6 January transfers you might have missed: James Rodriguez, Wilfried Zaha…
We’re approaching the end of the January 2025 transfer window as the immediate future of Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho continue to dominate the headlines.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s move from Napoli to PSG and Omar Marmoush’s switch from Eintracht Frankfurt to Manchester City are among the high-profile deals that have already been completed, but what about the transfers that have gone under the radar?
We’ve rounded up six transfer deals you might have missed.
James Rodriguez
We’d really hoped that Rodriguez’s blinding performances at the Copa America last summer would signal the start of a late-career renaissance. Unfortunately that didn’t prove to be the case after signing for La Liga outfit Rayo Vallecano.
Maybe the 33-year-old Colombian is just built to come alive at major summer tournaments every few years, because his return to Madrid came and went unremarkable. He notched just one league start for Rayo before agreeing to terminate his contract earlier this month.
Strictly speaking, this one isn’t a transfer as Liga MX club Leon picked James up as a free agent. But he’s already scored a match-winning penalty for his new club, so hopefully Mexico will suit him better than Spain.
We look forward to the veteran playmaker reminding us of his existence at the World Cup next year. One last dance?
Ben Godfrey
You can file Godfrey alongside Rodriguez in the ‘he was where?’ category. The defender quietly departed Everton when his contract expired at the end of last season and went on to sign for Europa League holders Atalanta.
Gian Piero Gasperini’s side continue to punch above their weight in Serie A, but Godfrey has played next to no part in that, having notched just one 22-minute substitute cameo in the Italian top flight this season.
Now he’s back in the Premier League, on loan at Ipswich. You might’ve noticed him making his league debut for the relegation-battling Tractor Boys in their 6-0 mauling at home to Manchester City. Ouch.
Wilfried Zaha
Admit it. You weren’t entirely sure where Zaha was, were you?
The winger won a Turkish Super Lig title with Galatasaray last term, but he never quite settled in Istanbul and was loaned out to Lyon for the 2024-25 campaign.
But he failed to kick on Ligue 1 and, like James and Godfrey, barely played any football in the first half of the season. Seventy-one minutes in Ligue 1 to be precise.
Last week, Galatasaray and Lyon terminated the loan agreement, opening up the pathway for the former Crystal Palace stalwart to move elsewhere. And sure enough, he’s just agreed to join Charlotte FC.
The 32-year-old remains on Galatasaray’s books, but he’ll spend the entire 2025 MLS campaign with the North Carolina outfit. And if all goes well, there’s an option to extend into 2026.
READ: 6 times football clubs turned down eye-watering transfer bids – & came to regret it
Max Aarons
Bournemouth beat other suitors, including Leeds United, to sign the highly-rated full-back from Norwich City back in 2023.
But he’s never quite nailed down a regular starting spot at the Vitality and was very much on the periphery for Andoni Iraola’s high-flying Cherries this season so far, with just one league start and less than 90 minutes of Premier League action under his belt.
New Valencia boss Carlos Corberan will have seen Aarons up close on numerous occasions from his time at West Brom and Huddersfield and sanctioned a move to bring him in.
Los Che currently find themselves four points adrift of safety in the La Liga table, while Aarons made his debut in your archetypal ‘baptism of fire’ – a 7-1 defeat away to Barcelona. To be fair, they were already 5-1 down when he was introduced midway through the second half.
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Paul Dummett
Your classic dedicated but unglamorous homegrown defender, Dummett made over 200 appearances for boyhood club Newcastle United over a 12-year period. But very few of those came after the takeover and he always looked liable to struggle for opportunities following the addition of world-class reinforcements.
After his release last summer, Dummett spent a few months without a club before signing for League One outfit Wigan Athletic in November. But it was only a short-term deal and he’s since moved back closer to home, signing for beleaguered League Two relegation-battlers Carlisle United.
The Cumbrians will be hoping his experience gives them a boost as they fight tooth and nail to remain in the Football League.
Loris Karius
There was an enjoyable novelty about 50% of Karius’ appearances for Newcastle United being in a major Wembley cup final.
Given his status as a third-choice ‘keeper, you might have missed Karius exiting St. James’ Park alongside Dummett last summer. He’s spent the past six months searching for a club and has now returned to Germany after almost a decade away; he’s signed for fallen giants Schalke on a deal until the end of the season.
Schalke currently find themselves stranded in midtable in the German second tier. We can’t see them back in the Bundesliga again any time soon.