Latinos On The Move: Players That Could Be Transferred Before The End of the Winter Transfer Window

ALABAMA - For soccer fans, the Winter transfer window tends to be one of the most stressful months of the season. With players looking for greener pastures, more game time or by simply having great performances, most European teams use the Winter transfer period to reignite their seasons with the acquisition of new players.

Just earlier this month, Brighton agreed a deal with Argentine giants Boca Juniors for young star Valentín Barco. The 19-year-old signed a contract with the English club after Boca accepted their $10 million offer for the talented left-back.

Here at The Latin Times, we bring you the latest rumors of some of the Latin American players that could possibly move to new teams before the deadline on Feb. 1

LAST UPDATED - Feb. 1 (2 p.m. CT)

Alejo Véliz

Sevilla will try to close the loan of Tottenham Hotspur striker Alejo Véliz before the deadline. The Argentine moved to England in 2023 after a successful stint with boyhood club Rosario Central, but failed to impress manager Ange Postecoglu so far this season.

Véliz scored just one goal for Tottenham in a 4-2 defeat to Brighton in December. The deal is reportedly a loan-only transfer, with Tottenham hopeful that regular gametime in LaLiga will benefit Véliz in the long run.

Ezequiel Ávila

Seems like Ezequiel 'Chimy' Ávila is close of finalizing a move to Real Betis before the end of the Winter transfer window. The Argentine has played the last four seasons with Osasuna and is set to look for greener pastures by joining Real Betis.

Since 2018, the striker has scored 34 LaLiga goals, including a personal-best 10 goals during the 2018-19 season with Huesca. According to Fabrizio Romano, Betis would pay Osasuna a fee close to €4m for the 29-year-old.

Facundo Pellistri

The young Uruguayan completed a loan move to Granada after finding difficult to get game time with Manchester United this season. The 22-year-old winger has struggled to get consistent game time with Erik ten Hag's team this season, clocking less than 400 minutes played in 14 appearances in all comps. this season.

This will be Pellistri's second experience with a LaLiga team, after he played for Alavés between 2021-22, where he was able to play in 35 games including 33 in league play.

Jorge Sánchez

The Mexican fullback seems to have everything agreed with Cruz Azul to make a return to Liga MX. Sánchez emigrated to the Netherlands in 2022 to play for Ajax after a successful stint with Club América. He played 26 games for the Eredivisie side before completing a loan move to FC Porto.

In the Portuguese league, Sánchez was able to feature in just seven games this season. During his brief European journey, Sánchez played in 40 games for Ajax and Porto and scored three goals.

Peter González

The young Real Madrid player could leave the Spanish capital for an opportunity in Valencia as both clubs try to finalize a deal before the end of the month. According to Fabrizio Romano, Valencia has agreed to a loan with a buy-back option for the 21-year-old.

González spent most of his youth career in the ranks of Real Madrid's academy. After six years of developing, González finally made his Real Madrid debut last season, playing in three LaLiga matches for the 'Merengues.'

The winger, although born in Spain, has represented the Dominican Republic at different age levels. Since joining the academy in 2015, González made over 100 appearances for Real Madrid Castilla, even winning the UEFA Youth League in 2019-20.

Santiago Castro

Another young Argentine star is attracting interest from European clubs. In this case, Vélez Sarfield's Santiago Castro is being monitored by Italian club Bologna. The talented striker made his professional debut for Vélez when he was just 16 years old and, since then, racks up 64 games for the club.

With Argentina, he has two caps for the U-23 team and is currently part of the 'Albiceleste' squad seeking qualification for this year's Olympics.

Luka Romero

After just six months in Milan, Luka Romero's search for playing time has taken the young Argentine to Spanish team Almería on loan. He played just five games with the 'Rossoneri' the first half of the season.

Romero became a popular 'wonderkid' in 2022 when he made his debut for Lazio but certainly his career has stagnated a little with the lack of opportunities. He will certainly get minutes with his new club Almería, who sit bottom of LaLiga with 6 points in 21 matches.

The talented winger already has some experience playing in Spain, as he spent the first two years of his professional career playing for Mallorca's B team as well as their senior team.

Ángel Correa

The Atlético Madrid striker is reportedly being followed by a series of clubs, including Saudi Arabian Al Ittihad. The 28-year-old has spent the last 10 seasons in the Spanish capital, after arriving from San Lorenzo in 2015. He is the non-European player with the most appearances for the 'Colchoneros', having played in 397 games since 2015.

In terms of goals, only three Latinos have scored more goals for Atlético Madrid in club history. Sergio Agüero (104), Diego Forlán (101) and Hugo Sánchez (82) are the only ones with more goals than Correa (74).

Santiago Giménez

The Mexican striker has continued his terrific form and keeps on adding more goals to his time at Dutch team Feyenoord. Giménez leads the Eredivisie in goals this season, scoring 19 times in just 17 league games. In all competitions, the 22-year-old accounts for 21 goals in 2023-24, including two in the UEFA Champions League. According to reports, Giménez' good form has attracted interest from a couple of Premier League clubs.

According to Transfermarkt, Giménez has a value of more than $54 million. Arsenal and West Ham are two of the teams interested in the Mexican striker. Giménez was named Dutch Footballer of the Year in 2023 thanks to his 31 goals scored in Eredivisie, the most by any player last calendar year.

Ronald Araújo

The Uruguayan defender has been trending over the past couple of weeks, as speculations about his future have placed Araújo in the orbit of a couple of Premier League clubs. In the past week, Bayern Munich has also been reportedly interested in Araújo, after Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt suffered a knee injury earlier this month.

Only a hefty fee would separate Araújo from Barcelona, where he has played since arriving from Uruguay in 2018. Interested teams such as Liverpool and Manchester United would need to offer big money for the Barcelona star, as he is valued at $76 million according to Transfermarkt.

Araújo has played in 20 games for Barcelona in all competitions this season, scoring one goal.

Piero Hincapié

The talented Ecuadorian has been one of the highlights for a Bayer Leverkusen team that sits at the top of the Bundesliga table thanks to their unbeaten 14-0-3 (W-L-D) record. Hincapié has played in 18 games for Leverkusen this season (11 as a starter) and has attracted the interest of top Premier League clubs, with Liverpool keen on bringing the 22-year-old to England.

Leverkusen bought Hincapié from Argentine club Talleres in 2021 and, since then, has played in 94 games for the German outfit. With Liverpool looking to replace Joel Matip, who suffered a long-term injury earlier this season, could make a move for Hincapié, although Leverkusen has made it clear that they don't intend to sell any of their players this January.