Who will be on the move? ... Demba Ba, Cristiano Ronaldo and Radamel Falcao Source: AAP
It's here. It's time for the annual mass month-long movement of football flesh around the world.
We look at 15 possible storylines that could develop over the next four weeks as teams look to strengthen for the final four months of the season.
| P | W | D | L | GD | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man United | 20 | 16 | 1 | 3 | 22 | 49 |
| 2 | Man City | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 19 | 42 |
| 3 | Chelsea | 19 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 21 | 38 |
| 4 | Tottenham | 20 | 11 | 3 | 6 | 10 | 36 |
| 5 | Arsenal | 19 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 18 | 33 |
| 6 | Everton | 20 | 8 | 9 | 3 | 8 | 33 |
| 7 | West Brom | 20 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 33 |
| 8 | Stoke | 20 | 6 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 29 |
| 9 | Liverpool | 20 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 28 |
| 10 | Swansea | 20 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 28 |
| 11 | Norwich | 20 | 6 | 7 | 7 | -9 | 25 |
| 12 | West Ham | 19 | 6 | 5 | 8 | -1 | 23 |
| 13 | Sunderland | 20 | 5 | 7 | 8 | -5 | 22 |
| 14 | Fulham | 20 | 5 | 6 | 9 | -6 | 21 |
| 15 | Newcastle | 20 | 5 | 5 | 10 | -11 | 20 |
| 16 | Wigan | 20 | 5 | 3 | 12 | -13 | 18 |
| 17 | Aston Villa | 20 | 4 | 6 | 10 | -24 | 18 |
| 18 | Southampton | 19 | 4 | 5 | 10 | -11 | 17 |
| 19 | Reading | 20 | 2 | 7 | 11 | -15 | 13 |
| 20 | QPR | 20 | 1 | 7 | 12 | -20 | 10 |
Cristiano Ronaldo: speculation over the Portuguese superstar's Manchester United return continue to linger. Latest reports have United possibly offering goalkeeper David De Gea and winger Nani to Real to get around the significant financial obstacles.
Ryan McGowan: The Socceroos defender has been at Scottish club Hearts since he was 17. But the Edinburgh club are gripped by financial problems and need to sell. McGowan, who made his Socceroos debut against Scotland late last year, looks set to sign a deal in China with an as yet unnamed club.
Mathieu Debuchy: The French international defender looks set for a move to Newcastle United - and don't they need him based on recent results. The 27-year-old has been a target of manager Alan Pardew's for some time and a deal of about 5m looks likely to be consummated this week.
Demba Ba: Talks with Chelsea have broken down but the big-spending London club is still seen as favourites to land the Newcastle striker. Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and QPR are all in the running as well.
Wesley Sneijder: Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur headline the race to sign the Dutch international from Inter Milan. Manchester United can't be discounted either and were reportedly an admirer of the 28-year-old's last year.
Radamel Falcao: Sorry, Chelsea fans, but the highly-regarded Atletico Madrid striker insists he's staying in Spain, for now. The end of the season could be a different matter but Chelsea will need to look elsewhere for their short-term striker fix.
QPR: You name them, and Harry Redknapp is after them. David Beckham, Joe Cole and Nicolas Anelka are just some of the rumoured names. Short of a complete player overhaul, Redknapp may as well start planning for life in the Championship next season. Guarantee that Becks won't want to play Perterbrough and Burnley next season.
David Villa: Barcelona want 16m for their star striker, not the loan bid Liverpool presented them recently. Arsenal and Chelsea are in on the Spanish international who has found himself on the periphery of first-team selection at the Camp Nou recently.
Frank Lampard: Chelsea are staying defiant and won't budge on offering the veteran midfielder a new deal. Could their intransigence be the catalyst for Fergie and Manchester United to jump in and snap him up on the cheap?
Xabi Alonso: The Real Madrid star made his name for Liverpool. Although a return to Anfield is highly unlikely, the 31-year-old expressed interest returning to England. The list of suitors can expect to be very long.
Wilfried Zaha: Not surprisingly, the teenager is the most desirable target in January. Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal and Spurs are all in the market for him. Crystal Palace have already turned down big-money move from United.
Aston Villa: The youth project at Villa Park has been a spectacular failure, so manager Paul Lambert is turning to experience in a bid to escape the EPL relegation zone. They have conceded 15 goals in just three games and money is reportedly very tight as they look to strengthen. What is Brett Holman thinking at the moment?
James McCarthy: The young Wigan Athletic midfielder has turned heads this season and could be a candidate for a move to a bigger club. Everton and Arsenal are known suitors, and he would come relatively cheaply as well.
Joleon Lescott: it was only six months ago that he was at the forefront of EPL title celebrations. Now he finds himself not even featuring in Manchester City's first team and a candidate for transfer or loan stint elsewhere. Manager Roberto Mancini is resisting so far but what's a transfer window without some sort of big City move.
Alvardo Negrado: a seemingly more logicial striking alternative for Chelsea. The 27-year-old has impressed in La Liga with Sevilla and comes at a cost much smaller than that of Falcao.
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