Sky Sports Rues Transfer Deadline Day Debacle

In the most expensive transfer day in history there were always going to be moments of high drama but Sky Sports didn’t expect the subsequent Sex toy assault.

Picture, if you will, the scene. You work for a prestigious broadcaster, Sky Sports by name, and are one of their mainstay reporters out in the field, used to keeping people abreast of the latest developments in any story that happens to be hitting the headlines today. You travel light, work fast and enjoy beating the competition to a story knowing that UK gambling laws have allowed football to become all the more popular and closely watched. This week the big news is the Transfer Deadline after which players bought will be ineligible to play this season. It’s an important time for the teams and the people covering them.

Deadline For Transfers In EPL

• Suarez off to Barcelona for 75m
• Mobile betting odds adjusted on news
• Angel Di Maria’s record breaking 60m move to United

You’ve been earmarked to travel up to see if Tom Cleverley is actually going to be leaving the struggling Manchester United, and duly hove to outside their ground ready to do live reports on developments. You are unfortunately not alone. Fans of the club have also gathered to show their support of the club, of any new players that might happen along, and to get themselves on television. Of the 270 live pieces broadcast to camera on Transfer Deadline Day the vast majority of those shown by Sky News were unobjectionable, however alas for some people, things were doomed to go awry.

Tom Cleverley, as it turns out, won’t be off to Aston Villa leaving United a team that needs firepower up front rather than solidity in the middle third, and reporting on that fact for Sky Sports you, in the figure of the intrepid and highly experienced Alan Irwin, are faced with a rowdy crowd as the producer indicates you’re live. Boisterous fans are to be expected at these moments, high spirits can overflow, as it were, but what wasn’t to be expected was the sudden appearance onscreen of a fan waving an eight inch purple dildo.

Exactly what significance this fan felt the sex toy had on such an auspicious day we were never to know, but in what is perhaps some sort of mystical black magic ritual the fan seemed to feel it necessary to; a) Wave it around quite a bit, and b) Attempt to stick it in Mr Irwin’s ear. As a true professional addressing a live camera, microphone in hand, Alan managed to barely flinch at the touch of a sextoy on his lobes, and continued his punditry, the fan then pushed away by aggravated security. Alas the damage had already been done.

Sky Sports Swearing Slammed

Ofcom, the UK’s communications watchdog, said of the millions of people watching Sky Sports coverage of this all important deadline in the transfer market, fronted by Jim White, a total of eight people complained about the swearing they’d heard in some of the live reports. Yes, that’s right, with millions of pounds worth of players being hawked left, right, and indeed center, it was the fact that Sky Sports hadn’t magically prevented exuberant football fans swearing behind their reporters that upset fewer people than actually on a football team, which will now be assessed by Ofcom.

With luck their assessment will be that this is all pretty much a storm in a teacup and that when it comes to live television things are going to happen beyond the control of even the tentacle-like power reach of the all-powerful media and its minions. For its part Sky Sports have apologized unreservedly for broadcasting such objectionable material saying it will be looking into ways to avoid this happening again in the future whilst ensuring fans remain a key part of their live coverage. Which could be quite a tall order.

Transfer Deadline Day coverage has an almost cult-like status as fans across the country can finally lay to rest the speculation and know who’ll be playing on their team this season, and the tradition of gathering outside the ground as the news reports roll in has grown over the years since the Premier League’s media machine began its revamping of football presentation. With so many now wagering on games, and indeed the season as a whole, the composition of teams has become ever more important as form and capacity impact heavily upon the odds offered by online sportsbooks in the UK.

Waiting till the last minute managers scramble to get medical checks and transfer documents signed before the deadline and teams parade new players for the fans hoping that these will be the legs that make the difference on the field. Some teams know this could be make-or-break for their season’s chances, that a new player can revitalize a team and energize it, and that they can do deals that will bring in millions to assist the balance books.

Transfer Window Closes On EPL

Over 200 million GBP higher than the previous record this year’s 835 million GBP’s worth of transfers were signed off by teams around the country, with Manchester United being the biggest spenders laying out some 150 million GBP, which frankly might still not be enough given their recent performances. They’ve brought in Luke Shaw, Ander Herrera, Vanja Milinkovic, Angel di Maria, Marcos Rojo and Daley Blind as well as getting loan of Radamel Falcao, but see Rio Ferdinand and Danny Welbeck slip away.

Welbeck is off to Arsenal who are also getting Sanchez from Barcelona and bringing down Mathieu Debuchy from Newcastle. Barcelona has also sold Cesc Fabregas to Chelsea, who are getting Didier Drogba from Galatasaray but losing David Luiz and Ashley Cole to other teams. Swansea isn’t spending as much as these big names but is getting Lukasz Fabianski from the gunners to help with their surprising start to the season.

Manchester City have spent 12m GBP to get Fernando from Porto, but got 13m GBP for Javi Garcia who is off to Zenit St Petersburg and have loaned Frank Lampard to New York which may amuse and bemuse in equal measure. Liverpool on the other hand have spent a fair deal less than they’ve made with the 75 million GBP transfer of striker and part time cannibal Luis Suarez to Barcelona going through and Rickie Lambert only costing 4 million GBP.

In the end the Transfer Deadline Day of 2014 was full of the drama, thrill and spills that we’ve come to expect from the English Premier League, big names moved to big clubs for big money and the season now settles down into its stride. As managers and fans alike take stock and the online gambling sites in the UK readjust their odds, we look forward to a great seasons football and a good deal fewer ear-attacking sex toys on Sky Sports.