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January window recap: Transfers, loans and improved teams

The January transfer window was a hipster's dream. After last year's desperate salvos -- namely, Enzo Fernández and Mykhailo Mudryk moving to Chelsea for a combined €191 million -- this past month was more about youngsters and fine-tuning squads. When the "Martin Braithwaite to Manchester United?" rumors began to fly late in the month, you knew this wasn't a time for serious spending.

Whether it is because everyone's afraid of new financial sustainability rules, the sudden stalling of the Saudi spending splurge or the fact that everyone has turned into me playing Football Manager -- and falling in love with loans -- it was a pretty slow month. But it was still an opportunity for teams to improve, at least on the margins.

So, let's talk about who might have done so. Here are my favorite transfers and loans of the January window.