Premier League clubs are already on course to smash the transfer spending record, with several £100m-plus deals in the pipeline. The previous record spend was £3.14bn last summer, and the £2bn barrier has long since been surpassed.
Liverpool are closing in on Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain, while Manchester City may have to break the transfer record to land Enzo Fernandez from Chelsea. But beyond the spending levels, it is the different approach to transfer dealings that is catching the eye.
Players and agents take the lead
Players agreeing contract terms ahead of transfers, managers openly speaking to players from other clubs, and agents touting players around have become common. "Players going to the house of their potential new manager is pretty common," one source noted.
After one of the biggest deals of this window, one player confided that his new manager had been calling him all summer. This is only an issue if the selling club wants to make it an issue.
Unusual volume of deals
The difference this summer is the sheer level of deals, offers, and agreements. "It is very unusual with so many transfers on the table," said one agent. "There's so many more deals to be done."
One leading agent said the next few days will be intensely busy, with a huge number of deals completed before the window shuts next Tuesday night. Fernandez could be the biggest, and Chelsea could be the busiest.
New generation of sporting directors
Many deals are being done between the buying club, the player, and his agents before the selling club is involved. This has always happened, particularly in the Premier League era, but now it goes on all the time.
Newcastle said they had not received any contact from Arsenal over Bruno Guimaraes, and then it got done very quickly. The same noises are there with Chelsea and Fernandez. Once all the building blocks are in a row, it can get done very quickly.
There has also been a shift in how players view contracts. If a club comes in with a better offer, the player wants to talk and take up that transfer. One player who signed a long-term deal last year wants to move, and an agent has been hired to find another club, but he only wants to stay in the north of England.
With so much money being spent, players and agents want to make hay while the sun shines. The sheer number of secret deals, handshakes, and contracts is the big shift. One thing is for sure: the spending is unlikely to stop any time soon.
