**Liverpool could be one of the busiest Premier League clubs in the January transfer window, with Andoni Iraola’s squad missing a few key pieces of the puzzle.**
The Reds committed to a £217.6m transfer outlay this summer, but couldn’t do all the business they had hoped, although the Iraola era is off to a very positive start. Excitement is back, but more is needed for Liverpool to return to the top of English football, so patience will be required.
The next opportunity Liverpool will have to make new signings will be January, but it’s too early to make ironclad predictions, says David Ornstein, writing in a Q&A.
A subscriber on [The Athletic](https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7574574/2026/09/08/david-ornstein-transfer-latest-liverpool-chelsea/) asked Ornstein which Premier League club is the likeliest to have a busy January transfer window and if there are any major deals that failed in the summer that could be revisited when the winter window opens on 1 January 2027.
_“I’m on a hiding to nothing here!”_ Ornstein began. This is a British idiom, which refers to a no-win scenario where being correct brings little to no reward while being wrong has major consequences. Ultimately, he’s saying not to bet the house on him being right at this stage.
The summer transfer window has just closed, and whatever might happen in January this far out is anyone’s guess.
Onstein continued: _“There were collapses, weren’t there? So could those deals be revived, such as a Folarin Balogun, if it doesn’t happen before January (the summer windows in Portugal and Saudi Arabia remain open), from Monaco to Everton or elsewhere? Lamine Camara from Monaco to Chelsea — there’s interest from Liverpool and other clubs as well.”_
Manu Kone is a potential target for Liverpool too
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When naming potential targets for Liverpool in January, Onrnstein said: _“Manu Kone from Roma.”_ The Roma star was a topic of much transfer talk in the summer, but he remained with the Serie A side when the window closed.”
Ornstein continued: _“He came very close to joining Chelsea before they pivoted to Camara. And let’s see what position Roma are in at the time in terms of European football and financial compliance (come the winter window). He’s a player that is so highly rated. We saw him starting a lot for France at the World Cup, and he was looked at very heavily by Manchester United, Chelsea…_
_“I think Liverpool like him as well as one of their potential future options.”_