When it was announced that Chelsea would have to serve a two-window transfer ban, many expected them to struggle this season as they were losing their best player in Eden Hazard and had no way to replace him, but after seeing the way that Chelsea have responded to it and having watched the discussion regarding the current window now that the ban has been shortened, I’ve come to realise that the transfer window is massively overhyped by all those interested in football.
Chelsea, in my opinion at least, were hardly damaged by their inability to make any new additions over the Summer. The transfer embargo has essentially forced them to use some of their young academy graduates who wouldn’t have got an opportunity otherwise, and they appear to be flourishing so far; Tammy Abraham is one of the league’s top scorers, Mason Mount is shaping up to follow in Frank Lampard’s footsteps and Reece James is proving to be one of the most well-rounded full-backs around. All 3 of these players spent last season on loan in the Championship, and if it wasn’t for the transfer ban, there’s a good chance that they would have been sent out on loan again.
Not only have I seen the benefits of not making any signings, but the January window has also reminded me how much less stressful the last window was when I simply had to accept that no new reinforcements would be coming in. Right now, Chelsea are being linked by the press with more and more world class strikers who they could sign before Friday’s deadline, but all it does is get my hopes up before the transfer inevitably doesn’t happen.
Furthermore, when I and other fans are looking for the latest updates on what is happening, people begin to spread fake news and pretend to have inside knowledge so that they can share the news and tell people what they want to hear. Amid the rise of social media in particular as well as people’s desperation to gain online followers, engagement and attention, I’ve seen plenty of Chelsea fans online who claim to have “inside sources” and share transfer stories that are, quite plainly, too good to be true and extremely unrealistic, but unfortunately some people begin to believe these kinds of stories and feel disappointed when nothing ever officially surfaces.
There are also more widely-trusted sources who have built a reputation for having inside knowledge regarding football transfers in the past who then exploit this by sharing sensationalist news when they have nothing else that is exciting to publish, which brings up recurring transfer rumours such as Chelsea’s Willian being linked with a move to Barcelona in every single window.
And then, when big clubs have tried negotiating for a whole host of suitable targets but don’t manage to sign any of them, they’re forced into panic buying – especially in the January window. Since most clubs are unwilling to let go of their most prized players mid-season, they demand higher fees and therefore fewer deals materialise, leaving other clubs who are desperate for a player in a particular position scrambling and picking up anyone that they can get on the infamous deadline day.
Chelsea in this window, for example, are clearly keen on signing another striker to replace the departing Olivier Giroud, but they are yet to make any agreements and haven’t found any buyers for the Frenchman either, so it seems almost certain that a last-minute transfer merry-go-round will take place on Friday evening as the Blues will probably decide to splash out on a mediocre striker who is happy to sit on the bench before giving the green light for Giroud to move to any club who are also in desperate want of a striker.
But ultimately, it’s all part of the crazy hustle and bustle that make up what we call “the beautiful game”.
By Oliver McCabe.
