Harry Redknapp was hot, adjusting his tie and easing the collar that choked his rather saggy neck as it overhung onto his lapel that was trying to present a man as dignifying, despite the fact any dignity he had left was wiped out when his defence of tax evasion was practically illiteracy. Whilst this was all very believable – and becomes more logical when one notices how infrequent Roman Pavlyuchenko is in Spurs’ match day squads having heard Harry tell the courts he can’t “write [and] couldn’t even fill a team sheet in” – it is somewhat disputable considering he writes a column for The Sun. That’s another thing that was hot in the January Transfer Window: the sun.
Not as hot as Harry Redknapp was Roberto Mancini: up until January – ignoring their failure to qualify from the group stages of the Champions League – Manchester City were as hot as Harry Redknapp writing his column for The Sun on the sun; however, since then, they’ve slumped back into a metaphorical armchair from their once proud straight back posture and have begun to go stale. Ivory Coast’s illustrious AFCON campaign so far, which has resulted in three victories, five goals and three clean sheets, isn’t helping matters.
But, which club was hot and which club was not, when it came to the main attraction of the January Transfer Window 2012: signings?
Hot
Everton
When club chief executive Robert Elstone released a blog detailing the club’s finance to a depth in which he felt “no other Premier League club has done before,” the prospect of January transfers any more exciting than £600k Darron Gibson quickly evaporated like beads of sweat on Sir Alex Ferguson’s red forehead when he sees his side score another winning goal in the 567th minute of injury time.
Yet, when Diniyar Bilyaletdinov left Everton for Spartak Moscow, for what the BBC reported as £5m on January 29th, it looked as if Everton might be able to buy having sold. With two days left until the Transfer Window slammed shut, consequentially leaving glass shards all over the floor for Wayne Bridge to come along and sweep up as part of his new role as housemaid at The Stadium of Light, The Toffees had to move fast. With the pace of Louis Saha, oh what? He went to Tottenham on a free transfer? Okay, with the pace of Royston Drenthe, Everton sweetened up Tottenham with aforementioned French goal machine – if 2000/01 was yesterday – making financial space on their wage budget for ex-Everton winger Steven Pienaar, leaving White Lane through the door still swinging from Saha’s arrival and entering through the equally moving entrance at Goodison Park. Then, Everton robbed Rangers and the SPL of their top scorer Nikica Jelavic for a fee of £5.5m. Suddenly, further compounded by their 1-0 victory of Roberto Mancini’s Toure-less Manchester City, Everton look better positioned to equal last year’s finish of 7th.