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Contrasting Fortunes

Who were the biggest winners and losers from Deadline Day?

Some clubs will feel pleased with their work while others will be bitterly disappointed.

Winners

Manchester City

PEP GUARDIOLA DIDN’T make a single signing on Deadline Day but he did oversee a complete overhaul of his bloated squad.

A litany of fringe players were disposed of while there was also Joe Hart’s controversial move to Torino. Samir Nasi was banished to Sevilla on a season-long loan while Wilfriend Bony will spend the rest of the campaign in Stoke.

Meanwhile, Eliaquim Mangala is gone to Valencia and young Belgian Jason Denayer has joined Sunderland.

Samir Nasri file photo PA WIRE PA WIRE

A glance at the tighter group that Guardiola will now oversee shows how he’s effortlessly and ruthlessly gone about transitioning.

Claudio Bravo, Nolito, Ilkay Gundogan, Leroy Sane and John Stones have all arrived and four of those – maybe all five – will be regular starters this term.

Effective squad management from the Premier League favourites.

Liverpool

It was something similar at Anfield as Jurgen Klopp avoided having to frantically and chaotically chase targets until the last minute.

Business was done nice and early so he could concentrate on pushing some players out the door.

Liverpool Training and Press Conference - Melwood Training Ground PA WIRE PA WIRE

He finally managed to offload Mario Balotelli (Nice) while another Brendan Rodgers signing, Lazar Markovic, will be at Sporting Lisbon for the rest of the season. Luis Alberto – who played just 9 times in the league since 2013 – was sold to Lazio for about £6m. Also, Andre Wisdom has gone on loan to Red Bull Salzburg.

Klopp does have two simmering issues that have clouded the entire Deadline Day experience, though. There’s Daniel Sturridge’s situation and his very clear displeasure at being played out wide. And there’s also Mamadou Sakho who defied his manager’s view that he should go on loan. Certainly, Klopp could’ve done without the latter as a distraction and it’s sure to leave him irritated.

Hull

After their defeat to Manchester United last weekend, Hull captain Curtis Davies told BT Sport that he’d like the club to go out and replace the 6 players they had lost from their 2015-2016 squad.

He acknowledged it was optimistic. But, with just 14 senior players, they badly needed reinforcements.

Hull City v Manchester United - Premier League - KCOM Stadium PA WIRE PA WIRE

And how they stepped up and delivered with the pressure on.

The key was Tuesday, when they secured the services of three new players. They broke their transfer record to sign Ryan Mason from Tottenham while Will Keane arrived from Manchester United and they picked up a goalkeeper in David Marshall too.

Yesterday, they added another three: striker Dieumerci Mbokani from Norwich, 21-year-old midfielder James Weir from Manchester United and AZ Alkmaar forward Markus Henriksen.

Six players signed. Just like Davies wanted.

The club can breathe a sigh of relief now as a worrying situation has been soothed somewhat.

Losers

Everton

The Toffees wanted Moussa Sissoko and the deal, they thought, was all wrapped up yesterday evening. But the club were humiliated when he ignored their calls, headed for London and signed for Tottenham instead. It’s impossible for his behaviour not to fester and Everton will be bitterly disappointed.

Soccer - Capital One Cup - Third Round - Newcastle United v Sheffield Wednesday - St James' Park Owen Humphreys Owen Humphreys

They missed out on a £30m signing and as much as many will try and suggest they’ve dodged a bullet, they were set to make a high-profile capture but failed to land it. That hurts.

They did manage to secure Enner Valencia on a season-long loan from West Ham but it papers over the cracks.

Tottenham

It was an odd end to the window for Spurs. They wanted Wilfried Zaha from Crystal Palace but Alan Pardew dug in his heels and they had to look at alternatives.

Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool - Premier League - White Hart Lane Empics Sports Photography Ltd. Empics Sports Photography Ltd.

They left it very, very late before moving on Sissoko and that, inevitably, brings up some questions. Were they completely sold on him? Did they feel comfortable paying £30m? Did Pochettino have to persuade Daniel Levy to pull the trigger? It is a massive swing in price given their original bid for Zaha was somewhere between £12m and £15m. Now, they’ve paid double that in the last hours of a window for a player whose inconsistencies are well-documented.

Pressure is on for Pochettino’s big-money signing to hit the ground running with the likes of Clinto Njie and Heung-Min Son having struggled.

Sunderland

The club signed Didier NDong from Lorient for a club record fee of £13.6m but they needed a goalkeeper and striker as well as a midfielder.

Manchester City v Sunderland - Premier League - Etihad Stadium Anthony Devlin Anthony Devlin

Sunderland failed to complete a deal for Boavista’s Mika Domingues in time and now may have to turn to 43-year-old free agent Mark Schwarzer to cover for the injured Vito Mannone.

Already this term there seems an over-reliance on Jermain Defoe and having lost Steven Fletcher and Danny Graham in the summer, they seem desperately short of reinforcements up top.

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