Here we go, but quietly. That was not a dramatic transfer deadline day for the Premier League.
Liverpool signed some defensive back-up (Ozan Kabak from Schalke, and Ben Davies from Preston) but they needed to: Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and now Joel Matip are all out for the season, which is just astonishing bad luck.
Arsenal loaned out a couple of players (Joe Willock went to Newcastle, Ashley Maitland-Niles went to West Brom – both should get plenty of playing time). Everton signed forward Josh King from Bournemouth. Southampton nabbed Takumi Minamino (pictured) – who Jurgen Klopp does not seem to fancy at all – on loan from Liverpool.
Fulham signed striker Josh Maja on loan from Bordeaux. West Brom brought in imposing Turkish midfielder Okay Yokuslu on loan from Celta Viga. Brighton bucked the loan trend, signing 19-year-old Ecuadorian midfielder Moises Caicedo from Independiente del Valle for £4m – the BBC’s South American football expert Tim Vickery called him a “special talent”.
That was it. No panic buying (there’s enough panic to go around anyway right now), more a sense that a handful of clubs in need addressed the weak points of their squads. There were no WINNERS! or LOSERS!
Whilst this may disappoint Sky Sports and the billions of football experts on Twitter, it was a refreshingly sober, responsible window. Premier League clubs have the most money of course, but they are not immune to the effects of this pandemic, and I’m glad they set some sort of an example.
Premier League deadline day deals in full:
Joshua King [Bournemouth – Everton] Nominal
Takumi Minamino [Liverpool – Southampton] Loan
Josh Maja [Bordeaux – Fulham] Loan
Ainsley Maitland-Niles [Arsenal – West Brom] Loan
Ozan Kabak [Schalke – Liverpool] Loan
Ben Davies [Preston – Liverpool] £2m
Joe Willock [Arsenal – Newcastle] Loan
Okay Yokuslu [Celta Vigo – West Brom] Loan
Moises Caicedo [Independiente del Valle – Brighton] £4m
And a reminder of how things were done in the era of the brown envelope:
TELLY GOLD: Deadline Day, 1997. Barry Fry needs a new striker, but the agent wants silly money.
Will Bazza get the deal done? And will he celebrate with a comedy gavel and an outburst of profanity?
Too fucking right he will…pic.twitter.com/3no8OVJIX8
— It’s A Funny Old Game (@sid_lambert) February 1, 2021