The transfer window has closed into January with a string of big money deals and even some headline-grabbing moves that didn’t happen.
Liverpool and Manchester United made great efforts to consolidate while Tottenham could not resist the traditional deadline day to enter the market.
In moves that didn’t materialize, Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad failed to make a £150m bid for Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, while Fulham’s Joao Balinha underwent a medical at Bayern Munich but was forced to return to Craven Cottage after a transfer collapsed.
So what are the big questions left to answer once the dust settles on another busy deadline day?
Is Salah’s saga prolonged?
Liverpool have made their position very clear Salah is not for sale With the immediate rejection of the offer that could have brought them £150m from the federation.
The club’s position was that the 31-year-old was untouchable, and it was considered closed at Anfield, but the complication may be that it is not considered closed in Saudi Arabia.
With the Saudi transfer window not closing until September 7, there was immediate talk of the possibility of Al-Ittihad returning with a bid of close to £200m in a bid to make Liverpool back down.
Liverpool have no intention of backing down as they won’t be able to reinvest any money until January at the earliest, and manager Jurgen Klopp has made it clear that the impressive Egyptian, who has scored 187 goals in 308 appearances for the club, will not be. Sold.
Salah remained silent but his agent, Rami Abbas Issa, wrote in a social media post on August 7, when speculation of Saudi Arabia’s interest began: “Mohamed remains committed to Liverpool. If we consider leaving Liverpool this year, we will not renew the contract.” last summer.”
There is no indication that anything has changed, but that may not prevent the federation from putting on another, more exciting offer for Salah. It would be the biggest coup ever for the Saudi Professional League and further evidence of the existential threat facing the Premier League.
Did Manchester United do enough?
Manchester United manager Eric ten Hag has declared his happiness with the club’s transfer window, but this wasn’t necessarily a view shared by many of his followers.
Mason Mount arrived from Chelsea in a £60m deal, while £72m striker Rasmus Hooglund is finally ready to make his debut following injury against Arsenal on Sunday. Andre Onana has been signed as David De Gea’s successor in goalkeeping.
That led to a flurry of transfer activity on deadline day as outcast Sergio Reguilon joined from Tottenham to cover for the injured Luke Shaw while veteran former Old Trafford defender Jonny Evans, now 35, returned on a one-year deal as an emergency boost.
What this means for former captain Harry Maguire remains unclear, with Ten Hag all set to offload him to West Ham United only for the deal to fall through due to personal terms.
If a situation arises where Evans is ahead of Maguire, and Raphael Varane is currently injured, it would be an embarrassing blow for the England defender.
The big move was the loan deal Soufiane Amrabat, Fiorentina player. Very impressive for Morocco at the World Cup, which finally ended United’s search for another midfielder.
Ten Hag’s side looked inconspicuous and unimpressive despite winning two of their first three Premier League matches, but if Amrabat and Hoglund make progress quickly, things will start to look a lot better.
Hoglund will come under intense scrutiny as the 20-year-old Danish striker has been singled out to provide the natural goal-scoring threat United are missing.
Evolution is not a revolution for Tottenham under the leadership of Postecoglou?
Exciting Nottingham Forest winger Brennan Johnson New Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou would have been happy to secure him as the 22-year-old arrived for a fee in excess of £45m.
Postecoglou was very keen to spend some of the money Harry Kane got from Bayern Munich on Johnson, whose pace and positive approach fit well with the attacking style the Australian was already adopting. It was a priority signing.
James Maddison is already displaying creative brilliance and Johnson will deliver, while Tottenham’s midfield has already shown promising signs in the form of a rejuvenated Yves Bissouma and Babe Matar Sarr.
It was a steady progression in the window, but Postecoglou arguably was left with far too many fringe players who are clearly not at the forefront of his ideas such as Eric Dier, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Brian Gill and Davinson Sanchez.
There’s still a lot of work to be done, and another centre-back could have been on Postecoglou’s wish list – but the start has just begun.
Will Klopp’s midfield work again?
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp accepted his team’s engine room needed to restart after a disappointing last season, but the process has been accelerated by the Saudi raid of captain Jordan Henderson and Fabinho.
Brighton’s Alexis McAlister and Hungarian Dominic Zuboszlai were the first arrivals and then – after losing out to Chelsea to Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lafia – Liverpool unleashed a surprise campaign on 30-year-old VfB Stuttgart’s Japan captain Wataru Endo.
Klopp was keen to complete a serious overhaul and the final piece was the 21-year-old Bayern Munich man. Dutch international Ryan Gravenbrecht, who signed on the final day in a £34m deal.
Klopp will be hoping his new quartet can provide a mixture of defensive solidity and creative spark not only to protect his backline but also to provide an excellent attack featuring Salah, Cody Jaqubo, Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez, whose pair inspired a late sensational comeback against Newcastle United last Sunday.
In a perfect world, Liverpool would have added another central defender but, at first clue, the wide-scale reconfiguration of the midfield looks impressive.
Will Everton fail?
Everton cashed in on the last day of deadline by selling Alex Iwobi to Fulham for £22m and young striker Tom Cannon to Leicester City for an initial £6m, potentially rising to £7.5m with add-ons, while out. Neil Maupay of the wage bill. On loan back to former club Brentford.
Money will remain in the bank as Everton failed to make any new additions before the window closed, with time once again spent trying to persuade Leeds United to sell Wilfried Guento – despite being told on several occasions that there was no deal to be made.
New to the Toffees £25m striker Beto made a fine impression against Doncaster Rovers in League Two in the Carabao Cup, at least in a sign that he could fill a goalscoring gap left vacant in a nearly neglected strategy for over a year.
That means Everton’s next business has seen 38-year-old Ashley Young sign on a free transfer, Arnaut Danjuma and Jack Harrison join on loan – the latter injured on his arrival from Leeds United – with Beto and young striker Youssouf Chermiti brought in from Sporting Lisbon. For 14 million pounds sterling.
And given Everton’s dismal start to the Premier League season, losing three times without scoring, there would be understandable consternation at the lack of signings on the deadline for a team that has been down in numbers from last season and already looks sorely lacking in quality.
A rickety and weak Everton side, with real concerns in the heart of defence, numbers are down after the departures of Yerry Mina and Conor Cody, who featured last season.
This, sadly, is also a reflection of the desperate financial reality Everton now faces after years of mismanagement and waste of money have led fans to revolt against owner Farhad Moshiri and chairman Bill Kenwright as many continue to call for change at board level.
Will Forrest’s revolving door keep them safe again?
Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper brilliantly molded an unprecedented number of newcomers into the side that stayed in the Premier League last season – and hopes a busy deadline day will qualify him for something similar this season.
Johnson’s move to Tottenham could have been painful for Forest, but Cooper was certainly allowed to bolster his side on a hectic day at the City Ground.
Forest signed former Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi – a real talent who has lost his way – and Bologna captain Nicolas Dominguez on permanent deals, as well as Arsenal full-back Nuno Tavares on loan.
Greek international goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodemos also signed a four-year contract from Benfica.
Perhaps the most significant announcement came just after midnight with the signing of PSV midfielder Brahim Sancar in what is understood to be a club record deal worth around £30m.
The 25-year-old Ivory Coast international was a key member of the PSV side that demolished Rangers 7-3 on aggregate to reach the Champions League group stage – scoring in the first leg at Ibrox – and has caught the attention of plenty of players. The best European clubs.
Forest staged a coup to sign a player who could have aspired to Champions League football but instead came to the banks of the River Trent.
Former Liverpool striker Divock Origi signed on loan From Milan to add ample experience and there was also the late addition of Norwich City defender Andrew Omobamedele, aged 21, at a cost of £11m.
They have arrived in addition to six previous signings – Anthony Elanga, Matt Turner, Ola Aina, Andre Santos, Gonzalo Montiel and Murilo.
That meant Cooper would have to perform his mixtape show again, but he showed he could do it.
