The biggest transfers have typically been conducted in the summer transfer window, but the January market has seen its fair share of mammoth deals over the years.
Many of the most expensive mid-season transfers have in fact been completed in the past few years, with clubs like Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City all making significant purchases in the winter.
Signing players in January has historically been more expensive than doing business in the summer given teams are reluctant to sell players in the middle of a campaign.
However, with an influx of wealthy owners in the Premier League, in Europe and in places like Saudi Arabia, it is easy to see how clubs might spend even more in future winter windows.
Here, Sports Mole takes a look at the 10 most expensive January transfers of all time.
Top 10 most expensive January transfers of all time
10. Christian Pulisic: £58m (Borussia Dortmund to Chelsea, 2019)
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Chelsea agreed to part with £58m to sign a 20-year-old Christian Pulisic from Borussia Dortmund after the American impressed in the Bundesliga.
The youngster had only scored three goals in 18 appearances in 2018-19 when the Blues reached the agreement with the German club, though he had been a regular in the Dortmund team since the age of 17.
However, Pulisic struggled to showcase his talent in England - either through injury or poor form - and was eventually sold to AC Milan in the summer of 2023 for roughly £17m after scoring 20 goals in 98 Premier League appearances for Chelsea.
9. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia: £59m (Napoli to Paris Saint-Germain, 2025)
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Khvicha Kvaratskhelia's trickery on the left side of Napoli's attack earned him a January move in 2025 to PSG for a reported fee of £59m, though his hefty price tag still falls short of the £198m that the French club paid to Barcelona for Neymar in 2017.
The Georgian winger left Italy despite Napoli being first in Serie A at the time after reportedly failing to agree a contract extension amidst links to teams such as Liverpool and Chelsea.
During his time in Italy, Kvaratskhelia was nicknamed 'Kvaradona' by supporters - after the club's most iconic player Diego Maradona - for his performances in their title-winning campaign of 2022-23.
8. Oscar: £60m (Chelsea to Shanghai SIPG, 2017)
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Oscar stunned the football world when he decided to leave Chelsea to join Chinese Super League side Shanghai SIPG in January 2017 for a fee of £60m.
The Brazilian left England when he was just 25 years old, but he admitted that the financial package presented to him - reportedly in the region of £400,000 per week - was an incentive for him to leave Europe at the time.
The 33-year-old joined Sao Paulo in December 2024, returning to the club where he started his football career.
7. Omar Marmoush: £63m (Eintracht Frankfurt to Manchester City, 2025)
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In response to the disastrous first half of their 2024-25 campaign, Manchester City spent heavily in the January market, with a large portion of their expenditure going towards the signature of Omar Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt.
The forward played 17 times in the Bundesliga in 2024-25 for the Eagles, scoring 15 goals and registering nine assists, and his form was so outstanding that City paid in excess of £60m for him.
Nicknamed 'the Egyptian Prince' by City fans, there is hope that the 25-year-old can follow in the footsteps of his compatriot Mohamed Salah and reach the immense heights that his talent suggests he can.
6. Dusan Vlahovic: £66m (Fiorentina to Juventus, 2022)
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After scoring 17 goals for Fiorentina in the first half of the 2021-22 Serie A campaign, Juventus managed to pry away striker Dusan Vlahovic for £66m.
Since joining Juve, the forward has at times struggled to meet the expectations placed upon him, though he still was able to find the back of the net 26 times in his first two full league seasons with the Italian giants.
However, Vlahovic has frequently been linked with a move away from the club, with sides such as Arsenal said to have long admired the attacker's skillset.
5. Bruno Fernandes: £67m (Sporting Lisbon to Manchester United, 2020)
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Bruno Fernandes was brought to Manchester United by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in January 2020 for a sum of £67m, and he has arguably been one of the team's only major transfer successes since Sir Alex Ferguson left the club in 2013.
The Portuguese midfielder's 2020-21 season was a particular standout when he scored 18 goals and provided 12 assists in the Premier League.
He has at times been criticised for playing too frantically, but there is no doubting that he is among the most creative midfielders in the Premier League.
4. Virgil van Dijk: £75m (Southampton to Liverpool, 2018)
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Liverpool tried and failed to bring the centre-back to the club at the start of the 2017-18 season, but they eventually landed Virgil van Dijk in January 2018 when they agreed to pay Southampton £75m.
The defender has led Liverpool to numerous trophies during his time at Anfield, including the Champions League in 2018-19 and the Premier League in 2019-20.
Van Dijk was also only narrowly beaten by Lionel Messi to the 2019 Ballon d'Or award, with some labelling the Dutchman as the greatest centre-back to have ever played in the Premier League.
3. Mykhaylo Mudryk: £89m (Shakhtar Donetsk to Chelsea, 2023)
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Mykhaylo Mudryk was one of several targets that Todd Boehly decided to bring to Chelsea, with the Blues paying nearly £90m for the Ukrainian's signature from Shakhtar Donetsk in January 2023.
However, despite impressing against Liverpool on his debut, the winger has often flattered to deceive, scoring just five Premier League goals in the entirety of 2023-24.
The winger was also provisionally suspended in December 2024 by the FA over an 'adverse finding' in a doping test.
2. Enzo Fernandez: £107m (Benfica to Chelsea, 2023)
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Enzo Fernandez had only played in Europe with Benfica for half a season before Chelsea decided to take the gamble on his talent and pay £107m for his services in January 2023.
The midfielder would go on to win four, draw six and lose 12 of his 22 games for the Blues in 2022-23, before helping his side finish sixth in 2023-24.
He has at times struggled to adapt to playing in a more advanced role, and has found it difficult without an athletic partner alongside him in midfield, but there is no doubting his immense ability on the ball.
1. Philippe Coutinho: £146m (Liverpool to Barcelona, 2018)
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Barcelona had admired Philippe Coutinho for some time before they eventually used the money they had received from Neymar's transfer to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2017-2018 to sign Coutinho in January 2018 for £146m.
Though the Brazilian was not as bad at Barcelona as some would suggest, the attacker never truly delivered on his price tag and was loaned out twice before permanently switching to Aston Villa in May 2022.
However, Coutinho also played a significant role in one of Barca's biggest humiliations in their modern history, scoring twice and registering an assist in Bayern Munich's 8-2 demolition of the La Liga side in August 2020.
Lewis Nolan
