The rush after Russia – elite clubs struggle with new transfer deadline | Simon Burnton

With only three weeks until Premier League window closes activity will be squeezed into an uncomfortably short space of time

There are only three weeks until the Premier League transfer window closes, the day before the new season begins and 22 days before top-flight clubs in France, Germany and Spain are obliged to put their own chequebooks away. The early deadline, agreed last September, represents a massive change to the rhythm of Premier League summers; last year clubs in the English top flight completed more deals in the 24 hours of transfer deadline day (17) than they did in the last two weeks of July (16). This summer all that activity and a great deal more will have to be compressed, like clowns in a mini, into an uncomfortably small space.

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