Earlier this summer, I wrote about how transfers affect different teams. Mainly, the rich tend to get richer and the teams at the bottom of the table struggle to find talent to compete with the Big Dogs—Manchester United, Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool, etc. Now that the transfer window has closed, we can look forward to the season without constant rumors about who will wind up where. This also provides some relief to managers who can start to focus on making the best lineup possible with the players available.
If you are an American sports fan, and you think that ESPN is overly dramatic about every rumor or tweet, then you have no idea how much like high school the European soccer scene is during the transfer window. If you multiplied TMZ by ESPN and take that to the Real Housewives degree (or whatever passes for “reality” TV these days), you may begin to understand the gossip world of soccer. Because soccer is so popular everywhere else in the world, and since it really doesn’t have other sports to compete against, all tabloids, TV news programs and newspapers focus on the lives of players and where they may end up if sold or traded to another club.
What makes this more interesting is that players can be sold to teams outside of their current professional sports league. Teams do not have to deal with commissioners approving trades or fees, and temporary loans allow for players to transfer without permanently leaving their home club. Thus, there is a constant web of player transfers between the Spanish, English, Italian, French, Dutch and other leagues; it becomes nearly impossible to keep track of where everyone is going. Throw in the tabloids that come up with mysterious “sources” on latest news, and you may see a player rumored to go to five different teams in three different countries in the same day!
Just this past offseason (if you can even call it that), some of the biggest names were being tossed around as possible transfer candidates; Wesley Sneijder, Luka Modric, Cesc Fabregas, and Samir Nasri were just a few of the players involved in rumors. Some ended up staying put, and others moved on to improve their new teams. I must admit, the two months (June and July) that the Premier League is in its offseason, the transfer rumors keep me constantly excited about the next season. Sure, American professional leagues have their share of trade rumors, but because of all the red tape involved in actually making a trade (see: the annual NBA Trade Machine that ESPN provides), most trades never pan out or end up being anti-climactic.
Now, if you missed out on this summer’s transfer window drama, have no worries! The transfer window will open up again for the month of January. This allows for teams to assess the talent they have, fill in for injured players, and create a second wind to provide for exciting finishes every season! Comparable to the secondary Waiver Wire trades in Major League Baseball, this additional transfer month will allow for some relief to your annual Seasonal Affective Disorder and will give soccer fans an additional fix of drama so that they do not have to watch Jersey Shore. I can’t wait!
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