Heart Break Window

The January Transfer window, in my opinion, provides for more heart-ache than it does joy for the average supporter. There is no conceivable fashion in which you are able to conduct sound, prudent business in such a short shop window with hundreds of millions of pounds at stake, both in terms of performances on the pitch, and who is signed and who leaves their respective clubs.

Take some recent deals, for example. Portsmouth's Jermain Defoe is no stranger to moving in January. In fact he has just completed a full circle turn within a calendar year back to his old club Tottenham from Portsmouth. Defoe said he was "sickened" by vicious death threats received via the Pompey fans after he reiterated his desire to leave the south coast outfit following Harry Redknapp's renewed interest.

Sure, you might think : "I can understand the heart-ache the Portsmouth fans have gone through - but what about the Tottenham fans?". The answer, here, is not emotional heart-ache, but financial heart-ache. Every cloud has a silver lining, and Portsmouth fans can relish the 7 million pound profit they made off of the England International - but Pompey's gain is Spurs' pain. In a world where finances are supposed to be tighter than ever; it makes you wonder why Daniel Levy, normally so prudent withe the White Hart Lane purse strings (as evidenced in the Berbatov saga) would permit paying double the amount they sold the same player for one year ago. Why you might ask, would he do such a thing...? One word : relegation. Defoe has been brought in because Tottenham are in a relegation dog-fight, along with roughly 6 or 7 other teams, possibly, somewhat ironically, including Portsmouth.

My overriding point is, which set of supporters are really happy? Both have been hurt by each other in the January transfer window. The term "panic buy" is the word and flavor of the month. One of the two things normally happen. Either clubs target a super-star player, and on the rare occasion when this player is brought in, he is normally cup-tied, and takes 2/3 months to settle into a new environment. If clubs are unable to get their top targets through the door, they invariably buy one of lesser quality which the fans are displeased with. From the selling clubs point of view, the January transfer window is akin to a poisoned chalice - in that they are determined to hold on to their best players, but at the same time keen to buy. The financial crisis has added a wicked twist to the tale - expect a flurry of deadline day deals to go through with milliseconds to spare in February; because the stakes have never been higher for clubs all across the British top flight.