creativeWhile the tail-end of the recession meant that clubs were less enthusiastic about splashing the cash - Premier League spending is down to its lowest level since 2006 - there were still a fair few deals and some big names moving in and out of England.
WINNERS
Birmingham City
In: Martin Jiranek (Spartak Moscow - undisclosed), Alexander Hleb (Barcelona - loan), Jean Beausejour (Club America - undisclosed)
Out: Marcus Bent (Wolves - loan)
Alex McLeish will be the happiest man in the Midlands today after managing to pull off three coups in one day. Chile's World Cup star Jean Beausejour will excite Bluenoses, and imposing defender Martin Jiranek arrives with a big reputation - literally - while former Arsenal midfielder Alex Hleb will be hoping to resurrect his career after a couple of years frustration as an afterthought at Barcelona.
After bringing the best out of Lee Bowyer and other players who had been forgotten about, Hleb will be excited about working with McLeish - who also managed to offload Marcus Bent.
Stoke City
In: Eidur Gudjohnsen (Monaco - £2m), Jermaine Pennant (Zaragoza - loan), Marc Wilson (Portsmouth - undisclosed)
Out: Dave Kitson & Liam Lawrence (both Portsmouth)
It's been a busy transfer window for Tony Pulis after convincing Kenwyne Jones that Stoke's red and white stripes were significantly better than Sunderland's, and also managing to bring in a trio of signings on deadline day - headed by everyone's favourite Icelandic forward Eidur Gudjohnsen.
Repeated shots showed the former Chelsea and Tottenham man indulging in a casual stroll around Stoke's training ground with Pulis while the details of the deal to bring him in from Monaco were being thrashed out. God knows what they talked about for all that time.
Meanwhile, Jermaine Pennant was sneaked in through the back door while Pompey's Marc Wilson arrived in a swap deal for Liam Lawrence and Dave Kitson.
Wigan
In: Tom Cleverley (Manchester United - loan), Franco di Santo (Chelsea - undisclosed)
Two of the Premier League's brightest youngsters have joined Wigan and will lift the mood at the DW Stadium even more, coming on the back of their stunning 1-0 win at Tottenham last weekend to arrest an alarming start to the season.
Although midfielder Tom Cleverley and striker Franco di Santo are both highly thought of and have been tipped for future stardom, perhaps Roberto Martinez should have been shifting through the 'defenders' category, as his side shipped 10 goals in their first two games.
Cleverley is a loanee, while Di Santo joins permanently after failing to break into the Chelsea first team.
Sunderland
In: Asamoah Gyan (Rennes - £13m)
Out: Martyn Waghorn (Leicester - £3m)
Eyebrows were raised around Wearside when Kenwyne Jones was sold to Stoke but Steve Bruce clearly had other ideas and has broken the bank to bring in Ghana star Asamoah Gyan for a healthy £13m.
But in truth the transfer only cost £10m - the same as the previous record paid to Spurs for Darren Bent - as Bruce managed to sell Martyn Waghorn to Leicester for £3m.
The enthusiastic Ghanaian will add some much needed bite to the Black Cats forward line, and could form a deadly partnership with Bent.
LOSERS
Liverpool
In: Paul Konchesky (Fulham - undisclosed)
Out: Emiliano Insua (Galatasaray - loan)
Roy Hodgson may have managed to finally get his hands on a decent left-back but what he really wanted was a striker, any striker.
Alas, the approach for Carlton Cole fell short, presumably on the back of Ryan Babel's reluctance to join West Ham as part of the deal, and now Hodgson will have to make do with David Ngog as the only support to Fernando Torres until January.
Emiliano Insua departed for Galatasaray, and the experienced Paul Konchesky does provide a reliable if unspectacular option at left-back. The feeling is that Liverpool fans might have to get used to more windows like this, though.
Tottenham
In: Stipe Pletikosa (Spartak Moscow - loan)
Harry Redknapp remarked early on Tuesday that he was expecting a "quiet" day in the transfer market, but said it with a wry smile.
While Spurs did keep out of the headlines for the majority of the day, a last-second bid for Real Madrid midfielder Rafael van der Vaart sent Spurs fans' hearts racing, although Redknapp is still waiting to see if he can bring the Dutchman to White Hart Lane. Quiet, indeed.
Meanwhile, Brazilian youngster Sandro has finally joined up with the club after signing during the summer and Croatian goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa has also arrived.
Attempts to land a variety of strikers (including Babel) were blown off course throughout the summer, so it was perhaps apt that the Van der Vaart deal remains uncompleted even with the window now closed. Not the summer or deadline day Spurs were hoping for.
Manchester City
Out: Robinho (AC Milan - £15m), Felipe Caicedo (Levante - loan)
After breaking the British record fee back in September 2008 to bring Robinho to Eastlands, City got only sporadic return from their £32.5m and have barely seen the Brazilian himself, who preferred to go AWOL before earning a move back home to Santos on loan.
With a permanent transfer to Milan now complete, the first phase of of City's lavish new era is brought to a close. Where once they were chasing Kaka and calling him out for a lack of ambition, now they are being held to ransom by Aston Villa for James Milner.
Credit to City for getting their business sorted before the final-day rush, but now they really must start winning things if Robinho is not to become the poster boy for Sheikh Mansour's reign.
Arsenal
Out: Armand Traore (Juventus - loan)
It's not what they did (the loss of Armand Traore is barely likely to be recognised this season) but what they didn't do that makes Arsenal fall into the loser category.
If there was one club whose ambitions hinge on one major signing at one critical position this window, it was the Gunners. And yet with Shay Given a virtual season-ticket holder at Manchester City, Arsene Wenger still managed to emerge from the window with Manuel Almunia as his No.1, backed up by Lukasz Fabianski.
The afterglow of holding on to Cesc Fabregas may keep Arsenal fans warm through the winter months, but more likely is that the goalkeeping concern has developed into a crisis by January. Will it be too late?
West Ham
In: Lars Jacobsen (Blackburn Rovers - undisclosed)
Perhaps it's harsh to call the Hammers losers as they did manage to hang on to Scott Parker and Carlton Cole during deadline day, with Tottenham and Liverpool reportedly sniffing around each respectively, but when it came to bringing some much needed talent into Upton Park, there wasn't much to shout about.
Despite reports throughout the day linking Avram Grant with a host of exciting players including
Zenit St Peterburg's Szabolcs Huszti and even a late attempt to flag down Ryan Babel's helicopter, the only incoming transfer the Hammers were able to announce was Lars Jacobsen.
With his charges already gasping for air at the bottom of the Premier League, Grant will need to attract better than that in the loan market, which is still open for a month.
SOURCE
I think the GIF below expresses my thoughts of yesterday:
EDIT: SORRY MY BOSS WAS ASKING ME 2394823 QUESTIONS, SO I FIXED IT NOW :X
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