The season is about to end and we are already talking about the plans for next season and which players should be signed by various clubs. Many of us will be glued to regular sports updates over the summer to discover whether our team has got their man or not and these deals can often take place on the final day of the transfer window. But do forget there is still a champions league final to be had!
It can be particularly frustrating to see an important player leave at the final hour, just as it can also be extremely satisfying when a target has managed to get his signature on a contract only minutes before the window slams shut, watching it unfold it just as exciting as watching live score updates on Saturday afternoons.
In reality a lot of the final day deals seem to be a sign of desperation from clubs that haven’t been able to get their intended targets all summer, and so they decide to spend some cash in a last ditch effort to appease fans. Last day signings will not have participated in a pre season with their new teammates, and consequently that rhythm and understanding which comes with players practising together is lost.
At best a new addition is going to need at least a few weeks before he, and his team mates, feel comfortable playing in the same team. The likelihood is that it could take a lot longer, and the general public seem mystified that an apparently decent footballer can struggle to perform when representing a new club, and initially plays at a level far lower than his potential and ability suggest he should be capable of.
The argument can also be looked at in a positive light, from the perspective of a manager signing a quality player. Potentially the missing piece of a jigsaw, the right signing can make all the difference to whether a season is defined as a success or a failure, so small are the margins. No doubt the bigger, richer, powerful elite of European football hold an advantage over the rest, as it is they that have the spending power and ability to put in substantial offers at the drop of a hat.
Overall, how many teams benefit from this period of opportunity to buy and sell, and should these matters be concluded by the end of July, before a ball is even kicked?