Mad transfer window concludes with clubs hitting back

The battle between player power and financial muscle, and the sheer will of clubs to try and control the both, led to a frantic and at times crazy transfer deadline day on which Ross Barkley agreed a €35m move to Chelsea — but changed his mind half-way through his medical.

Ever since Paris St Germain paid €222m to prise Neymar away from Barcelona the market has been in a spin — and last night it was spinning faster than ever as the money spent in the window went past €1.5bn.

The question at the end of it all, however, was who is now running the show? It is players or clubs?