Flying Kiwis – A January Transfer Window Primer
Flying Kiwis Transfer Season is almost back upon us. The new year brings many things to many people and the January Transfer Window is one of those things. A cheeky month in the middle of the European season where clubs can splash some cash or scoop up a few sneaky loans to help them hit their targets for the rest of the campaign.
In the old days (a couple years ago) this wouldn’t mean anything to the kiwi footy scene. Any major transfer would have been enough of a rarity that it’d stand alone beyond any trend. But these days there are so many NZ pros that when a window opens there’s a large crowd all lining up to jump through it. Here’s what you’ll wanna watch out for when the next window blasts open...
Joe Bell – Viking FK (Norwegian Eliteserien)
Joe Bell: “I do not like to be hypothetical. At the moment I am a Viking player and already excited about what next season will bring. At the same time, I know professional football, and everything can change in an instant. Now I will celebrate the season and have some time with the family and then see what happens in January.”
That was the main man himself after being awarded a Player of the Season nod by one of the supporter’s groups. Joe Bell helping lead Viking FK to third place in the Eliteserien, their best finish for more than a decade, with a goal and eight assists to his name from a central midfield position. Great in the challenge, excellent work-rate, superb set piece delivery, all them things. He was brilliant and now the only question is whether he’ll still be there when they crack into the Europa Conference League that they’ve just qualified for or whether he’ll have been whisked away to greater things by then.
Bell nearly left in the mid-year. Barnsley were the club that went fishing. Others were rumoured but it was the English Championship club who stumped up an actual tangible offer. Unfortunately for them that offer was nowhere near large enough to entice VFK into negotiations so it fell through (and Barnsley are now battling against relegation). That was six months ago. Bell’s reputation has only grown since then and with one year left on his current contract this would be the time for Viking to cash in. Although having said that... they have promised to try get Bell to re-sign on improved terms – which would obviously include a release clause.
Curiously, several other Norwegian clubs have already announced some departures ahead of the window, leaving VFK in an enviable position of having arguably strengthened their title credentials for 2022 merely by sitting put. But it’s early days. The offseason has only just begun. From Viking’s point of view, they’d rather keep Joe Bell regardless (as well as a couple other key players who might be enticed away) but they know that they cant stand in his way if the right offer comes along. From Bell’s point of view, he’s happy where he is and knows there’s more to achieve if he stays... but also that he’s not gonna be in Norway forever. He was patient in going back for his final year of university when Viking first tried to lure him. He’d be perfectly sweet with sticking around another 6-12 months if there’s nothing particularly exciting comes his way.
But let’s be honest, this is a guy with the potential to play Champions League football some day. He’s 22 years old and his stocks are extremely high, arguably as high as they’re gonna get while playing in the Eliteserien (current UEFA coefficient: 21st). Bell was born in England so there’ll be no passport complications if another Championship (or even Premier League?) club requests his services. Alternatively he’s got a great skill set for the German or Italian leagues. Right now there are no overt rumours and you can pretty much assume that’s because Bell’s not going to be agitating for a move, thus there’s no need to play it out in public. But rarely ever has a kiwi footballer been such a blatant transfer thirst trap.
Liberato Cacace – Sint-Truiden (Belgian Pro League)
Speaking of transfer thirst traps, Libby Cacace ain’t too far behind Joe Bell in them stakes. He’s mid-season for STVV which makes a move less likely but there have been rumours to the contrary. We’ll come back to those but first gotta serve up the context because Sint-Truiden, like a few Belgian clubs, operates as a selling club. In this case they have Japanese ownership who like to use the club as an avenue into European football for top J-League talents. Cacace’s from a different part of the world but it’s the same scenario. A few years at Sint-Truiden then a sale to somewhere else for a profit.
Best example of that: Takehiro Tomiyasu. In January 2017, he signed for STVV from Avispa Fukuoka for around €800k. 18 months later he’d done so well that Bologna stumped up €7mill for the man’s services and then, back in August (and in the wake of the Olympics), Arsenal paid a hefty €18.6mill for the bloke and now he’s top choice at The Emirates. That’s the ideal progression right there.
When Bayern Munich paid a rumoured three quarters of a million NZD to sign Sarpreet Singh, that was as a global powerhouse club who can afford to take punts on hordes international prospects in the hope that one or two of them will break into the first team someday. If they need money, they’ll just sell a bench player for twenty mill or something. That’ll buy them another thirty Sarpreet Singhs. On the other hand, when STVV paid a similar fee for Libby Cacace it was in the hope that they’d be able to recoup that figure and then some when they eventually sell him down the line.
Cacace has recently broken back into the first XI in the last few weeks after more than a month stuck playing off the bench. He’s had to deal with several managers and all sorts of wild form fluctuations from his club. It’s been a strange one. On the one hand his fitness and his defensive prowess and his physicality have all translated wonderfully to this level. On the other hand he’s not delivered the attacking input he’d have hoped (when he was dropped it was for a converted winger, presumably for that exact reason). Overall he’s impressed but it’s not been the undeniable footy of Joe Bell x Viking for example. That might make an imminent transfer more alluring though, who knows.
Because there is at least one club who are keen on his contract...
Tutto Mercato Web: “Torino is considering a new addition on the left wing. This is the New Zealander Liberato Cacace, full-back who currently plays in the Belgian Jupiler League, more precisely in Sint-Truiden. The need to sell by the club can accelerate the operation, also because the valuation is less than 2 million euros. Cacace, of Italian origins, also played in the Tokyo 2021 Olympics and is the first choice for [Torino Sporting Director] Davide Vagnati's Toro.”
Cacace turned down interest from the Juventus academy a while back, preferring senior football for his development. No such dramas here. Plus he’d be playing for a club that already boasts Matty Garbett in its ranks (Garbs is getting regular mins for the U19s) and if they scouted him out at the Olympics then they surely saw a lot of Cacace too. It’s not quite the dream move to Napoli but it’s close.
Curious note in there about the club needing to sell – a valuation around two milly Euros is still gonna provide a healthy profit. Will it happen? We shall see. Hard not to think it’d be a quality deal for all involved if it does though.
CJ Bott - Vålerenga (Norwegian Toppserien)
After two years which included a pair of Norwegian Cup wins, a Toppserien championship, and a Champions League debut, CJ Bott announced that she’d decided to leave Vålerenga. A couple of reasons why that may be the case. For one thing, she was never really a first choice player, alternating between starts and substitute appearances. Also she was there during the heart of the pandemic which must have been an absolute stinker from an off-field perspective. Then also there’s the question of what kind of terms the club would have had her back on and all that frisky negotiation stuff.
Vålerenga had a weird 2021. They gave it a good swing in the Champions League qualifiers and won a second consecutive Cup title (Bott didn’t play in the final) but their league form suffered as a result and they finished a disappointing fourth as defending champs. No UCL in 2022. With all that considered, CJB has apparently decided that it’s time for new adventures in a career that’s taken her from Aotearoa to Germany to Sweden to Norway. As the first choice right back for her country, there should be some decent opportunities coming her way and as a free agent she’s got total control as to which ones to take seriously.
Winston Reid – Unattached
Ideally Winston Reid would have been able to find some kind of solution in the last transfer window but that didn’t happen. Those hefty wages were surely a stumbling point for a lot of teams, not to mention his injury history. Instead West Ham released him soon after the window closed and thus he had to wait until January before he could be registered with a new club.
That might not have been the worst thing for him though. Reid has used that time to work out in the UAE and really get his fitness up to a great level. He even popped up with a convenient All Whites cap during that time. Danny Hay was clearly impressed with his shape and the vids coming out of training camp looked pretty bloody amazing...
So let’s trust those impressions and say that he’s fit and healthy and raring to go. Where does he sign? He could certainly get another MLS gig but being away from his family during a pandemic was tricky for him last time so doubtful that’d be the case. Staying in London would be ideal... however it doesn’t seem like there’d be much Premier League interest in him. Not until he’s proven himself again after so long away from that level. English Championship seems like a solid bet and he did well there in his chances with Brentford on loan last season.
Then there’s also the sentimental option of going back to Denmark. Brentford and FC Midtjylland share ownership. FCM are two points clear of FC København after 17 games at the winter break (FCK who may or may not have Marko Stamenic back soon). They’re also into the semis of the Danish Cup and have drawn PAOK in the Europa Conference League knockout playoffs (after finishing third in their Europa League group). In other words, lots of games coming up. An experienced defender with club history could be handy. Or Reid could sign somewhere out of the blue. Who knows. It’s both the beauty and the risk of being a free agent that anything could happen.
Michael Woud – Almere City (Dutch Eerste Divisie)
This time a year ago, things were looking swell for Almere City and Michael Woud. He’d joined on loan from top flight Willem II but with Almere well in position to threaten promotion to that very same top flight and Willem II in danger of the drop (plus regardless they didn’t seem likely to be offering him the number one jersey any time soon), Michael Woud chose to sign on permanent terms with second tier Almere City.
Unfortunately they faded fast down the final quarter of the season and got thrashed in the playoffs. And this season has been pretty bad. One bad result after another and Woud’s form has suffered as a consequence. He’s currently out injured with a shoulder injury, hasn’t featured for a month, and his team are second to last in the second tier. So maybe not the worst time to indulge some foreign transfer interest.
Kyoto Sanga FC just finished second in the Japanese J2 League. Automatic promotion to the top division and that means it’s time to stock up on new players (having already locked in several outfield signings)... at the same time as Almere City are maybe more open to incoming transfer fees given the threat of relegation. Michael Woud had a very solid game against Japan at the Olympic earlier in the year, the NZers taking the hosts all the way to penalties, and it didn’t go unnoticed. This isn’t mere interest either. This is legit confirmed transfer discussion...
Teun Jacobs, Almere City technical director: “It is true that we are currently in talks with Kyoto Sanga FC and I expect that we will get there. The talks are heading in the right direction but there is still a final blow to be done. The signatures have not yet been placed.”
Japanese sources had already spoke of a formal offer and ongoing chats, so there’s a very decent chance that this one goes through very soon after the window opens on New Years Day.
Scandinavian Loanees
On Deadline Day (or there or thereabouts) of the summer window, there was a flurry of semi-connected loan deals with Nando Pijnaker joining FC Helsingør to hang out with the bros McCowatt & Just while fellow bro Dalton Wilkins left FCH to play for Kolding a division below. Pijnaker wasn’t getting first team minutes for Rio Ave, Wilkins was still working his way back from a long-term injury and needed the regular game time. Meanwhile Marko Stamenic popped up for HB Køge in the same division as Helsingør on loan from FC København for a bit of senior footy experience after bossing things for their academy team.
Those three loans had contrasting results. Stamenic was superb for HBK working under the guidance of manager Daniel Agger (yes, that one). Wilkins was decent for Kolding. More of a low key move given he was dropping a division but he got the game time he needed. Pijnaker on the other hand barely even featured in matchday squads let alone getting out on the paddock for FCH. A weird one there as they didn’t seem to have much need or use for him.
All three of those loans were until December 31 so only half-season stints and it’ll be pretty interesting to see if any of them re-up for the remainder of the campaign or if they return to their parent clubs to fight for positions or if they find entirely new teams to be a part of on a loan basis. HBK in particular would adore having Marko Stamenic back and there isn’t a huge lot of scope for him to break into the København team right now... but an outgoing midfield transfer would change that in a hurry.
Joey Champness - GZT Giresunspor (Turkish Süper Lig)
JOWIC only just joined Giresunspor at the start of the European season and hasn’t entirely ingrained himself in the regular squad yet. He’s starting to. A few goals in cup performances and off the bench in the league has certainly helped him and his fancy footwork has shone him out. But it’s only now that he’s beginning to make his appearances a regular thing. Since going away with the All Whites for the match against The Gambia, Champness has featured in eight straight matches (all off the bench with the exception of a cup start in which he scored two goals) – this after a mere three games in three months before that. His nine Super Lig appearances only add up to 114 total minutes but he’s slowly getting up there.
Which is why this rumour outta FTBL probably need to ba taken with more than a couple grains of salt... but we’re playing the Transfer Season game here so gotta link it all the same. A few Turkish giant clubs curious about what JOWIC has to offer. Might wanna warn him away from Besiktas after how Tyler Boyd’s career seemingly got derailed there, to be fair.
“Champness' goals in Turkey have alerted the likes of Beskitas, Galatasary and Fenerbache, FTBL understands. It is believed one of the Istanbul giants could move for the in-form Kiwi in the next transfer window.”
Ryan Thomas – PSV Eindhoven (Dutch Eredivisie)
This is a purely speculative one but there was talk that a few clubs were trying to get Thommo in on loan in the last window, seeing if they could prise him away from a club where he’s not first choice. Fortuna Sittard were the main one but they ended up signing a different midfielder instead. His old mates at PEC Zwolle were another and obviously that didn’t happen either.
The 2021-22 campaign has been a rotten season for Thomas thanks to all the injuries. Little knocks that have kept him from getting any momentum despite some lovely individual moments. It got to the point where he and the club ultimately decided he ought to have a little minor surgery on his knee to tidy things up, ruling him out from late-October until the current winter break.
In that time, PSV have been bundled out of the Europa League (dropping into the Conference League playoffs) whilst going top of the Eredivisie. Contrasting fortunes. They’ve had a heap of injuries along with Thomas, guys coming in and out, and a number of their depth players have stepped up when they needed them. Supposing that Thomas is nearing a return it’s not impossible that he goes out on loan for a run of games – old mates PEC Zwolle are dead last having won 1/18 matches so a temporary return to a club where he’s well loved with a chance to save them from relegation could be enticing.
Or he could choose to stay and fight at PSV as he’s done in the past. Coach Rogers Schmidt does really like him, using Thommo regularly off the bench even in unfamiliar positions which shows a certain level of trust. He’s a hard working player with good technical qualities and he’ll definitely get his moments over the back half of the season if he sticks around. Standout defensive midfielder Ibrahim Sangare is about to head to the African Cup of Nations for six weeks so there’s already a vacancy opening up.
NWSL/MLS
Not quite January Transfer Window news but it is adjacent to that as both the top men’s and women’s comps in the USA have finished up over the last couple of months and there have been some kiwi casualties. No dramas for the likes of Abby Erceg, Michael Boxall, Ali Riley, and Bill Tuiloma. But Rosie White was released by OL Reign after a year spent mostly sidelined with illness. The Reign have big access to top European players through their shared ownership with French giants Lyon and White often found herself on the outside looking in with all those golden attacking players around her. No surprises that her best spell with the club was right at the very start of it when they had a number of players missing in the wake of the 2019 World Cup. Her contract was up and they didn’t offer her a new one.
White could hang around for a new USA gig although it’s worth mentioning she does have prior experience in Europe thanks to her stint with Liverpool back in the day. Matt Beard was the manager then and he was re-hired at the start of the current season – Beard signed her for Liverpool, then offered her a new contract a year later, then brought her over to America when he moved to Boston Breakers. Meikayla Moore currently plays for Liverpool so there are a couple synchronicities there.
Katie Bowen is also on the move. Initially she was offered new terms by Kansas City Current but then strangely two weeks later she was placed on the waiver wire. Not really sure on the logic behind that. Maybe they drafted someone they weren’t expecting to get. Maybe Bowen herself asked for it (though in that case... why not just reject the contract offer?).
Bowen played the eighth most minutes for KC in 2021, alternating between defensive midfield and fullback. However her team did suck and being a reliable squad member for the last-placed club doesn’t necessarily guarantee you anything. Bowen tended to be more effective in midfield but KC preferred to use her at fullback (and yeah they did draft a few defensive players so that’s likely a factor). Might not be the worst thing to seek a fresh start elsewhere and after 89 NWSL appearances she’s got enough of a profile to find another gig in this league if she wants one.
Otherwise she’d absolutely waltz into any A-League team on a short term deal (similar to other NWSL players, Emily van Egmond and Lynn Williams for example) if she wanted to spent the summer closer to home. Not the Phoenix because they’re capped out on kiwis but there is that salary dispensation thing going for an NZer on Aussie A-League rosters. This could be an option for Rosie White in the short term too. Just chucking it out there.
As for the fellas, we’ll stick to the top tier MLS stuff here because the USL is increasingly bonkers and seems now to have been usurped by an MLS-run reserve league. We’re past the point of picking All Whites from that level – Danny Hay has avoided the USL entirely for his last two squads even with the limitations of player availability. For the record, James Musa, Noah Billingsley, Kyle Adams, Max Mata, Hunter Ashworth, and Deklan Wynne were the NZers to feature last year.
Billingsley, of course, was on loan from Minnesota United. But he never really got a chance at Phoenix Rising and thus the Loons have chosen not to have him back. Declined his third year option. A bummer because they seemed to really like him coming out of the draft but one bad loan seems to have stuffed him. Had a few injuries too which didn’t help.
He’s now a free agent... as is Elliot Collier whose frustrating time with the Chicago Fire has finally come to an end. He was almost released a couple years ago but impressed so much in preseason that they kept him around and he has regularly gotten games for them ever since, albeit mostly off the bench. But those bench cameos got shorter and shorter because Collier wasn’t able to smack in a few goals to boost his case. 54 appearances for one goal in the MLS. Only 1750 minutes in those 54 games but that’s still a terrible conversion rate. Only 2 assists as well. On the hunt for that next opportunity.
And while we’re at it... neither Daisy Cleverley nor Jacqui Hand were signed in the NWSL College Draft. 50 overall selections but a couple of senior internationals – one of whom has been to multiple major tournaments – couldn’t get in. To be fair, their international status counts against them as teams ponder whether to use a valuable foreign roster spot on an unproven prospect player, but it’s still a bummer to see them ignored like that. Katie Bowen remains the only NZer drafted into the NWSL.
Cleverley and Hand have finished up their college stuff now and their draft registration was proof that they’re ready for the pro yarns. Just a matter of when and where. Could hang around and try get a preseason trial in America, could do the short-term thing in the A-League if anyone’s interested, could head to Europe where there aren’t any roster restrictions. World’s the ol’ oyster.
The Delightfully Unexpected
And then there’s literally everybody else. There are always a few moves that come out of seemingly nowhere. There are always those dudes based in Aotearoa getting on the ladder for the first or second time. Could someone like Ollie Whyte get another much deserved crack at professional footy after his superb National League season? Alex Greive has apparently been trialling with St Mirren in Scotland as part of their sister-club partnership with Birkenhead United. Perhaps another Future Ferns Development Player scoops up a move to overseas? Could go on and on naming names here but it’s more fun when these ones catch you unawares. Let it happen.
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