Serie A doesn't have the financial prowess it once held back in the 90s, but its top teams are doing more than enough to remain one of the world's top 5 leagues, and to try and parry Europe's wealthiest teams. The 2026 January transfer window was an ideal opportunity for Juventus, Inter, Milan, Roma and the rest of the boys to strengthen their teams for what awaits them during the spring.
The title race is still open in Serie A despite Inter remaining strongly in the No1 spot. Thus, many teams wanted to give themselves the best chance to push the Milan side to its limits, and make a spring run in the next few months. Also, more than a couple of Italian teams are still active in Europe, and the squad depth is now more needed than ever as wear and tear start catching up to teams during February and March. With everything above said, Italian teams were more than active during the past January, and below you'll find some of the top transfers that happened on the Apennine Peninsula.
Niclas Füllkrug From West Ham to AC Milan
If you've been following Dusan Vlahovic transfer news, you've heard that there were some serious talks that AC Milan was trying to acquire the Serbian striker during the past month. Dusan worked with Max Allegri and the Italian coach wanted to continue their cooperation in Milan. Yet, Juve was reluctant to sell before they found a replacement, and Vlahovic's salary was an issue too. The Serb remains contracted with Juventus, with his deal expiring in the summer. In the meantime, Milan turned to other targets. The front line that recently has worked like a clockwork, consisting of Christian Pulisic, Rafael Leao and Christopher Nkunku is now stronger for the presence of Niclas Füllkrug.
The prolific German was more than good for Borussia Dortmund and the German national team, but failed to find his footing in London, as his West Ham tenure was marred by injuries and inconsistent form. Niclas now has a chance to commence a new chapter in Italy, and with his strength, power, and inevitable presence in the penalty box he will more than certainly leave a mark in Serie A as his style suits this league more than the Premier League. The best part is that his profile is much different from all the other options Allegri has at his disposal, which will add even more diversity to already potent AC Milan's attack.
Füllkrug already showed his doubters that he is not afraid of the challenge that awaits him in Serie A as he took the number 9 in AC Milan, which is often associated with the striker's curse in this team. So far, in seven appearances Füllkrug scored one goal, showing that he's still looking for his best form. Despite not getting on the scoresheet too much, whenever called upon he did well in all other parts of the play, helping teammates to open, liking in the build up and wearing down the defenders.
Giovane From Verona to Napoli
Verona is in no position to sell its best players, but when Napoli came calling for Giovane they had no chance but to let him leave. Napoli has been decimated by injuries this season, and a new fresh pair of legs in the locker room was everything that Antonio Conte and his players wanted for New Year. Napoli is doing their best to defend the title but with little squad depth compared to Inter they've been left behind, and the team decided to address their shortcomings during the winter break.
Giovane was brought in to serve as relief to David Neres and Rasmus Hojlund who been playing almost all minutes available considering that Romelu Lukaku was absent since the start of the season. While Giovane is yet to settle in Italy, only joining Verona last summer, his three goals, and superb technical ability attracted the attention of the scouts from the south of Italy. His agility is also a part of his game that Conte desires from his forwards, and with the list of those available getting shorter by the day Giovane was seen as an ideal addition to Napoli's title defending squad.
The best part is that Giovane can play anywhere along the frontline, making him an ideal replacement for Napoli's forwards who all have their places cemented, when healthy that is. The season ahead is still long, and despite Napoli no longer having any business in Europe, they will certainly push Inter until the last round in Serie A, and to do that they'll need all the firepower they can get. While not looking as a too impressive signing so far, down the stretch we are sure that Giovane will bring value to Conte and Napoli. With only 22 years of age, he is also seen as a signing for the future, so even if he fails to pan out under Conte, we're sure he will have a long and fruitful career in Serie A nonetheless.
Donyell Malen From Aston Villa to Roma
Roma has entered the 2025/26 season with rejuvenated ambitions after hiring Gian Piero Gasperini. While at times it appeared they might have a chance to contend for the title, now it appears that they would be satisfied with a spot in next year's Champions League. This would be a massive step forward for the Roman side, and their activity in the January transfer window is a testimony to their undying ambition. They've been one of the most active teams on the market and their marquee signing is Donyell Malen.
Malen wasn't amazing for Villa, but he spent most of his time on the bench substituting for Ollie Watkins. Yet, despite limited minutes he managed to score 10 times in 40 appearances, showing that he remembers well how to get on the scoresheet when given a chance. Malen already showed that he has what it takes to play in Serie A as scored on his debut vs. Torino. Roma has been struggling with efficiency down the stretch in the first part of the season, and the likes of Dybala, Ferguson, Sule, and Dovbyk.
Gian Piero Gasperini shored up the defense in Rome, but had failed to make them an offensive juggernaut as he did with his Atalanta teams. Now with Malen part of the team, and Bryan Zaragoza brought on loan from Bayern Munich, Roma has more than enough firepower upfront to be competitive on both sides of the ball.
Sandro Kulenović From Dinamo to Torino
While Dinamo Zagreb's talent factory doesn't work as it used to considering they haven't had a talent for Luka Modric or Josko Gvardiol coming through the ranks in the last few years, it still has enough quality to provide players for Europe's top five leagues. For many, but not for us, the move of Sandro Kulenović from Dinamo to Torino didn't fly under the radar. Some years ago, Kulenović was part of Juventus team, but never made the debut but was loaned out to Legia before moving back to Croatia. After impressing for Rijeka and Lokomotiva Zagreb, he finally settled in Dinamo. After scoring six times during the first part of the season in HNL, he did enough to secure a 3.5 million Euros transfer from Dinamo to Torino.
Many were surprised with this move, considering that Kulenović was one of the best players in Dinamo, playing European football for his boyhood club. Yet, the call from Italy was too good to pass on, and while he will be in a relegation battle after fighting for title in Croatia, Kulenović almost has a secured spot as the leading striker in Torino, who have been having issues with efficiency throughout the season. Italian media are already suggesting that he will be thrown into the fire from the get go as there is no better option than Sandro in Torino.
While Torino is a new team for Kulenović, he will be stranger to the city of Turin, as he spent his youth tied to Juventus youth contract. Considering Sandro's age and the way his career has panned out so far, this move to Torino is his best chance to establish himself in European football and maybe secure a move to one of Serie A top teams in coming years.
Samuel Iling-Junior From Aston Villa to Pisa
Aston Villa has been working on deals in Italy this winter. Pisa is one of the teams poised for relegation, so many of you probably haven't been paying attention to their dealings in the transfer market. Yet, with the acquisition of Samuel Iling-Junior, they have shown that there will be no surrendering as far as their team goes. Samuel Iling-Junior has experience playing in Serie A, and with stints with Juventus and Bologna, he is a player of much higher quality than Pisa has been able to acquire earlier in the season.
Samuel spent the first part of the season with WBA making 24 appearances. He comes on a high note despite WBA not playing all that too well. In Italy, he will be back to familiar surroundings, and as a player who can play both as a winner and a bit more defensively as a wing back he has plenty to offer to the struggling Pisa side. Pisa still has realistic chances of retaining its Serie A status, and their dealings, and especially a move they made for Samuel Iling-Junior.
Kenneth Taylor From Ajax to Lazio
Lazio was one of the sleepiest Serie A teams for years now during the winter transfer window. This year, they've decided to turn things up a notch. With the addition of Kenneth Taylor from Ajax in a transfer worth EUR 16.85 million Lazio has shown that they mean business. Taylor is a product of the famous Ajax youth system, and Lazio will be his first experience playing outside of Dutch football. A technically sound player, Taylor will bring that much needed creativity to Lazio's midfield they've been lacking for years now. One could argue that Kenneth is a prototypical Sarri footballer, so we can bet that he is going to enjoy his time in Serie A where it's expected for him to become one of Lazio's main players as early as this season. With almost 200 appearances for Ajax, he comes to Rome as both a young lad with only 23 years of age, but also as an experienced playmaker, Lazio has been severely missing in recent years.
As we expected, he was immediately thrown into the starting lineup and since his arrival , Taylor has managed to make 4 appearances and to score one goal. Considering how his career unfolded for Ajax, we can expect both goals and assists next to his name as he settles more in the role Sarri has intended for him in Rome.
There were plenty of movements in Serie A this January, and we can't single out all of the transfers. We've talked about those we believe have the best chances of making an immediate impact on their teams. The most interesting part of this window was that Inter failed to make any substantial moves, showcasing that Chivu is happy with what he has at disposal in Milan. There's no arguing that Inter has the best team in Italy, but they also lack depth, but if their coach thinks they're better off without changes, who are we to argue.
Their biggest rivals, Juventus, brought in Jeremie Boga and Emil Holm in an attempt to bolster their squad for upcoming matches with Galatasaray, and the rest of Serie A season. At the same time Fiorentina brought in Manor Solomon, while Lazio also added Petar Ratkov to their attack. Their city rivals weren't sleeping either and in addition to Malen also bought Robinio Vaz. Bologna continued their scouting of Scandinavia and after selling Holm, bought Elvind Helland from Brann. To save themselves from relegation Verona sold Giovane, and reinforced at the back with addition of Armel Bella-Kotchap. There were plenty of moves, and Serie A promises a lot in coming months.
