As the clock ticks down on another frenzied transfer window, Deadline Day is finally here. Across the nation, football clubs will be in a mad dash to finalise last-minute deals, with staff members tethered to their phones and fax machines, pacing anxiously around offices and arrivals gates.
Premier League teams have already splashed out over £2billion on fresh talent this summer, a figure that could see a significant increase before the 11pm deadline tonight. Heavyweights such as Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Newcastle and Liverpool are all predicted to be busy in the coming hours, with several deals likely to go right down to the wire.
Given the amount of paperwork involved, transfers can take time to confirm, so clubs should be well-prepared with plenty of transfer deal sheets at hand. What's a transfer deal sheet, you ask? Allow Express Sport to explain...
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A transfer deal sheet is a crucial document that allows teams to officially declare that a deal has been struck before the transfer deadline expires. Due to the late nature of some agreements, clubs often only have minutes to dispatch the necessary paperwork to validate a transfer.
Transfer deal sheets provide clubs with a quick and easy way to indicate that a deal has been settled, without having to sort all the complicated paperwork. Once the document is completed and sent off, teams have an additional two hours to wrap up the remaining admin.
Crucially, deal sheets must be submitted before the transfer deadline passes, but can only be used in the two hours prior (from 9pm onwards in this case). It also needs to be accepted before clubs are given an additional two hours to finalise the transfer. If this two-hour deadline is not met, the deal becomes invalid.
A transfer deal sheet essentially outlines which player is moving from which club which other club, and includes details of the transfer or loan fee and any potential add-ons. This system was introduced in the Premier League back in 2008 to prevent late deals from collapsing due to paperwork complications.
