The Christmas period brings fixtures galore for the world of football, but it’s January where the gossip mill goes into overdrive with the opening of the latest transfer window.
Some of the sport’s biggest stars will make the switch to major leagues like the English Premier League, and there’s plenty of African players who’ll be rumored to be joining the ranks of England’s top clubs.
Stephan Kofi Ambrosius
As we recently reported in our transfer news, Hamburg SV hot prospect, Stephan Kofi Ambrosius, could be the latest Ghanaian to join the English Premier League.
He has been attracting the interest of top-flight newcomers, Leeds United, for a number of months and they could finally make their desires become a reality by sealing the deal on the young centre-back in January.
Leeds currently sit 14th in the Premier League and are 14/1 to be relegated with the bookies.
They have one of the division’s worst defensive records, so Ambrosius could be the player they need to help them secure their top-flight safety.
Fellow British club, Celtic, are also in the market for a defender, and have expressed an interest in the 21-year-old.
Kalidou Koulibaly
There doesn’t seem to be a transfer window that goes by these days without Kalidou Koulibaly being linked to the Premier League.
He’s one of world football’s hottest properties at the minute, with the EPL champions Liverpool, the latest side to throw their hat into the ring.
Jurgen Klopp’s side are 7/4 to retain their title, but are in need of a defender after Virgil van Dijk got a serious knee injury. Koulibaly could do more than just fill that gap and that’s why a whole host of other clubs are trying to secure his services.
Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola has long been an admirer of the Senegalese international, and is reportedly ready to launch a £60 million bid once the window opens on January 2nd.
Chelsea are also keeping tabs on the centre-back and believe they could get the deal done fairly cheaply, with Koulibaly’s current club, Napoli, in the middle of a financial crisis.
Wilfried Zaha
One man who is already in the Premier League is Ivory Coast regular, Wilfried Zaha.
According to the latest odds on the freebets.co.uk football page, there are two EPL sides that want to sign him in the January window.
Everton are the most likely to get him, as the 6/1 favourites. He’s already found the back of the net seven times this season and could add an extra option to Ancelotti’s stuttering Toffees.
Another club that are in need of a goal scorer is Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal. The Gunners are 10/1 to sign the Crystal Palace star, and could soon emerge as favourites with Zaha already admitting to being an Arsenal fan in his youth.
Andre Onana
Top class goalkeepers are few and far between these days, but Cameroon’s Andre Onana can count himself in that category.
The Ajax goalkeeper has spoken publicly about his desire to join the Premier League, and came close to making the move to London in the summer with Chelsea and Tottenham both in the race to land the 24-year-old.
His representatives held extensive talks with the Blues, who are now 11/2 to win the Premier League, and could well renew their interest at the start of the New Year.
More EPL Transfer Gossip
The January transfer window opens on the 2nd January for the Premier League, before slamming shut on Monday 1st February.
To keep up to date with all the transfer chat, keep your eyes on our Premier League section for all the latest news on the EPL.