As the European season came to climatic halt in May the huge rumor mill of transfer speculation began to grind once again, signalling the beginning of the transfer window - that is, the short time between seasons that European teams have to rebuild their squads and prepare for the new season.
Even though the window didn't open until July 1st, deals were already in place and huge amounts of money were being exchanged weeks before as teams look to get a headstart on their rivals with a dash of controversy, just to increase interest.
This year, as we enter into the middle of July there has been a lack of huge signings that have become so common during this time. In England the top story had been Manchester City´s prolonged courting of Raheem Sterling, who effectively went on strike to force his club Liverpool to release him, which has made the most headlines. Liverpool acted quickly to replace Sterling with the acquisition of Brazilian Roberto Firminho to lead their attack next season, but with $50 million from the Sterling sale their spending is set to continue. City rivals Manchester United have also been quietly rebuilding their squad, with subtle but clever acquisitions like Morgan Schneiderlin, Matteo Darmian and Memphis Depay.
Having broken the world record with an over $90 million bid on Gareth Bale two summers ago, Real Madrid have headed a line of Spanish clubs that have bought players with equal astuteness. The radical changes of their Galacticos campaign is now seemingly something of the past. Interestingly, Madrid rivals Atletico have been quietly assembling a team that could challenge Real and Barcelona´s domination of the Spanish league again, after failing to retain the title they so surprisingly won in 2014. Atletico´s Argentine boss Diego Simeone has brought in South American duo Jackson Martinez and Luciano Vietto, as well as the incredibly gifted Angel Correa, who starred during the Under-20 World Cup in June for Argentina, to create what promises to be an attack line to rival any of their La Liga rivals. Barcelona, who are under a transfer embargo have also been busily exploiting loopholes and legal grey areas to continue to sign players, purchasing Turkish international Arda Turan and Spaniard Aleix Vidal to boost their already fiercely strong squad.
The headline chase this summer has been for Juventus´ French midfielder Paul Pogba, who is reported to be a favorite of seemingly all of Europe's biggest teams. But with the Italian Champions refusing to allow Pogba to leave Turin for less than $80 million, clubs seem to be put off by the price tag, although as the transfer window rumbles on there is still plenty of time.
Drama is not something that would normally be attached to the bureaucratic procedure of sports teams acquiring players, yet as the transfer window closes at midnight on the 31st August, previous windows have seen clubs desperately acting as late as the final moments of the window and one feels that with the lack of huge signings so far, a dramatic twist seems inevitable. Watch this space...
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