Transfer Window Set To Slam Shut Earlier On

The transfer window, I think it is fair to say that football has something of a love hate relationship with it. Fans love it as it allows them to dream of which players may well be joining their beloved club in the off season while managers in the main are not massive fans.

It can be hugely beneficial if you are buying club, it can be an absolute burden if you are a so called selling club. Two particular managers that wish it would end right now are Jurgen Klopp and Paul Clement as they battle to keep hold of their respective star players.

The current transfer window closes in 16 days time and it looks highly unlikely that both managers are going to get their wishes as moves for Philippe Coutinho and Gylfi Sigurdsson away from the respective clubs look set to happen before the end of August.

As the transfer window currently stands it overlaps the first few weeks of the season, therefore creating a potential scenario of uncertainty around a particular club as they are unsure as to what exactly the first eleven will be come the start of September.

The perfect example of this is Gylfi Sigurdsson at Swansea, manager Paul Clement does not want to play him due to all the talk of transfers surrounding the player. So much so that the former Bayern Munich and Real Madrid assistant boss was calling for the close of the window to be bought so as to remove these kind of situations.

And it looks like that he may well get his wish as Premier League clubs are set to vote next month on whether or not the window should be closed at the start of the month. It would need 14 votes for it to be legislation but the belief is that this is something that will happen.

I think by leveling this particular playing field it would remove all questions surrounding transfer targets for 2-3 weeks and allow everyone to start their season with what will be their squad and not just a squad for the first handful games before some last gasp exits have changed plans considerably.

That way managers will be able to plan for the start of the campaign without constant distractions from the press as to whether or not a player is still going to exit the club even after starting on the opening day of a new season, knowing that the 25 players they have named in their squad are locked in until January.

From a fans point of view, we may not get the frantic clamour of transfer news in August and it will probably give me less to write about but at the same time I’ve usually got transfer fatigue by this time of year so condensing the transfer window would not be a bad thing in my opinion.

Clubs will not sign any fewer players, it just means that they have to conduct their business quicker and perhaps smarter. But with any window that opens, there has to be a close and ultimately we still will end up with a deadline day so its not as if anyone will be deprived of that. This idea gets a thumbs up from me and especially Paul Clement.