford Bridge.
Papiss Cissé
Freiburg to Newcastle, £10m
It is natural for Papiss Cissé to have been overlooked since the forward’s debut for Newcastle United could only take place once Senegal’s Africa Cup of Nations campaign was at an end, as it now is. The club’s faith must be great since a £10m fee was agreed. The statistics are impressive, particularly when he was averaging better than a goal every two games for Freiburg. That record also attracted attention because the German side are far from being an established force and, at present, are bottom of the Bundesliga. On Tyneside, there will be hope of concerted impact by Cissé and his compatriot Demba Ba, who moved from West Ham to Newcastle last summer.
Nikica Jelavic
Rangers to Everton, £5.5m
There is no mystery about the restrictions that affect Everton. You have to run your eye all the way down the Premier League table to West Brom, in 15th place, before you find a side that have scored fewer than the 23 goals accumulated by David Moyes’ team. The manager, considering the limited budget, is obliged to emphasise organisation over flair. The approach worked well enough for Manchester City to be beaten on Tuesday night, but a natural finisher such as the Croatia international Jelavic could lift some of the strain. For this club and this time, when extravagance is out of fashion, the £5.5m paid to Rangers is a substantial sum. It remains to be seen whether the incisiveness shown in Scotland can be repeated in England.
Ravel Morrison
Manchester United to West Ham, £650,000
One can only admire the self-confidence of Sam Allardyce at West Ham United. He stumped up an initial £650,000 for a player whom Sir Alex Ferguson could not turn into a reliable professional at Manchester United. Morrison was found guilty of witness intimidation and generally seemed ungovernable. His talent is thought to be vast, however, and others may feel that a change of scene will benefit him. Assumptions are hard to make in Morrison’s case, but it is just possible that parting from Old Trafford to drop a division will give him new purpose. He must, at least, wish to prove that he has not squandered his career already. Playing reliably at a lower level could also bring structure to his life.
Bobby Zamora
Fulham to QPR, £6m
The January transfer market is dangerous. With leading players unlikely to be for sale in mid-season, there is even less of a guarantee that newcomers will make a great difference. Bobby Zamora, switching from Fulham to Queens Park Rangers for £6m, does at least not have the burden of expectation put on natural scorers. There will be no spate of goals from him but the 31-year-old will be well worth having in Mark Hughes’s eye because he should link perfectly with the elusive Djibril Cissé, who has arrived from Lazio. That sort of partnership is a cliche but the stereotype is familiar because it has so often worked over the decades.
Transfer windowNewcastle UnitedChelseaQPRWest Ham UnitedEvertonWolverhampton WanderersKevin McCarra
guardian.co.uk
