The game still reeling from Chelsea

The Independent’s football newsletter [SUBSCRIBE]( [SUBSCRIBE]( February 03, 2023 [View in browser](   [The Independent]( [The Independent]( The game still reeling from Chelsea Football concerned and angry about Chelsea's window After expenditure that almost went beyond meaning, especially the British record on Enzo Fernandez, [the rest of the game is still trying to make sense of Chelsea’s business](. The majority is confusion, with that underscored by genuine concern at how they’re “wrecking” the market. While many believe that their approach makes little sense, there are a minority worried that the new owners might be displaying a genuine insight that challenges the usual way of doing business. The issue is that won’t be seen for some time. The overwhelming view is how to react to it now, and there is huge aggravation at how they have greatly inflated prices and - in the words of one executive - “are in everyone’s business”. It should be stressed Chelsea have merely worked within the existing regulations, but the football authorities are now surveying those regulations as a consequence. It is expected, for one, that Uefa look at how the club have spread the cost of a deal over long-term contracts. [The club have been put on a "watchlist" as regards Financial Fair Play](. What best sums it up, however, is the view of many agents: they can get more out of them. That’s certainly true. The Independent has been told Chelsea plan a big two years of spending as they seek to reshape the club. Leicester City playmaker could yet make moves Friday sees Green Football Weekend properly kick off, with fans encouraged to take environmentally-conscious decisions as part of their culture around the game and their general lives. It's a good initiative that should also encourage wider change at clubs themselves. Details can be seen at the [website](. More ripples from the player making waves at City [If Cancelo’s move to Bayern Munich felt as abrupt as it was surprising](, there was actually a thread of logic to it going back to the summer, when he was one of Manchester City’s best players. It is another ripple from the gravity-changing signing of Erling Haaland. Much has been made of how little the Norwegian touches the ball for a Pep Guardiola side and it had started to alter the chemistry of the team. The Catalan thought they were too loose. Guardiola wanted to get another player to be able to come into the middle, and an obvious solution - especially since Cancelo used to surge to occupy the same space as Haaland - was at right-back. It is like the way he used to use Philipp Lahm at Bayern Munich, and Guardiola found Rico Lewis could do the job well. Cancelo couldn’t and there is some debate over whether he wouldn’t, meaning he was left to find another club. Leicester stay strong but position weakens for summer [Another window goes by and Leicester City's main jewels of the last few seasons, James Maddison and Youri Tielemans, still haven’t moved](. There was naturally interest in both, but the club still set very high prices. That even applied to Tielemans, whose contract is up in the summer. His preference was to leave then, as he believes he will have a stronger hand, and more options. Another ESL "sideshow" - but the main event making issues On Tuesday, right when deadline day was getting to its most intense, news broke from Spain that one of the country’s courts ruled that Fifa and Uefa have no grounds to prevent the sport’s top clubs from forming a [European Super League.]( It didn’t make many headlines with so much going on but those within the project were keen to get it out there, as a sign of life. On the other side, Uefa sources are insisting it’s a “sideshow” and that nothing other than European Court of Justice’s spring decision is relevant. The recommendation from the Advocate General Athanasios Rantos was an endorsement of the existing system, although figures associated with the breakaway are insistent it is nothing like as definitive as has been made out and it remains to be seen whether there is “consensus”. In the meantime, they believe the Spanish court ruling has been significant and they can proceed with refining their idea and having dialogue. Many will mock this but there is a serious point there. [Deadline day itself, and the amount of money the Premier League spent in contrast to everyone else, is convincing more and more European clubs of the need for change](. Much has after all been made of the stat that Chelsea became the first club to outspend all four other major leagues in one window. Southampton, however, quickly followed them.   Top stories [Mason Greenwood breaks silence after attempted rape and assault charges are dropped]( [Football’s landmark moment and how white paper can change game forever](   Enjoying this newsletter? Unlock unlimited, ad-free reading on the website and in The Independent app when you subscribe – plus, benefit from our [welcome offer when you join today](.   Miguel's Dispatches For all the intrigue of the transfer window, and the way it can still causes surprises, there is rarely such glamour about the way the news comes out. [Deadline day is one of those](where you can make a cup of coffee before you sit down to a call, get that call, then come out of a series of them four hours later without having moved and with your coffee now cold. That was pretty much my morning on Tuesday as you get messages upon messages and often three transfers to write up at once - as well as so many to check. Then you see one detail you were chasing come out on twitter… get us back to the actual games.     QUOTE OF THE WEEK "My decision had to do with the playing time that had been little in recent weeks" Cancelo on one of the more surprising moves of the window   Reading the game quiz Reading the game quiz Marcel Sabitzer will become the first Austrian to play for Manchester United. There are six other European countries that have had just one player appear for the club in the league. Note, Slovakia are not included because their sole representative, Martin Dubravka, only played in the League Cup. Name the six. ([You can find out the answers here](. The answer page will be updated weekly and contains answers from previous newsletters, too)   [INDYBEST]( /BEST SPORTS BUYS]( [10 best exercise bikes, tried and tested at home]( Bring the gym home with these [exercise bikes](, [rowing machines]( and [vegan protein powders]( for plant-based gains. 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