January Window

One of my passions as regular readers will know is Pompey football club. I love the gossip of the January transfer window. I love gossip per se, which is probably why I enjoy reading and writing blogs.
The January transfer window is when there is rife speculation as to who may be leaving or coming to a football club. The sums of money talked about are scandalous, if not criminal, in a time of recession. This must be the reason why there is always more speculation than actual hard bargains struck. It is part of the devoted fan's dreamworld to fantasise who may be added to the team supported. It is also a measure of the health of that team - if star players are being brought in - the club must be OK, surely? There is a good case for arguing that the January transfer window is a waste of money as the players bought have rarely the time or luxury to be properly assimilated in the second half of the season. However in January 2008 Pompey bought Jermaine Defoe at the very last gasp for a reputed "£7 million". The amounts mentioned are always in quotation marks because clubs don't like their financial details too closely inspected by the public and one suspects that money on purchases made in January 2008 are still outstanding in part or in whole. This is sometimes a reason strange deals are made that don't make sense to the casual onlooker but are more to do with the financial complexities than a player's talent or how much he is revered (or otherwise) by the fans of the club.
I realise most of my readers are now probably back at work after the Christmas and New Year break and I would like to reassure them I am thinking of them, as I lounge in my dressing gown, writing my blog, as it approaches elevenses!
I am now going to indulge myself further by speculating on players Pompey could be thinking about this January - so that if they do buy any of the players mentioned I can say told you so. All my information is based on media gossip rather than any hard facts or insights (But as I always say, why spoil a good story for the sake of truth!)
Jermaine Defoe wants to leave Pompey. He has publicly stated so and boy does his demeanour on the football pitch reveal a great deal about his mental state. Why do players never think if I am smacking in van loads of goals for my present club that will bring scouts and other clubs buzzing around me like flies around a big pile of s***e. Defoe at the moment looks unhappy to be with us, he isn't scoring the goals we need and even missed a penalty at a recent game. I would be tempted to let him go but agree with Pompey preferably at a profit! £7 million last January could be £15 million or £20 million this January. We would recoup money spent (if we did actually hand over that amount) and gain enough to buy a couple more players in his stead. I would settle for the £15 million, and Jermain Jenas in part exchange, to sell Defoe back to Spurs, now managed by he who shall not be named by me. I like Natty Chap's idea of selling Defoe to Manchester City and getting beloved Benjani back in part exchange. I also approve of the rumoured pursuit of Aruna Dinane and Sidney Govou, both of whom could work as a short-term fix for the rest of the season as powerful replacements for the despondent Defoe. Govou recently scored two goals for France in a match against Sweden, whereas Defoe is still only a squad player for England. The latter has complained that some Pompey fans have sent him death threats - what idiots! - selling him at a profit gives someone else the problem of motivating him (although why these players need motivating is beyond me?) and we get one or more players who want to play for us!
I have some suggestions for the midfield and other strikers but will leave them for my next blog.
I will finish with a quote from Marina Hyde in Saturday's Guardian (page 32). She is berating the idea of rating GP's. She makes a comment about the NHS, which completely meets with my agreement and which I endorse wholeheartedly: "And, it's always worth pointing out, people don't want "power" in the NHS. They want a uniformly decent NHS. They don't want choice, they want provision." As a retired teacher, can I also suggest that if you exchange NHS for education system, you might get another true statement. Apparently Gordon Brown has expressed a desire for "an X Factor Britain" - Gawd help us!