It was another busy winter transfer window this year, with managers attempting to tweak and fine-tune their teams in time for the second half of the season. There weren’t any blockbuster moves, but the deals could have a huge impact on the way the Premier League table plays out for the rest of the campaign. In this special edition of WSR’s EPL News Roundup, we give you the low-down on this season’s biggest winter transfer stories.

Manchester City made the headlines yet again in the transfer market, with Robinho on his way back to Brazil and finally getting fed up with England. City’s first big marquee signing will only rejoin former club Santos on loan until the end of the season, but he expressed his desire to “stay for a long time” upon his return to the Vila Belmiro stadium. Benjani also made his way out of Manchester, signing a loan deal with Sunderland that will keep him at the Stadium of Light for the rest of the campaign.

However, the Citizens managed to finally sign highly touted winger Adam Johnson from Middlesbrough, sealing the deal with just moments to spare in the transfer window. The 22-year-old penned a four-year contract at Eastlands and will come straight into the first-team picture. The club also lured former Arsenal star Patrick Vieira back to England from Inter Milan, although the French international is still sidelined through injury.

City’s spending muscle couldn’t buy a UK work permit for Parma midfielder McDonald Mariga, though, and the Kenyan’s proposed $12 million transfer swiftly fell through. After the deal collapsed, City turned their attention to Real Madrid midfielder Gago, who they had reportedly bid for earlier last week. But there just wasn’t enough time to salvage the late deal, leaving both the Argentine and the Madrid executives unimpressed with the last-ditch effort.

On the Red side of Manchester, there wasn’t much to talk about as it has never been Sir Alex Ferguson’s style to make big moves in January. United did, however, manage to sign highly rated center back Chris Smalling from Fulham for an undisclosed fee. The 20-year-old has been described by Fulham boss Roy Hodgson as a “diamond”, and clearly Ferguson agrees.

Fulham’s impressive defense will not take a hit this season, though, because Smalling will stay at the club for the rest of the season on loan. But the signing did further fuel rumors that Nemanja Vidic is on his way out of Old Trafford come the summer, with Real Madrid and Barcelona reportedly hot on the Serbian’s trail. While Fulham retained Smalling for the rest of the campaign, they also signed Aston Villa defender Nicky Shorey on loan as further cover at the back.

Everton did some nifty loan business as well, with David Moyes acquiring the services of US international Landon Donovan, who already notched his first Premier League goal last week in a win over Sunderland, and Arsenal defender Philippe Senderos. Everton’s not-so-friendly neighbors Liverpool snapped up Argentina midfielder Maxi Rodriguez from Atletico Madrid in an attempt to strengthen their chances of retaining Champions League qualification for next season.

In the bottom half of the table, West Ham bolstered their attack after signing Blackburn striker Benni McCarthy and Middlesbrough striker Mido. Gianfranco Zola couldn’t manage to lure former Chelsea star Eidur Gudjohnsen to Upton Park, however, with the Icelandic international instead choosing to join high-flying Spurs. Harry Redknapp also brought defender Younes Kaboul back to Tottenham from cash-strapped Portsmouth, after sending left back Alan Hutton on loan to Sunderland.

Amr Zaki, whose former Wigan boss Steve Bruce labeled “the most unprofessional player” he had ever worked with, is another player making his return to England after signing a loan deal with Hull City from Egyptian side El Zamalek.

The biggest story of deadline day, however, has to be Robbie Keane’s departure from Tottenham. The Republic of Ireland international enjoyed a very successful spell with Tottenham before leaving to join boyhood club Liverpool last season. The dream just wasn’t to be, though, and Keane found himself back at Tottenham just six months later. But with the strikeforce of Jermaine Defoe and Peter Crouch thriving at White Hart Lane, Keane was found to be surplus to requirements by Harry Redknapp. Celtic snapped up the Republic of Ireland international on loan for the rest of the season, and he immediately went into the first team for the club’s match against Kilmarnok.

Transfer Window Winners: Manchester City

Even with the exits of Robinho and Benjani, Roberto Mancini still has all the tools to construct a strong second-half push for Champions League qualification this season. City managed to cut some deadweight in Robinho while retaining all their key players and adding some reinforcements. Let’s just face it: Robinho hasn’t exactly lived up to the hype at Eastlands. The Brazilian starlet struggled with life in England while City fans struggled to keep their patience with him. Now he’s headed back to Santos, where he can hopefully rejuvenate his career, and the Citizens are moving forward with one less major distraction.

In Patrick Vieira, the team now has the experience of a veteran midfielder who knows all about winning trophies from his time at Arsenal and Inter Milan. City is a team full of talent that at times still struggles to click as a unit. The squad is still transitioning from a group of great players to a great team, and Vieira will surely progress that development. On top of that, Mancini has the services of Adam Johnson, who by all accounts has a very bright future ahead of him.

Transfer Window Losers: Portsmouth

No surprises there – when a club is strapped for cash, they are going to sell some stars to balance the books. Kaboul is the big-name to go, but Pompey also had to let go of keeper Asmir Begovic and had to extend striker David Nugent’s loan deal with Burnley. Things could have gotten even worse, too, with keeper David James almost securing a move to Stoke City.

As players headed out of Fratton Park, manager Avram Grant was only able to bring in Tottenham midfielder Jamie O’Hara on loan. Meanwhile, the club was unable to pay their players’ wages for a fourth time this season, and there was a third takeover of the club since September (that’s right: September as in five months ago).

Pompey is still bottom of the Premier League table, and unfortunately they could hardly cope even with the likes of Kaboul in the line-up. Now, without a few of their better players and just one reinforcement, the south coast club will find Premier League safety even tougher to come by.

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