Race for star heats up, Aussie seals big move and the deals that could still get done – Transfer Deadline Day Guide

The January transfer window is about to slam shut with several star players and big English Premier League clubs yet to finalise important moves.

Deadline Day is done at 6am AEDT on Tuesday 3 February, but announcements may come after that cut-off time as clubs are given a two-hour grace period to complete a deal as long as they have lodged it before the deadline.

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Liverpool have beaten off competition from Chelsea to sign Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet for a fee of up to $118 million, according to British media reports on Monday night.

However, the 20-year-old is not set to move to Anfield until the end of the season, despite Liverpool’s need for defensive reinforcements.

Jacquet had been linked with a transfer to Chelsea earlier this month but was reportedly put off the move by the competition for places at centre-back in the Blues’ bloated squad.

Liverpool, by contrast, are desperately short on centre-back options. Captain Virgil van Dijk, 34, and Ibrahima Konate, who is out of contract at the end of the season, are the only two options currently available to Arne Slot with Joe Gomez and Giovanni Leoni sidelined by injury.

French under-21 international Jacquet has only made 31 appearances for Rennes since breaking into the first team of the Ligue 1 side last season.

Liverpool will reportedly pay an initial £55 million with a further £5 million contingent on add-ons.

Manchester City have once again been the biggest movers this transfer period with the acquisitions of Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth ($126 million) and Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace ($39m).

Otherwise, January has been a relatively tame with most of the big clubs looking to the summer transfer window as their time to make any major moves.

League leaders Arsenal are yet to bring in a single signing.

At the bottom end of the table, West Ham have been the most active as the London club try to pull off a relegation escape act.

The Hammers spent $43m on Brazilian striker Pablo Felipe, while they also splurged $49.5m on another striker in Taty Castellanos from Serie A side Lazio.

Which deals are yet to be done?

Last-placed Wolves have reportedly agreed to an offer of $94m from Crystal Palace for Norwegian striker Jorgen Strand Larsen.

That deal is set to be the domino that had to fall for Jean-Philippe Mateta to secure his move on Deadline Day as Palace also acquired Brennan Johnson from Tottenham to add to their attacking stocks.

Mateta has been linked with Italian giants AC Milan and Juventus as well as Premier League outfits Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest.

Palace reportedly want a fee of roughly $79m for the French forward and Sky Sports reported on Monday morning that the reigning FA Cup champions gave Mateta permission to complete a medical with AC Milan.

Liverpool’s Andy Robertson is another who may be on the move.

The left back was reportedly a chance to move to Tottenham recently, but that potential move fell through.

Manchester United’s Joshua Zirkzee could also be looking at a fresh start as he is yet to feature under interim boss Michael Carrick.

The Dutch forward has attracted interest from Napoli and Roma.

As for players coming into the Premier League, Fulham are keen to sign USA international Ricardo Pepi from PSV Eindhoven.

The Cottagers made an offer of $55m for the forward, but the Dutch club are said to want at least $59m for Pepi.

Arsenal are reportedly looking to explore the loan market to cover for midfielder Mikel Merino sustaining a suspected broken bone in his foot.

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank said that Spurs are still in the market for Deadline Day signings, but did not divulge what type of player exactly.

Which other deals have been done so far?

Tottenham have been one of the most active clubs, bringing in midfielder Conor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid for $67m and defender Souza from Santos for $24m.

As mentioned above, Manchester City got their two main targets in Semenyo and Guehi with minimal fuss earlier in the window.

But they also sold winger Oscar Bobb to Fulham for $53m.

In addition to Pablo and Castellanos, West Ham have also brought in speedster Adama Traore on an undisclosed fee from Fulham.

Traore, who spent time at Barcelona on loan, reunites with under fire manager Nuno Espirito Santo after their time at Wolves together.

The Hammers also sold Lucas Pacqueta to Brazilian club Flamengo for $72m, and sent James Ward-Prowse to Burnley on loan.

Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea’s actions so far have been limited to recalling loan players.

Third-placed Aston Villa have been busier.

Villa have acquired former Chelsea forward and England international Tammy Abraham from Besiktas for $36m.

They have also brought teenage Brazilian winger Alysson ($20m) to Europe for the first time in his young career, and signed a loan deal with Juventus for fellow Brazilian DouglasLuiz, who had been at Nottingham Forest.

Another former Forest loanee in Oleksandr Zinchenko has been sold by Arsenal to Ajax.

Are any Aussies looking at moves?

In exciting news for Australian football, Mohamed Toure secured a move to England with Championship side Norwich City.

The 21-year-old signed a four-and-a-half year deal from Danish side Randers for an undisclosed fee, which the BBC believed to be about $5m.

“I’ve known the club for a very long time and I’m excited to get started. I’m here to learn and develop, and I’ve heard that Philippe Clement has had a big influence on the players and has brought out the best in them,” the Adelaide United product said.

“It’s an environment I want to be in and I want to improve under him. I love to work hard – every time I’m on the pitch, I try my best for the badge.”

It appears unlikely that any Australians will secure a move to the Premier League, however.

When does the transfer window close?

Deadline Day is done for the Premier League at 6am AEDT on Tuesday 3 February.

But clubs are given a two-hour grace period to complete deals as long as they have been lodged before the deadline.

The cut-off time is not the same for every competition, however.

Italy, France and Germany all close their windows at 6am AEDT, but the Spanish window remains open until 9:59am AEDT.