ESPN chief Bundesliga reporter Derek Rae assesses which top German flight clubs helped themselves in a much quieter-than-usual transfer window in January.
I have to be honest by saying, on the list of things that inspire me about football, a transfer date day usually comes in about a dead end. Most well-run clubs do their homework beforehand so there is little need for last-minute signing sugar junk. The January window this year also became hot on the heels of a much later transition period in the summer, and we are still in a financially constrained state, meaning that activity would always be more likely under the radar.
One aspect of the date I can suggest for England, however, is an earlier border than Germany. It all feels a little more civilized when it ends at 6pm!
To be fair, it is important to look at who did what and why up and down the Bundesliga. Unsurprisingly, the two best – supported clubs, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, have not signed for an outsider. BVB will have to wait until the summer for a new chapter, possibly with a modern coach, while Bayern sports director Hasan Salihamidzic has told Bayern fans that there would be no winter addition.
– ESPN FC Daily stream on ESPN + (US only)
– ESPN + viewer management: Bundesliga, Serie A, MLS, FA Cup and more
The next window comes, however, as Bayern hope RB Leipzig ‘s Dayot Upamecano is on board. The player’s representative, Volker Struth, appeared on the Doppelpass show at Sport 1 on Sunday and confirmed a € 42.5 million purchase clause. Securing Upamecano at that price is Salihamidzic ‘s first priority, and Bayern are in a pole position despite competition from Premier League clubs.
Leipzig has already started preparing for life after Upamecano by shutting down Strasbourg’s promising Mohamed Simakan. The contract is expected to be signed next week. Already in the squad this winter is a highly regarded midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai, who last month arrived from Austrian sister club FC Salzburg for around € 25m, despite an adoption injury. has blocked Leipzig’s early debate.
Bayer Leverkusen has been as busy as anyone in the top half of the table. The right side have been a bit of a problem – also remember that Lars Bender is retiring at the end of the season. So came in Jeremie Frimpong from Celtic and Timothy Fosu-Mensah from Manchester United. Mind you, the duo appeared in the club’s horrific display of DFB-Pokal departure at the hands of Rot-Weiss Essen in the fourth tier last week. The Werkself (“Factory XI”) suffers from a particular lack of Bundesliga productivity, too, with only one gain from the last seven.
Can Demarai Gray from Leicester City help? It is an exciting sign for their shield on a € 2m low risk basis and a contract lasting just 18 months. Gray will initially be behind Moussa Diaby, Leon Bailey and Karim Bellarabi but could appear in the squad as early as this weekend.
Renowned Borussia Monchengladbach sports director Max Eberl has been on leave for the month of January, but that has not kept the club from picking up for the future. Nineteen-year-old midfielder Kouadio Kone from Toulouse came together with a view to becoming a long-time fan of Denis Zakaria. American Bundesliga fans will be thrilled to sign right-back Joe Scally of New York City FC even though the paperwork was done a long time ago. The 18-year-old is heading to the perfect club for the next phase of his development.
Speaking of Americans, I really like TSG Hoffenheim going out and borrowing Chris Richards from Bayern. At the same time, it is a real pragmatism with Benjamin Hubner, Ermin Bicakcic and Kevin Akpoguma on the injured list. Plus of course Richards has already teamed up with coach Sebastian Hoeness with the Bayern reserve team that won the 3. Liga (third national league) last season.
But Richards, a part-time player for Bayern this season, is ready for more, and in the short term, he’s not going to get that experience with the Rekordmeister. Importantly, however, Bayern CEO and board chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge told Sky Deutschland this week that they see Richards as someone who can add more in Munich next term and more farther away. The decision to lend is a moving motion by all parties.
The already strong attack by Eintracht Frankfurt, powered by Andre Silva, has been boosted by the return of Luka Jovic on loan from Real Madrid. Three goals in his first four games speak to Frankfurt’s ability to push hard for Europe and perhaps even a place in the Champions League.
From Serbian striker to Croatia: Union Berlin left him late before he brought on board natural finisher Petar Musa of Slavia Prague, a move that must have hurt Anthony Ujah’s knee. FC Augsburg, meanwhile, should help themselves by signing a loan from talented midfielder Gladbach Laszlo Benes, who has been ruled out. Fohlenelf just because of the abundance of options in his career.
Augsburg should have enough cases to avoid a relegation playoff situation, but where FC Cologne, Hertha Berlin and Arminia Bielefeld are concerned, it ‘s all very tight.
Hertha, after rearranging the pack on the sports director and coaching faces, has gone for on-pitch leadership and dressing room and experience in Sami Khedira. But the 2014 World Cup winner has not won in more than eight months. Will it prove to be the link needed for Hertha’s young team?
I like the signing of Berliners de Nemanja Radonjic’s loan-with-choice-to-buy sign, a natural wide player with something to prove after the rise and fall of Marseille. Matheus Cunha is much more comfortable playing in the middle while Dodi Lukebakio suffers a decline in form. Radonjic should help immediately.
Cologne beat Bielefeld 3-1 last week, and Nigerian striker Emmanuel Dennis (on loan from Club Brugge) immediately sent off on arrival, especially in the second half. Max Meyer, signed on a free transfer from Crystal Palace, appears delighted to be back in the Bundesliga and intends to help Effzeh they retained their status in the Oberhaus.
Bielefeld, who I think is the team most likely to finish 16th and so in a relegation playoff, is still packing a punch. They have to hope that Japanese midfielder Masaya Okugawa, a € 3.5m signing from Salzburg, can influence the team to the same level as his partner, the creative Ritsu Doan.
That brings us to the bottom two, Mainz and Schalke 04, who had a similar affair with those made by those who were cut hard and in dire need. Mainz threw everything but the kitchen sink at an improvement effort. They did well to get Dominik Kohr and Danny da Costa on loan from local rivals Frankfurt. It is a big request, however, for new striker Robert Glatzel, who has not made his last seven games for Cardiff in the Championship. Mainz bids farewell to Jean-Philippe Mateta, who has moved to Crystal Palace for around € 15m.
Schalke also had to sell before they could buy: Ozan Kabak and Rabbi Matondo to England for what could be a combined € 33m, and fan favorite Ahmed Kutucu to Heracles for just over € 3m. Shkodran Mustafi, VfL Wolfsburg right-back William and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (back for second spell at age 37) have all arrived. However, it would take a brave man back to Schalke to stay up.