Adam Lanigan: It's necessity over quality for Premier League clubs in the January transfer window

Afobe, Naismith and Shelvey have all made moves (PA & Getty Images)

But the striking thing is how it’s the clubs who are desperate to stay in the Premier League who are doing the bulk of the business.

Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham. These are the current six biggest clubs in the land. But as yet, they have not produced any big or eye-catching moves in the transfer market.

Arsenal have signed Egyptian midfielder Mohamed Elneny from FC Basel, but we don’t yet know what sort of impact he might have, as Arsene Wenger’s history of January signings is decidedly mixed. Only Theo Walcott has emerged as an unqualified success.

Liverpool moved to get Steven Caulker for the rest of the season. But the decision to bring in a centre-half on loan from a Championship club in QPR, who previously couldn’t get into the Southampton team, was one borne out of necessity through injured centre-halves, not an immediate desire to improve the team.

We have been constantly told the Premier League is up for grabs this season. The right signing could tilt the balance in Arsenal or Manchester City or even Leicester’s favour. Tottenham are also well placed and Mauricio Pochettino has talked about his side winning the league.

But there has been more talk about a new stadium this month than new players. And Spurs fans wonder if a real opportunity is going to be missed.

At Manchester United, the talk has centred solely on manager Louis van Gaal’s position, let alone a signing who could improve the team. Remember, they are only seven points behind Arsenal and Leicester at the top of the league, yet the right player could make all the difference.

As for Chelsea, it’s fair to say they are in limbo. They are going nowhere fast in the league and last week’s two home draws have ruled out any remote chance of a top four finish. With Guus Hiddink only in charge until the summer, bringing in a new player now on a permanent deal is a risk. Their quality would have to be such that any new manager would definitely want to keep them, so Hiddink will carry on with the hand he has been dealt.

The reality is that January is the time for the strugglers.

Mohamed Elneny (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Think of it like Christmas. You don’t go out shopping on Christmas Eve unless you desperately need something. And that’s why it’s the teams trying to avoid relegation whose wallets are open.

With the new bumper TV deal coming in this summer, tis not the season to drop out of the league. That’s why Bournemouth, Newcastle and Norwich have all been so proactive.

Benik Afobe had never kicked a ball in the Premier League before, yet Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe thought nothing of giving Wolves a cheque for £10 million – easily a club record deal. Any ideas of this being a romantic story that might only last a season were dashed in that one swoop. The Cherries may be small in terms of crowd size and history, but they are now thinking big and won’t countenance relegation.

How did Norwich respond on Monday on the back of successive away defeats ? By splashing out £17 million on two players – Timm Klose and Steven Naismith. Central defender Klose joined from Wolfsburg and Naismith was prised away from Everton, as the Canaries look for that bit of impetus to keep them out of the bottom three, which is just two points below them.

Manager Alex Neil and the Norwich board had been accused of being a bit conservative during the summer with their signings, but not this time. Now they’ve had a taste of the Premier League, they don’t want it to end in May. If Klose shores up the defence and Naismith nicks a few goals, everyone at the club will be delighted – and counting the TV cash.

The prospect of dropping out of the league has certainly scared the hierarchy at Newcastle. Only Manchester City had a bigger net spend in the summer than Mike Ashley’s outfit as the reality hit home that the team badly needed reinforcements.

Despite that outlay of nearly £50 million on new players, being in the relegation zone on January 1 meant more money was needed. So there was no messing about as £12 million was shelled out for Jonjo Shelvey from Swansea.

And his performance in the victory over West Ham at the weekend suggested it might be a good investment if Newcastle stay up. And the indicators are that they have not finished there.

Expect the pace of business to pick up over the next week or so as the deadline looms. But these will be gambles or short-term loans for underused or discarded players.

Take Emmanuel Adebayor as a prime example. The top stars won’t be on the move – not when we’re entering the business end of the season with the trophies at stake.

Think back to our Christmas Eve comparison – who buys the high-end products just before the shops shut?

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