TRANSFER DAY DEADLINE DEALS

SportsBeat!

Written by Aaron Cantin

A summer transfer window like no other has officially closed and now we can let all the madness sink in. Lionel Messi (out-of-nowhere) announces he has to leave Barcelona and within 48 hours moves to Paris reuniting with Neymar and co. If that can’t be topped, with less than 48 hours remaining in the summer transfer window Cristiano Ronaldo announces he has played his last game in Italy causing chaos across Europe in an attempt to earn his signature. The two biggest names in world football and without a doubt two of the faces on the all-time greatest Mount Rushmore of soccer made shocking transfers the past couple of weeks. Those two as always steal the headlines but there were other big-time deals (and some that failed to happen) that will play a major factor throughout the season.

Source: Getty Images

Notable transfer deadline deals

• Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus to Manchester United) - The shock is heard around the footballing world as Ronaldo returns to Old Trafford. If you ask me, you can’t find a better feel-good story for a player of Ronaldo’s calibre to end his career.

• Antoine Griezmann (Barcelona to Atletico Madrid) - Also a reunion, Griezmann reunites with his old teammates and coaches where his career really took off. Griezmann was always compared to Messi at Barcelona and that is never a good situation to be in.

• Luuk de Jong (Sevilla to Barcelona) - A shocking end to the window for Barcelona as they grabbed the Dutch striker from Spanish rivals Sevilla. Surely de Jong is not going to put Barcelona over the top but a very solid piece to have come off the bench.

• Nuno Mendes (Sporting to PSG) - This would have been less surprising if Mbappe did in fact leave PSG for Real Madrid. But money really is not an issue with PSG and this proves exactly that.

• Saul (Atletico Madrid to Chelsea) - Another example of money-is-not-a-thing is Chelsea’s transfer window. Dortmund did their best to get Callum Hudson-Odoi from Chelsea on loan, as CHO has had nearly zero playing time this season under Thomas Tuchel. Not only did Chelsea hold on to CHO to have him ride the bench, but they also added Saul, an incredibly talented midfielder just for fun. It's getting ridiculous.

• Eduardo Camavinga (Rennes to Real Madrid) - A very underappreciated signing. After disappointment not being able to sign Mbappe this window, Real Madrid made all fans happy announcing the signing of youngster Camavinga in the final minutes. This is a transfer for now and the decade that follows. Very solid transfer for Madrid.

• Moise Kean (Everton to Juventus) - Going from Cristiano Ronaldo to Moise Kean will always be seen as a downgrade and rightfully so. But Kean can bring a lot to the table. A lot of goals that is. Kean is very young and will get better but for a side that is looking to win titles immediately, you have to be disappointed Juventus did not add a couple more signings.

• Emerson Royal (Barcelona to Tottenham Hotspur) - A solid defensive signing that will get overlooked but Tottenham quietly had one of the best transfer windows in the EPL. Don’t look now but Tottenham sits atop the table with a 3-0-0 record and has yet to allow a goal. Add the fact they were able to hold onto Harry Kane and things are looking good for the Spurs.

Those are the notable signings just on the final day of the Summer Transfer window.

Winners & Losers

Now let’s look at clubs considered winners and losers from all the chaos.

Winners: PSG & Real Madrid

For PSG, who are chasing UEFA Champions League success this season, the benefit is obvious: they keep a player who can make the difference in a title tilt for at least one more campaign. On top of that, he is part of a retooled Parisien outfit that now features Lionel Messi, Achraf Hakimi, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Sergio Ramos and Georginio Wijnaldum -- not bad. Sporting director Leonardo was also able to pull off a late move for Nuno Mendes to complete a possible transformation to a 3-4-3 formation under Mauricio Pochettino.

Real also win as PSG's refusal saved them from potential financial annihilation and their consolation prize is one of the top young midfielders in the world in Eduardo Camavinga -- a first step toward rejuvenating an ageing squad. The money Real could have splashed on Mbappe now will go toward rebuilding the squad in the future and the 22-year-old may still end up at Santiago Bernabeu as a free agent next summer.

Losers: PSG & Real Madrid

However, there are negatives to the situation as well. Real were obviously desperate to compensate for the losses of Raphael Varane and Ramos, among others, this summer to offer up that sort of money. In that pursuit of their main target, Real failed and will instead argue that they did everything to land their man -- apart from making him their main target from the beginning of the summer instead of coming to life toward the end of the transfer window.

For PSG, they might never be able to cash in on Mbappe again (a January move for a player of his ability is a non-starter) while there is no guarantee of Champions League success, and a contract extension still appears to be a long way off.

Winner: Manchester United

Ronaldo and Varane represent a strong transfer window haul with the legendary Portuguese player returning to Old Trafford for a second stint to boost the feel-good factor created by a good start to the season. It might not quite put Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men in the reckoning for UCL glory, but domestic silverware will be targeted with the veteran now on board.

Losers: Barcelona

There is no way to paint Antoine Griezmann returning to defending champions Atleti on loan with an option to buy, Emerson Royal joining Tottenham Hotspur just months after his arrival at Camp Nou and Luuk De Jong arriving from Sevilla positively. An absolute disaster class of a final 24 hours for the Catalans -- even if it eases their financial woes -- on top of an acrimonious summer of business.

Winners: Sevilla

Monchi pulled off a masterclass by taking a hardline stance with Chelsea over star defender Jules Koundé and then preyed on Barca's desperation to offload De Jong. There are levels to this game and Monchi, despite criticism in recent years, has proved once more that he remains in that upper echelon.

Loser: Manchester City

It has been a forgettable final few days of the transfer window for Pep Guardiola and his men, who saw Harry Kane remain with Spurs, Messi join PSG and Ronaldo return to United with nowhere left to turn at such short notice in their search for attacking reinforcements. Jack Grealish was an important get, but City was clear that he was not their only target this summer.

Loser: Juventus

While Moise Kean's return and the arrival of Mohamed Ihattaren are not bad moves, the loss of Ronaldo that late in the day for relatively little still feels like a loss -- just not as big a loss as some of their European rivals.