Deadline day – The hype surrounding it
The last day of the transfer window, whether that’s the summer window or the January window, always brings excitement.
But this year, it had added anticipation.
Sitting around all day, watching Sky Sports, and seeing deals being completed left, right and centre gives fans that extra buzz. But viewers only tune in for one thing. Mr Jim White. The face of Deadline Day.
This year, the build up to Deadline Day made it look like huge deals were going to go through. Coutinho to Barcelona, Alexis Sanchez to Manchester City, Diego Costa returning to Atletico Madrid, but none of that happened.
Instead, we had mediocre deals, which had twists and turns, and that went to the wire. It was the excitement of everyone rushing around to get deals over the line in time. Danny Drinkwater to Chelsea going to the wire, Fernando Llorente rejecting the Blues to head to North London and Tottenham.
The only big deal of the day was Kylian Mbappe’s loan move to PSG, with the obligation to buy for a staggering £165 million next summer.
Twitter: Paris Saint-Germain are thrilled to announce the signing of Kylian Mbappé! #BienvenueKylian https://t.co/dOLX2YpP7x (@PSG_English)
After all, it’s an excuse to do nothing all day, and have the football on!
Where the window is positioned, right at the end of the month in August, it is during the international break. It gives us the ‘club football’ back in a sense as supporters don’t tend to enjoy the international break. As soon as it starts, they want it to end, especially with England.
With managers calling out for the window to be shut before the season kicks off, it’ll allow clubs to focus on the season knowing nobody is going to depart, but managers surely get satisfaction out of doing a last minute deal.
From a personal view, I believe the window should close before the season starts. It allows no team to strengthen and you know who’s staying and who’s going. You won’t get rid of Deadline Day as it being brought forward. It means clubs have to be organised and allows you to focus on the football from day one.
@mattdebonosport