3 massive January deals Everton missed out on

Virgil van Dijk

Virgil van Dijk’s excellent performances at the heart of the Southampton defence attracted much interest during January, with Everton one of several Premier League sides linked with the Dutchman.

However, the 25-year-old remained at St Mary’s past Tuesday’s 11pm deadline, with the club’s decision to allow captain and fellow defender Jose Fonte to leave for West Ham making it difficult for any side to persuade the Saints to sell them van Dijk.

And that will be a blow to Koeman, who would have been hoping that his prior working relationship with his compatriot – Koeman brought van Dijk to Southampton back in 2015 – was going to be enough to bring him to Goodison Park.

Van Dijk has been outstanding for Southampton this season, and has arguably been the best centre-back in the Premier League this term after many impressive displays, some of which coming against the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Sergio Aguero.

Nonetheless, no side could prize him away from St Mary’s, although further good displays from the Dutch international will likely bring even greater interest in the summer.