One player per Championship club who could still leave in Jan

Liverpool target Fabio Carvalho, Brentford-linked Brennan Johnson and others could yet leave the Championship for new pastures this month.

Barnsley – Callum Styles
We start proceedings with the club bottom of the division. Slim pickings it is, given the big influences behind last season’s play-off campaign are long gone from Oakwell, but wing-back Callum Styles has earned plaudits in his time at south Yorkshire, albeit fewer this season. With Barnsley’s board accused of only caring about money, he could be a solid seven-figure sale for the Tykes, which can’t be said of many of his teammates.

Birmingham City – Ivan Sunjic
Again, there is hardly an abundance of sides above Birmingham eyeing up what Brum have to offer, but Ivan Sunjic is literally a Croatia international midfielder and has been quietly consistent during his time at St. Andrews. A move from lower midtable to upper midtable could present itself in the last days of the window.

Blackburn Rovers – Joe Rothwell
It is looking like Ben Brereton Diaz will get his big move in the summer, so midfielder Joe Rothwell is the outstanding candidate here. Out of contract in the summer, Bournemouth have had bids rejected this month, while Rothwell would improve Brentford’s midfield options considerably in the division above. Rothwell was left out of the squad for the game with Luton as boss Tony Mowbray alluded to a potential move on the horizon.

Bournemouth – Lloyd Kelly
The imperious defender has been impressive for Bournemouth since becoming a mainstay of the team, and West Ham are believed to have shown an interest with their need for a centre-back public knowledge.

Blackpool – Josh Bowler
Linked with moves to Fulham and Nottingham Forest this month, winger Josh Bowler has been a revelation for the Seasiders. Having only signed in the summer from Everton’s youth setup, Bowler has bowled over second-tier neutrals and fans alike. His ceiling is scarily high.

Bristol City – Antoine Semenyo
Young forward Semenyo has been something of an enigma for so long at Bristol City. The youth product has always had bags of talent but was missing goals. He has rectified that in recent weeks, netting twice against Fulham and then again in the last game of the month against Preston. Bigger and better teams than Bristol City may just take note.

Cardiff City – Kieffer Moore
His time really should have come in the summer. Wolves were the likeliest destination then and they may have some money to play with in the final hours of the window, but Burnley need a Chris Wood replacement and they could do far worse than the Wales international to fill that particular gap.

Coventry City – Simon Moore
Such is the strength of Coventry City’s surprisingly good season, there are few standout stars in a team that is far greater than the sum of its parts. Simon Moore has been dependable for the Sky Blues all season and Aston Villa have shown an interest in the 31-year-old to add to their roster of back-ups between the sticks.

Derby County – Tom Lawrence
Derby may not have a choice in this one. Captain Tom Lawrence has seen this season turn into something of a redemption arc on a professional level and is the Rams’ most prized asset when it comes to playing staff. Any Championship club would be lucky to have him and Fulham would relish the former Manchester United youngster in their ranks, especially if the similarly talented Fabio Carvalho was to move to the Premier League this month.

Fulham – Fabio Carvalho
And there he is. The young attacking midfielder has taken west London and the Championship by storm, to the point where European giants Liverpool and Bayern Munich have been credited with interest. A summer move may be more likely, but anything can happen.

Huddersfield Town – Lewis O’Brien
Another Championship star to have been linked with a move prior to this window, midfielder O’Brien was on the radar of Leeds in the summer. Rumours have been much quieter this month, but Leeds still need the bodies. Burnley could also make use of the Terrier.

Hull City – Keane Lewis-Potter
Brentford have had bids rejected for the Hull youngster, who is making similar waves on Humberside as potential England international Jarrod Bowen during his time with the Tigers. Having played at wing-back and being more than capable of playing wide in a front three, Lewis-Potter has been Hull’s best player since Bowen departed for West Ham a couple of years ago. With his talent now so public, Hull will be hoping they have another youngster on the production line.

Luton Town – Elijah Adebayo
Another youngster taking the second tier by force, Elijah Adebayo has been a revelation for the Hatters, who would be mad to let the striker go for anything other than a crazy sum of money. There have been few links with a move away, but his name will be on many radars already. Luton have an air of Brentford about them; signing players from Kenilworth Road will soon be a guarantee of quality.

Middlesbrough – Marcus Tavernier
Leeds and Newcastle were both believed to have taken an interest in the Middlesbrough winger at the start of the month. Not much more to say on the Boro academy product, who has rarely dominated the Championship, but could be a valuable addition to either of those squads.

Marcus Tavernier. That’s it. That’s the tweet.

— brad (@MFC_Brad) January 29, 2022

Millwall – Jed Wallace
His links to Nottingham Forest and a potential move to Turkey have become regular, but the former are believed to have cooled their interest after a move seemed to be approaching levels of certainty. A free agent in the summer, Wallace may take the next six months to enjoy his Millwall swansong and go from there. But never say never to a January surprise.

Nottingham Forest – Brennan Johnson
Like Lewis-Potter, Brentford have made their interest in Forest superstar Johnson well known, having bids rejected for the winger in both of this season’s transfer windows. With seven goals to his name for Steve Cooper’s promotion chasers, Forest won’t let Johnson go without a fight and may consider the matter closed this month. We are not so certain just yet.

Peterborough United – Siriki Dembele
Slim pickings once more, seeing as very few Peterborough players have given teams better than Posh much to think about. Attacker Dembele was on the transfer list for the opening month of the season, but stayed after helping them pick up some early points. Meh.

Preston North End – Alan Browne
A one-club man to date, Preston’s captain has always been a figure of solidity in the middle for the Lilywhites. Very few Preston players have been linked with moves away, but Browne doesn’t get enough recognition for just what a good player he is at Championship level, so it’s nice we’ve done that if nothing else.

Queens Park Rangers – Chris Willock
Now we’re talking. Joe Willock may have made an eight-figure move from Arsenal to Newcastle in the summer, but it is brother Chris who has been making all the headlines since with a standout and breakout season for Mark Warburton’s dark horses. Six goals and seven assists mean he is contributing to a goal more than every other game for the west Londoners.

Reading – John Swift
Not many players can claim to have much pride from the last couple of months at Reading, but John Swift has plenty of credit in the bank from the early parts of this season and many more performances in recent years, too. Without a goal since October and with just two assists since November, Swift still has 19 goal involvements to his name. He will furnish any side he moves to, be it now or in the summer.

Sheffield United – Sander Berge
There were links to Arsenal before his move to Sheffield United, where he regularly occupies a place on the bench. A move abroad may be the most likely outcome for the Norwegian.

Stoke City – Tyrese Campbell
Having sat out the best part of the year with a serious injury, Tyrese Campbell’s return to the first-team fold at Stoke has been as exciting as it has frustrating. With talk of Josh Maja adding to the Potters’ attacking options, Campbell’s talent could be honed better at a lower-table Premier League side or north of the border with previous admirers Celtic or Rangers.

Swansea City – Joel Piroe
Leicester City were linked with the young Dutchman earlier in the season, such is the ease with which Swansea’s summer purchase took to the Championship in his first full campaign of senior football. Links have been quieter since the window opened, but there are plenty of top-flight sides who may fancy making his time in south Wales very fleeting indeed.

West Bromwich Albion – Sam Johnstone
Kept out of the last two matchday squads owing to a difference in opinion with head coach Valerien Ismael, the England international may be in a race to leave West Brom quicker than his manager. He certainly has the potential to play in the top flight again, and will not be short of takers. West Ham has been the perennial option.