Transfer deals and big-money moves continue to capture the imagination of football fans and the rumour mill cranks into overdrive when the transfer windows open.
There are two windows each season in which clubs are permitted to get deals done and swap personnel, with the final hours of those periods often producing drama.
The second transfer window of the 2021-22 season is coming up for Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A and Ligue 1 clubs. GOAL brings you everything you need to know.
The 2022 January transfer window opens at the beginning of the month and closes at the end of the month. However, the exact dates vary from league to league.
In England, Premier League clubs will be able to complete transfer business for the entire month, from January 1, 2022 until the end of January 31, 2022. That time frame applies to all clubs in England, including the Championship, League One and League Two.
The January transfer window also opens on January 1, 2022 for clubs in Germany and France, meaning we can see deals being done in the Bundesliga and Ligue 1 at the turn of the year.
Things get started slightly later in Spain and Italy, with the transfer registration period in La Liga and Serie A opening on January 3, 2022.
January 31, 2022 is the closing date for the 2022 January transfer window in the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga and Ligue 1.
The registration period ends at 11pm GMT in the UK (6pm ET).
You can see the January transfer window opening and closing dates below.
The transfer window - officially known by FIFA as a 'registration period' - is a part of the football calendar in which clubs are able to complete transfers of players, including temporary loan deals.
It is also the period when free agents can be officially registered to play in competitive games for a team, if they had been signed outside of a transfer window. This applies to Dani Alves, for example, who put pen to paper on a contract with Barcelona in November 2021, but can only officially play from January 3, 2022, when the transfer window opens in Spain.
January can be a quiet period in terms of transfer activity in the top leagues, but we should see some movement in 2022 as certain clubs look to strengthen and players attempt to get more game time.
One of the highest profile potential transfer moves involves Manchester City and Barcelona, with Spain international Ferran Torres on the radar of the Catalan club.
Anthony Martial is expected to be on his way out of Old Trafford, with the France international's agent revealing that his client wants to leave Manchester United. Sevilla have been touted as a potential destination, while the rumour mill has also suggested that Newcastle United could make a loan bid.
Anthony Martial wants to leave Manchester United in January, his agent has revealed 👋 pic.twitter.com/hQjHLHhsiV— GOAL (@goal) December 10, 2021
All eyes will be on Newcastle during the window following the Premier League club's acquisition by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and Eddie Howe is expected to be given what is euphemistically called a 'transfer war chest' in order to claw the club out of a relegation battle.
Tottenham defender Joe Rodon is reportedly a target, according to the Telegraph, while the Daily Mail reports that Inter striker Edin Dzeko is a target. Former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey has been linked with a move to the Toon, as has Atletico Madrid full-back Kieran Trippier.
A number of high-profile players will be entering the final six months of their contracts in January and it is possible that their clubs will look to cash in before losing talent on a free.
Among those who will have suitors circling in January are Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe, Barcelona's Ousmane Dembele and Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba. However, unless big-money bids are placed, it seems likely that those particular players will not be going anywhere half-way through the season.