And the window slams shut!

It is one of the most exciting days of the footballing calender. Rumours and speculation everywhere, and millions of pounds exchanging hands up and down the country. Yes, it is transfer deadline day.

For all the hype and excitement however, this one turned out to be something of a let down. Unlike last January, there were no astronomical deals – at least, not of the same calibre of Fernando Torres and Andy Carroll.

But there were some very shrewd moves. Following their humiliation at Old Trafford, Arsenal fans will be among the most delighted with the final day's activity. Not only were deals for Per Mertesacker and Andre Santos wrapped up, but other big names, such as Mikel Arteta and Yossi Benayoun, also arrived at the Emirates.

Indeed, the Arteta story became the big story of the night – at one point it looked off, but was miraculously reignited at the very last. It was not until the deadline had passed, that the deal was officially confirmed.

Another intriguing bit of business that we did not know about until after the 11pm deadline, was that of Raul Meireles to Chelsea. Both Liverpool and his new employers know about leaving it late – the deals for Torres and Carroll were just as 'last minute'.

Although Liverpool fans will be aggrieved at Meireles' decision to leave Anfield, they will be no doubt buoyed by the return of former hero, Craig Bellamy. He had looked set for QPR earlier in the day, but once he was released from international training, he made a beeline for the Merseyside club.

Joe Cole was allowed to leave the Reds on loan. At one point his loan move to Lille looked set to be hijacked by Aston Villa, but it turned out he had his heart set on a move to France which would see him making the one-and-a-half hour commute from his home in London.

QPR might have missed out on Bellamy, but having secured Joey Barton last week, they remained undeterred. It looks like they have done some of the best business on deadline day in the Premier League thanks to their Malaysian backing.

Shaun Wright-Phillips was quite possibly the biggest name to arrive at Loftus Road, while the likes of Anton Ferdinand and Jason Puncheon were also snapped up in the end.

Tottenham Hotspur are often one of the most interesting sides to keep an eye on as the deadline approaches each time. Reports that Luka Modric would be leaving were quickly dismissed by Harry Redknapp, who then moved quickly to bring Scott Parker in from West Ham.

A whole host of Spurs players then left the club, with Jermaine Jenas and Alan Hutton heading to Aston Villa, while Peter Crouch and Wilson Palacios moved to Stoke City.

Stoke are another side who will be thrilled with their work for the day. The Potters not only confirmed the Crouch and Palacious deals, but moved to bring in Cameron Jerome from Birmingham.

It is impossible to mention all of the deals that went through on deadline day, but some of the other big Premier League deals included Wigan landing Shaun Maloney from Celtic and Manchester City finally wrapping up their deal for former United player Owen Hargreaves.

There were several big moves in the Championship as well. Brighton perhaps caused the biggest shock when they signed former Valencia and Spain international Vicente. At only 30 years of age, he still has a lot to offer, and could be massive in the second tier of English football.

West Ham continued to shell out the big wages – taking David Bentley from Spurs and Guy Demel from Hamburg. Both top, top quality players. Former Norwich loanee, Henri Lansbury also moved to the club on loan from Arsenal.

Sven Goran Eriksson dug into his deep pockets at Leicester to bring in Jermaine Beckford from Everton for a fee believed to be around £3 million. They did have a bid, believed to be around £6 million, rejected by Rangers for Nikica Jelavic. The Glasgow club announced they had also turned down a £9 million bid, which could very well have been Leicester as well.

One big player who will be staying put is Gary Cahill at Bolton. He had been linked with potential moves to Arsenal and Tottenham, but in the end nothing could be done. It means he stays at the Reebok Stadium where he will now be joined by David Ngog and Gael Kakuta, who both saw their deals finalised on deadline day.

If it has not been an explosive day, it would be fair to say it has still been a fascinating one. With deals getting going right from the off, and running right up to the window slamming shut, for some, it has been a very, very tiring day.

I doubt that I am just speaking for myself when I say thank goodness it is all over. Time to get a cold class of water and head to bed for the next week! Goodnight everyone!

Transfer Deadline Day

Full Summary of Transfer Deadline Day coming up here as the window slams shut at 11pm tonight.

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Deals of the day

Per Mertesacker and Santos - Arsenal

Joe Cole - Lille

Scott Parker - Tottenham

Christian Poulsen - Evian

Diego Forlan - Inter Milan

Guy Demel, David Bentley and Henri Lansbury - West Ham

Shaun Maloney - Wigan

Owen Hargreaves - Manchester City

Vicente - Brighton

Jermaine Beckford - Leicester

Football has changed, and the sooner Arsene Wenger realises that, the better.

Arsene Wenger has become a victim of his own success, in many ways. The 8-2 humiliation at Old Trafford quite possibly was the beginning of the end for a man who has contributed so much, not only to Arsenal, but the entire game of football.

It really is hard to contemplate where the football club would be right now if it was not for his presence, but unfortunately, it seems that the empire he built is beginning to turn on him.

Let's get this straight, Wenger still is a fabulous coach – his philosophy of getting the ball down and playing attractive football has been a welcome addition to the English game. It has rubbed off on so many clubs, all the way down the football pyramid.

But it is not his tactical approach that has come under scrutiny – unfortunately it is his principles. Wenger still seems to have an idealistic, almost romantic view of the game. It is a view that, sadly, died out a long, long time ago. The idea of taking a gifted youngster, putting him into the first team, and moulding him into a world superstar seems to be something that is going by the wayside more and more.

Many of the top players in the Premier League no longer can say they started their careers with a top club and worked their way up – instead they have been imported in, later in their careers for extortionate sums of money.

Ryan Giggs might be one of the few, but his career began a long time ago – things have changed an incredible amount since then, and though it may still be possible to bring two or three promising youngsters through at any one time, a whole team is impossible.

The approach that Wenger takes to the game would not have been at all out of place thirty or forty years ago. As an Ipswich supporter myself, I am regaled with stories of the golden days when Kevin Beattie, John Wark and George Burley were at the top of their game. They all came up through the ranks at Ipswich, and went on to win some of the top honours in the game with the club.

Sadly, however, the days of winning silverware have long since slipped away from Ipswich, and are now a distant, distant memory. Indeed, so distant that fans such as myself cannot even say we were alive to witness them.

That is what, I am afraid to say, is happening to Arsenal. The difference is, Ipswich were naïve, and did not stop the rot, but the Gunners still have the chance to.

Football is losing its former identity, and has now become an almost entirely different game altogether. With the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City investing heavily with the backing of their wealthy owners, club's have to spend big to compete.

Manchester United are doing the same, and that is why they are still considered the top side in England today.

The great situation for Arsenal, is that they do have money there to spend. Wenger has admitted before that if he wanted to, he could splash out up to £40m on a player. I can understand why he does not want to – it is sickening that it should be the case.

Fan's are not interested in seeing their club saving millions of pounds – they want to see their club winning games. Winning trophies. Having large sums just sitting in the bank earning interest is not the way for it to happen.

Maybe Wenger has this impression that one day, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool will somehow implode, and his side will be left, unchallenged, to walk to straight to the Premier League title.

That may well happen – if Roman Abramovich walks away from Chelsea, they will have a serious problem. But who is to say that will happen any time soon, right?

The sooner Wenger changes his transfer policy, the more likely it is that Arsenal Football Club can return to their former glory. I have criticised them in the past, but as a football fan, you cannot help but feel a sense of sadness as to what is happening there.

If Wenger does not change his approach, one of two things will surely happen. The first is that he could lose his job. It would be an utter tragedy that the very man who has built that club from the ground to where it is now, would be pushed out of the door simply because his ethics, his principles and his morals are no longer suited to the game.

The alternative, of course, is that he keeps his job, and the club continues their demise. Robin Van Persie will leave, potential signings will be tempted to go elsewhere and even the youngsters will grow fidgety.

That cannot be allowed to happen – it does not have to happen – and Wenger needs to realise that. No one wants to push him out, but the sense of frustration in North London is growing stronger by the day.

Future looks bright for England's young pretenders

As we go into the International break, it gives us a chance to reflect on the start to this season's Premier League, and assess the current state of English football. It is so easy to dismiss England's Euro 2012 chances after the debacle in South Africa – but that is a long way behind us.

The two Manchester sides have eleven players in Fabio Capello's latest squad between them. It seems quite incredible, but I honestly believe it is good for the national team. Many of these players will be playing together week-in week-out, and will have a good understanding of one another.

Phil Jones and Tom Cleverley are two of the players who have been included, which is wonderful to see. Both were involved with the under-21's earlier in the summer, and now they are pushing for a place in the first team.

There is no doubt that their form for Manchester United has been incredible – Jones has been as solid as a rock at the back, while I am finding it hard to avoid puns on the other player's name to describe his contribution to the Reds' midfield.

It is interesting to see that Rio Ferdinand has been omitted from the squad. I don't think that will be the end of his international career, but I do certainly agree with Capello's decision to start bringing through the younger players.

Germany proved at the World Cup that it is possible to have a successful team filled with young players – Alan Hansen certainly would not have believed what he was seeing. If these players are good enough, then why not include them.

As for Manchester City, they have provided possibly the best England keeper since David Seaman – some might even argue you could go further back than that – Shilton, perhaps? The wonderful thing is that he, too, is young. As a goalkeeper, he has got ten years of international football ahead of him, at the very least.

Of course, it is not up to me who Capello puts out against Bulgaria and Wales this week, but any football follower loves to speculate about such things.

There is no question as to who starts in goal – Joe Hart is the only one of the three goalkeepers plying his trade in the Premier League this season. Robert Green probably will drift out of the England set-up over the next few years, while David Stockdale is undoubtedly a fantastic goalkeeper, and he will get his chance one day.

Micah Richards has enjoyed a fantastic start to the season in the Premier League, and would be my pick for the right-back role. Ashley Cole still remains one of the top left-backs in the game, and still is a key member of the England squad. He'd be my first choice for left back.

I'd go for a centre-back pairing of John Terry and Phil Jones. Terry is the captain of England, and a born leader. He will still be around for another couple of tournaments yet, and forms the heart of the defence. Jones will benefit from playing alongside him, and could even be a future captain himself.

This might be a touch controversial, but I would stick the left footed Stewart Downing on the right for England. He begun his Liverpool career fantastically, and has operated down the right for them mostly anyway. It would allow Ashley Young to start on the left, where he prefers to play too.

Tom Cleverley and Frank Lampard have to be the central pairing. Again, the younger player will benefit from playing alongside a wise old head, and Lampard will always be a key part of the national team so long as he is still featuring regularly for Chelsea.

Wayne Rooney should lead the attack. He looks to be back to his glorious best for Manchester United this season, and hopefully, coming off the back of a hat-trick, he can carry that form into the England side.

I would partner him with Andy Carroll. This is mainly because the Liverpool man looks like he really could be the future of the national team, and playing alongside Rooney could bring the best out in him. His powerful presence will trouble a lot of European teams.

For some players, however, the international break will allow some much needed recuperation, while club's will be able to sit back and assess how to improve on their starts.

There has been no lack of entertainment in the first three games of the Premier League, and hopefully that will continue. It is great to see the young players getting their chance, and when England travel to Bulgaria, we will be able to see whether it has all paid off.

Is there a need to boo your own players?

Ipswich Town’s defeat to Peterborough on Saturday was probably one of the most embarrassing moments as a Blues fan in some time. In what was quite possibly one of the worst defensive performances since the 9-0 defeat to Manchester United, Town crumbled to a 7-1 thrashing.

However, having supported them all my life, there was nothing more embarrassing than some of the chanting by a small section of the club’s fans at the game.

It was an issue that Liz Edwards, chairwoman of the Supporters Club raised a few weeks ago – and in doing so, she became the victim of verbal abuse on Saturday.

In truth, however, that was pretty harmless, with fans merely having a laugh about the comments she made – I can understand that. Albeit pretty spiteful and inconsiderate, that chant was not detrimental to the team, and is, thus, not what bothers me most.

- Read the full blog at TheBallisRound.co.uk -

England Annihilate Awful India

Huge centuries from Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen left England well in charge of the final test after day two at The Kia Oval.

Despite India starting the day brightly, England soon regained full control of the game, and charged to a massive 457-3 by the close of play.

Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss lost their wickets early in the morning session, which in the end simply proved to be the floodgates opening for the hosts.

Pietersen did not quite make it to the end of the day, but night-watchman James Anderson and Ian Bell were unbeaten, with the tourists deflated.

To read the full report, click here.