Transfer deadline date agreed by Premier League clubs - Paper Round

Premier League bosses look set to agree a transfer deadline of October 5, according to The Telegraph. The paper reports that the league is set to end on July 26, from which date transfers will be permitted, and the season will start again in August or September. The date is rearranged as a result of the impact of the coronavirus.

Paper Round’s view: The dates are largely roughly accepted anyway, this just sets an exact date for players to be registered. If they really wanted, players could be signed now it would just mean that they would have to sit out at the end of the current, rescheduled season. Starting the new season late may have an impact on winter breaks and the date of Euro 2020/2021.

Manchester City defender John Stones could be on the way out, reports the Sun. The story suggests that Pep Guardiola is looking at Benfica player Ruben Dias to replace him. Arsenal and Newcastle are interested in the England defender, while Pep Guardiola has reportedly long been interested in the 23-year-old Portuguese international.

Paper Round’s view: Stones looked like the kind of defender who would ultimately become brilliant for Manchester City, the new Rio Ferdinand across the city. Instead it appears that he will not be given the chance to work on his lack of focus and the ruthless attitude at the Etihad will again be enforced. Whether that is the right way to run a squad is open to debate.

The Mirror reports that the FBI has found no crime after Bubba Wallace’s garage was discovered to have a noose inside it. The organisation said: “The FBI learned that garage number 4, where the noose was found, was assigned to Bubba Wallace last week. The investigation also revealed evidence, including authentic video confirmed by NASCAR, that the noose found in garage number 4 was in that garage as early as October 2019.”

Paper Round’s view: This explanation seems such a stretch that it is scarcely credible, so it is difficult to believe that such a distressing event could have happened as a result of a mere coincidence. Nevertheless, if NASCAR, Wallace and his team announce that they are happy with the findings then it will be time to move on.

Pep Clotet is set to leave Birmingham City at the eventual end of the Championship season, and the Midlands club are believed to have already alighted on a potential replacement, according to the Daily Mail. Lee Bowyer has been linked, as has Nigel Clough, but it appears that Dutch manager of FC Groningen Danny Buijs is the primary target for the club.

Paper Round’s view: Birmingham City are a club that have somewhat drifted since their relegation and although they have occasionally threatened a promotion challenge they have not yet cracked it. Another British manager might be the change they need but the most talented managers usually come from abroad, so it would be understandable if they choose Buijs.