Transfer Deadline Day should be boring. Ultimately, it is just another day for football agents, club officials and players to wrangle over the finer elements of contracts and – in some cases – for immigration officials to grant players from all over the world clearance to play in England.

Yet Transfer Deadline Day has excited football fans for years. The sense of the impending deadline, the tendency for shocks and surprises, and the feelings of elation or disappointment as the best players in world football switch teams all combine to create an intriguing and captivating spectacle – and one covered in incredibly comprehensive and watchable fashion by the sporting press.

This year’s Deadline Day will be no exception – with the new TV rights deal flooding the Premier League with vast sums of cash (spending by the 20 teams in England’s top division has already reached £1 billion) and new rules concerning emergency loan signing coming into effect, there will undoubtedly be drama and excitement. With this in mind, Varsity has outlined the things to look out for as the clock ticks towards midnight.

‘Panic Buys’

With Deadline Day being the final chance for managers to bolster their squad, the likelihood of ‘panic buys’ comes into play. In recent times, chairmen have parted with outrageous sums of money to secure signings that looked to settle the nerves of their coaches and fans rather than resolve any problems; Liverpool’s last-minute signing of Andy Carroll from Newcastle United for £35 million in response to losing Fernando Torres is a notorious example. Yet perhaps the most infamous is Chris Samba’s transfer, from Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala to Queens Park Rangers, for £12 million. As the London side languished at the bottom of the table, Samba arrived at Loftus Road in underwhelming fashion by announcing himself just “40 per cent fit”, and went on to make only 10 appearances as Harry Redknapp’s side were relegated.

Excitingly, ‘panic buys’ certainly look on the cards tonight. A number of Premier League managers have money to spend and are desperate to bring in the talent that will fire their team up the table. The bosses of Hull City, Arsenal, Crystal Palace and Leicester all need to bring in players for different reasons, yet all four have only hours to do it.

Confusion

The sporting world’s ability to produce moments that confound is well-documented, and throwing in a need for speedy transactions, the desire of the footballing press for a story, and the capacity of today’s telecommunications to spread rumours like wildfire all makes for a potent recipe. Tonight is unlikely to be an exception, particularly with rumours of David Luiz making a perplexing return to Chelsea gathering force.

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Club officials, managers, and players have all contributed in recent years. Arsene Wenger – who is known for infuriating Arsenal fans with his transfer activity – seemed to be almost taunting the Gooner faithful when he was pictured in an airport in Rome, especially when it was revealed that he was only there to referee a charity match. David Gold – chairman of West Ham United – faced online ridicule when he tweeted the wrong player when announcing the Hammers had signed Pedro Obiang from Sampdoria.

Most infamous however were the Deadline Day antics of striker Peter Odemwingie in 2013: anticipating an imminent transfer from West Bromwich Albion to Queens Park Rangers, he drove down to the London club’s training ground and announced the completion of the deal himself. When the move collapsed, to describe him as looking sheepish was an understatement.

That Gem of a Signing

While there may be ‘panic buys’ and collapsed deals, Deadline Day inevitably throws up an amazing signing; every new deal completed could be that potential gem who looks set to transfer the fortunes of a club. For every bemused-looking Chris Samba holding his Queens Park Rangers shirt, there is a beaming Alan Pardew clutching the two Argentinian superstars – Javier Mascherano and Carlos Tevez – that he could not believe he had managed to sign. With players like Jack Wilshere, Saido Berahino, and Wilfried Bony tipped for moves, it seems likely that another ‘gem’ of a signing will take place tonight.

Indeed, a select number of Deadline Day signings have gone on to become club heroes. When Mesut Özil signed for Arsenal from Real Madrid for £42.5 million in September 2013, huge things were expected. And, after a quiet first season, the German international began to prove his world-class status, creating more goals last season than any other Premier League player. Last season, with 6 goals and 19 assists for the Reds, Özil was just one behind Thierry Henry’s all-time Premier League record of 20 assists.

Meanwhile, the signing of defensive midfielder Claude Makélélé by Chelsea for £16.8 million in 2003 brought in one of the greatest defensive midfielders to ever grace the game. During his five seasons at Stamford Bridge, the Frenchman won two Premier League titles and three Cups: the Blues have been searching for his true successor ever since.

And Liverpool’s signing of the notorious Luis Suárez in 2011 – brought in alongside Andy Carroll to try and fill the shoes of Fernando Torres – was one of the greatest last minute deals ever. Though his time at Liverpool was marred by controversy, his raw statistics – 82 goals from 133 matches for the Reds – speak for themselves.

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The One That Got Away – Reporters Under Siege

This season, for the first time ever, football fans will be unable to enjoy one of the most enjoyable aspects of Deadline Day: reporters on location. In the past, part of the superb Deadline Day coverage offered by Sky Sports saw their football reporters posted around the training grounds of Premier League clubs, ensuring Sky Sports could provide up-to-date information on any potential signings arriving for medicals.

Inevitably, however, the poor reporters would be broadcasting on a backdrop of excited fans who had turned up to their club’s training ground and were looking to get their face on TV. Their antics ranged from the amusingly childish to the downright hilarious. Pulling faces, swearing and chanting were commonplace but in September 2015 – in what is quite frankly one of the greatest moments of live television ever – Sky Sports correspondent Alan Irwin reported on Everton’s transfer dealings outside their training ground blissfully unaware that a fan had stuck a purple dildo in his ear.

Following complaints about this incident, this year’s coverage will see reporters safely stationed inside training grounds and stadiums. Though the ban on such reporting was definitely warranted – fans’ behaviour had gone too far – it is undeniable that part of the Deadline Day spectacle has unfortunately gone.