Reporter: Manchester City spent 18 months preparing to sign Rodri, but finding his successor was far more haphazard

Liverpool and Manchester City were once symbols of calm decision-making, but in the Premier League's pursuit of “more, more, more,” rationality seems to have been thrown out the window… This is the view of Miguel Delaney in his latest Inside Football newsletter.

Liverpool and Manchester City were once symbols of calm decision-making, but in the Premier League's pursuit of “more, more, more,” rationality seems to have been thrown out the window… This is the view of Miguel Delaney in his latest Inside Football newsletter.

As the chaotic atmosphere of the transfer window gradually fades, coaching staffs have begun reassessing their squads, while many in football are still digesting the disorder.

This is always one of the most interesting parts after a transfer window closes: the deals that could have happened, the surprising late bids, and the dramatic nature of the entire spectacle.

In this transfer window, almost all of those elements were connected by a “chain reaction.” It is best viewed backwards from the ending, because the final scenes are still generating the most discussion in football.

“Everyone” is asking why Balogun eventually decided not to join after spending a day at Everton. Even coaches from rival camps have been wondering how such a situation happened, especially because they understood the consequences of being short on players at that stage.

It was believed that Balogun's medical did reveal a minor issue, but it was not something that could not be resolved. Everyone continued pushing forward, but Balogun had already begun to have doubts. Everton were also looking at Zirkzee, but it was already too late for Manchester United.

Did this situation make Balogun unhappy? Sources said the player did not like the way the matter was handled that day.

Regardless, the decision meant Monaco could not complete a sale they urgently needed. Earlier, Monaco had already abandoned the deal to sell Lamine Camara to Chelsea. Some people inside Stamford Bridge reacted with a bitter smile, because they were still frustrated at the time and their midfield options had since become thinner.

Chelsea's later late-stage midfield targets — from Zubimendi to Gibbs-White and then Aurélien Tchouaméni — attracted attention, but they were not the only club operating this way.

Staff at one club were once surprised: the football management team had originally been pursuing a striker, but then asked them to inquire about another player with a completely different style.

This is worth considering because it further highlights one of the major themes of this transfer window. One executive said with clear confusion: “This is simply throwing money away.”

“It creates drama and stories, but at the highest levels of spending you should see more… control. The huge fees are one thing, but the whole process, with behavior like Peter Odemwingie and Harry Redknapp throwing a yellow tie out of a car window, feels like a major step backwards.”

This represents a clear and sudden change, and could even make this summer a landmark moment, perhaps viewed as a turning point in the Premier League's era of dominance.

Of course, this is not limited to this issue. This week I also wrote a report discussing how the widespread use of private credit in this transfer window could expose English football to the risk of a “huge short position” moment.

This may be connected to another so-called “new approach,” although many people would simply call it irrational. During this transfer window, it often seemed that proven best practices from previous years had been completely abandoned; as if the data revolution led by Brighton had been forgotten.

These methods are actually not that complicated. The basic idea is clear. When entering a transfer window, clubs need target lists for specific positions so they can switch smoothly between negotiations, complete as many signings as possible, and give coaches players to work with during preseason preparation.

In reality, this was rarely achieved. Several executives and agents instead experienced the changes in real time. Although they said clubs entered the window with detailed plans, they were shocked by how quickly those plans became uncertain.

One agent put it directly: “The final week turned completely into an uncontrolled scramble.”

Looking at the two clubs that dominated much of football over the past decade reveals some of these details, partly because of their forward planning in the transfer market.

When Manchester City signed Rodri in 2019, the groundwork had actually been done 18 months earlier. He had already been identified as one of several potential successors to Fernandinho.

But the search for Rodri's successor has been much more chaotic. Directly replicating the Spanish midfielder is almost impossible… Yet even trying to work around that challenge saw the process move in many directions across the market and continue until very late.

Liverpool were similar. Just two years earlier, the club had rejected a deal because they felt the price was outside a reasonable range and had remained firm. This time it was completely different: they acted and spent the £123 million that Arsenal had refused to pay to sign Barcola.

As defending champions, this team deserves credit for not buying simply for the sake of buying after failing to secure top players such as Vinícius or Julián Álvarez.

This was exactly what Klopp did with key players such as Van Dijk and Alisson, when Liverpool truly got their approach right.

Other sources have continued criticizing Arsenal's operating process. One person simply said: “A mess.”

In other words, they failed to stay ahead of the game. This issue was common in many signings this summer. More major deals went toward players already at their peak, such as Arsenal paying £75 million for the 28-year-old Guimarães. More deals involved buying players already playing in the Premier League, which also significantly increased prices.

In other words, clubs were targeting the players you would see in a daily football show. Despite having access to extensive modern data-analysis tools, clubs did not appear to use them to their full potential. This was reflected not only in the final results. A source at one club joked that they had one of the most advanced data-analysis systems in Europe, but “the sporting director never goes inside!”

More deals were still completed through relationships, no different from 15 years ago.

Some also believe the problem goes deeper. One executive said: “Resources are certainly not lacking, and they never will be. The key is whether these resources are truly incorporated into the strategy and whether enough possibilities are considered.”

“Most importantly, this looks more like a failure of execution. There is certainly a lot of arrogance out there… but once Plan A fails, the problems are immediately exposed.”

Another common argument is that money and everything surrounding it have caused many people to lose their sense of judgment. At least in the medium and long term, it is difficult to see what kind of system many teams are actually trying to build.

There is also extreme short-termism. According to one industry figure, January will be “another crash scene.”