Man Utd making desperate moves, Arsenal hoping for more, a Chelsea clear-out and a late Liverpool splash. Here's what could happen on Deadline Day.
It’s transfer deadline day - the first one – as Premier League teams have until 11pm tonight to get all of their big ins and outs completed for the summer.
Just to clarify, there’s no rush for deals between Premier League sides and EFL teams as they have a domestic-only window that runs until October 16, but deals between Premier League clubs themselves have to be completed on Monday.
- Get all the transfer talk in our live transfer blog
- Done Deals: All the deadline day signings as they happen
You can be sure that plenty will still be happening though, and we’ll keep you right on top of all the major moves, potential moves and done deals as they happen.
What to watch for on deadline day
Man Utd need reinforcements
A crazy start to the season has led to plenty of question marks being raised for plenty of teams in the Premier League, not least Manchester United with their thumping against Spurs only adding to the anger fans are feeling at their lack of summer investment.
Jadon Sancho seemingly wants to move to Old Trafford, but the club isn’t willing to match Dortmund’s asking price, and we enter deadline day with the England forward 1/5 to remain with the Bundesliga outfit.
Man Utd look like making signings with both free transfer striker Edinson Cavani and Porto full-back Alex Telles set to join the Red Devils at some point on deadline day. Critics will tell you though that they won’t believe Ed Woodward has done these deals until they’re signed, sealed and delivered.
Expected movement at Arteta’s Arsenal
Mikel Arteta’s side are doing pretty well so far, but he’s looking to upgrade them in midfield with Lyon's Houssem Aouar and Atletico Madrid's Thomas Partey the main targets.
Finances are one sticking point, but the Gunners also have too many non-homegrown players over 21 in their squad so need to offload a few to make space for new signings.
Mesut Ozil would be their preferred option to move on, but that’s complicated for all kinds of reasons, so expect the likes of Matteo Guendouzi, Shkodran Mustafi, Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Sead Kolasinac all to be moved on if possible.
Arteta seems to have his plan in place anyway, saying: "I am confident we know exactly what we want to do. We are trying our best to finalise the deals. Let's see what happens.”
Chelsea outgoings – and one last big signing?
Roman Abramovich has spent big this summer but that squad at Stamford Bridge is now huge, so needs trimming before the window shuts. Expect plenty of players going through the exit door on Monday.
Frank Lampard was hailed as a saviour for Chelsea’s young English stars, but Callum Hudson-Odoi could be on his way out of the club with Bayern Munich very interested in signing him. Lampard, though, insists he wants him to stay.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek looks like following Ross Barkley in making a loan switch for the season, while Antonio Rudiger is odds-on to join AC Milan and Tiemoue Bakayoko is set to join Napoli on loan for the season.
The list goes on, with Chelsea’s expensively-assembled squad frightening when you look at what it cost to build and how many top players are now set to leave. Emerson, Marcos Alonso and Jorginho could all be moved on, and such is the way at Chelsea they’re one of only two clubs in this league that could contemplate spending £70m on goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga but letting him leave for much less – even on loan!
The Blues could have one more huge move up their sleeves though, with Declan Rice still odds-on to move to Stamford Bridge on Monday. That deal could well depend on how many players Chelsea can sell.
Humbled Liverpool to make late splash?
Before Sunday’s dismantling at Villa Park you’d have said Liverpool have had a decent window and were sitting pretty, but the manner of their defeat has brought about some big questions – and not just about that high defensive line.
First and foremost the injury to Alisson must be a big worry, with the Brazilian out for up to six weeks, but a bigger worry is the huge drop-off they suffer when Adrian fills in. It’s not just his shot-stopping ability, but his kicking and general presence just can’t match up.
The Reds should be seriously considering making a move for a better back-up to Alisson given his recent injury record. Adrian just costs them too many goals.
The performance of Joe Gomez against Aston Villa must also be a big cause for concern, and with Joel Matip being injury prone that leaves midfielder Fabinho as the next man up at centre back. He plays that role well, but he’s better as a holding midfielder.
Liverpool have been linked with Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly and Diego Carlos of Sevilla, while a better fit for their style would be RB Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano – but no big deals seem likely.
Zaha staying at Palace – for now
Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson is desperate to keep hold of star man Wilfried Zaha and yet again the Eagles will be holding their breath until 11pm rolls along without a huge bid coming in from him.
This could well be the last time we say that, as if Palace continue to play like they did at Chelsea then come January Zaha could be desperate to move on, but for now Hodgson is confident.
"Well, I have been told and I think Wilf has had it made clear to him that we are not interested in late bids,” said Hodgson.
"If it was going to happen, it would need to happen in a timeframe which would give us a chance to see what we would want to do with the money.
"So close to the end of the transfer window, I would certainly hope it will not happen now and I want to continue working with him."
