Wow, lotsa action on the last day of the international transfer deadline.
First of all, Arsenal finally put an end to the “Ashley Cole Saga” by sending him to Chelsea. If you don’t remember, Cole and Chelsea were fined by the FA for what is essentially “tampering” here in the US (“tapping-up” in England) by discussing financial terms while still under contract with somebody else. So for the past year or so, Cole has been somewhat of a persona-non-grata, and in particular lately since he apparently criticized club and players in a soon-to-be-published book.
So Cole goes to Chelsea and Chelsea have sent William Gallas (who was himself unwanted in Chelsea) and £5 million (i think thats like $8-10 million) back to Arsenal. Chelsea doesn’t really need Cole, but Arsenal can sure use Gallas. Gallas is a big, fast, physical, experienced defender who can play either on the wing or centrally. Since Arsenal lost Sol Campbell (old and oft-injured) and Pascal Cygan this summer, some help was much needed.
Humorously, Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho was upset by the move (Mourinho fury at Gallas departure) in which he helped his rivals strengthen their defense in exchange for losing his depth at center-back (Robert Huth moves to Middlesborough).
Also coming in is Julio Baptista from Real Madrid, who in return get Jose Antonio Reyes. Both deals are one-season loans. Julio Baptista is a huge tank of a forward, so he should be able to take some pressure off of Thierry Henry. Henry hasn’t been as effective as before, probably due to entire defenses concentrating on him. Baptista will hopefully draw some of that attention away.
And according to this link here on the premierleague.com site, Arsenal also signs Denilson? The same Denilson who stepovered his way to fame in glory several years ago who has since faded into oblivion? Hmmmm. And let’s not forget the signing of Thomas Rosicky early in the summer.