Top 5 best value-for-money deals this January

Ignacio Scocco

Ignacio Scocco signed for Gustavo Poyet’s Sunderland on 27 January for a reported £3million, departing Brazilian side Internacional after only seven months.

While not a household name in Europe, the 28-year-old Argentinian could be a shrewd signing for the Black Cats if his previous goalscoring exploits at Newell’s Old Boys are anything to go by.

Playing for Newell’s during the 2012–2013 season – current Barcelona boss Gerardo Martino’s spell in charge – Scocco won the national Clausura title, in addition to reaching the Copa Libertadores semi-finals.

His technical brilliance, direct running and powerful shot enabled him to spearhead a rigid, intense pressing and rapid transitional system – a philosophy implemented by Martino, having been a leading figurehead in Marcelo Bielsa’s Newell’s side throughout the early 90s.

Scocco finished the successful season with 24 goals in 33 league appearances; a total that Poyet, and the Sunderland faithful, would love to see repeated next season.