The Positives of this Transfer Window

This transfer window left a lot to be desired, and there no is end of threads discussing that already.

Let’s look at some of the positives because it has not all been dire.

1. Less panic buys
   I say less because I am not entirely confident Baleba would have gotten over the line if we had not lost to Hull. You could argue it was a panic buy in that sense. Regardless, there has been a significant improvement in our restraint in the transfer market in both transfer fees and salaries, and we will benefit from that because players should become easier to sell on. Gone are the days of Sancho, Antony, Lukaku, Alexi Sanchez, etc hanging around like a bad smell simply because we can’t sell them.

2. Astute signings
   The club is starting to engage in the sort of smart transfer signings that lay the foundation for eventual success. Unless your club is engaged in financial doping (City, Chelsea), most successful teams have been built on a small cohort of decent-good transfers and academy players, with the marquee signings coming later on to push them over the line. Reference the class of 92, the early days of Wenger, Arteta’s Arsenal, and (through gritted teeth) Klopp’s Liverpool. Reference our club post-Fergie, Slot’s Liverpool, and soon Tottenham to see what happens when you try to bypass that foundational process without financial doping.

3. Increased utilization of academy
   This is tied into my earlier point about building foundations. We have left room for academy products to step up and fill in some of the gaps in the squad. When done successfully, you can end up with a squad of players who genuinely care about doing well for the club, rather than a bunch of mercenaries. And again, the ones that don’t work out tend to be easier to move on.

TLDR: It was a disappointing window, but there were some positives.