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The summer transfer window of 2021 has been a rollercoaster ride for all of Europe, especially La Liga and Premier League clubs. Following suit for the past three months, the deadline day was as eventful as they come. Spanish teams were particularly active in the final hour, partaking in some of the strangest and most unexpected transfers in La Liga's history.
Some notable outgoing transfers from La Liga
The crazy whirlwind of a window has left some of Europe's biggest powerhouses without their star players. La Liga stalwarts Barcelona and Real Madrid are the perfect examples of this phenomenon. Aside from the massive loss of Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos, the two Clasico rivals also witnessed the departures of a number of promising youngsters.
Future prospects including Ilaix Moriba and Brahim Diaz chose to abandon the riches of La Liga in an attempt to find success elsewhere.
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Similar to Madrid and Barca, Spanish giants Sevilla and Getafe also had their camps raided by some major Premier League clubs. Brighton and Hove Albion got hold of Getafe's Marc Cucurella for a nominal fee of €15m while Spurs were able to land the promising Bryan Gil from Sevilla.
With so many talents securing a transfer away from La Liga, the Spanish top-flight is in for a tough 2021-22 season, especially on the European front. Nevertheless, this transfer window brought substantial changes to all of the major clubs. While the positive alterations will show their merit in due time, negative ones remain more drastic and apparent.
On that note, let's take a look at five La Liga clubs that had the worst outing in the 2021 summer transfer window:
#5 Athletic Bilbao
Whilst negotiating a business deal, the concerned parties often try to extract as much profit as they can from their end. However, the concept of profit is absolutely useless if a deal hasn't been struck in the first place. Athletic Bilbao find themselves in a similar scenario, having conducted little to no business in the transfer window gone by.
The Basque club officially announced only one player before the commencement of this season. A 24-year-old right-back was the only footballer the La Liga mainstays had signed in the past three months. Alex Petxa from the B team of Real Sociedad joined the depleted Bilbao team on a free transfer in July 2021.
In addition to this sole incoming transfer, Los Leones also oversaw the departures of three experienced players, including veterans like Iago Herrerin and Ibai Gomez. With a lowly 10th place finish last season, Athletic Bilbao certainly haven't done enough to better their current position.
In Marcelino, they do have a competent coach with the capabilities to work wonders. However, with no help from the transfer department, Bilbao fans can expect yet another mediocre season in La Liga.
#4 Barcelona
If such a list was compiled before August 2021, Barcelona wouldn't be within a mile's radius of being considered as a possible entry. Nevertheless, the past 31 days have been more arduous for the Blaugrana than any other top European side. Above all, the Catalans lost out on their talisman Lionel Messi, having already agreed to personal terms to re-sign their all-time top scorer.
Barcelona came into the transfer window with all guns blazing, signing Sergio Aguero, Eric Garcia, Emerson Royal and Memphis Depay for a combined total of €14m. However, that is where the niceties end. The La Liga giants let the promising Francisco Trincao leave on loan to Wolverhampton Wanderers without having a proper plan to structure their attack.
While the sale of three more players did bring in some much-needed revenue, Barcelona failed to get rid of the deadwood that is still burning a hole in their pocket.
However, deadline day proved to be the defining factor in deeming their transfer window a failure. Barcelona sold Emerson and Ilaix Moriba in quick succession. They most notably allowed Antoine Griezmann to re-join Atletico Madrid, gravely strengthening their rivals' attack.
In response, the feeble loan signing of Luuk de Jong from fellow La Liga side Sevilla was announced. With such bizarre moves, Barcelona successfully ruined what was shaping up to be a decent transfer window for the 26-time La Liga champions.
Also read: 5 biggest transfer downgrades of 2021
#3 Real Sociedad
Despite gaining access to European football by finishing fifth in La Liga last season, Real Sociedad had a very underwhelming summer transfer window. The Basque club, similar to Bilbao, regulated minimal business. However, the players that did sign on the dotted line for Sociedad are regarded as a step-back with respect to the club's pedigree.
Continuing their trend of rotating their number 9, Los Txuri-Urdin sanctioned a second successive loan move for Willian Jose, exiling him to fellow La Liga side Real Betis. To replace the Brazilian veteran, Sociedad signed Alexander Sørloth on loan for a fee of €2m. While the erratic forward did experience a purple patch with Trabzonspor, he has been awfully silent in front of goal since signing for RB Leipzig in 2020.
Diego Rico and Mathew Ryan are the remaining transfers that Imanol Alguacil's side completed in the past three months. While both players were former Premier League regulars, they are clearly past their primes in the current scenario.
On top of that, Real Sociedad also loaned out a number of decent players that could've bolstered the squad's depth. With no marquee transfers and an upcoming season of continental football, the La Liga club will have a tough time considering the players at their disposal.
#2 Real Madrid
Real Madrid narrowly missed out on the top spot due to their last-minute acquisition of French prodigy Eduardo Camavinga. The highly sought-after midfielder finally secured a €31m transfer to his dream club on deadline day. But apart from Camavinga's brilliant signing, the 34-time La Liga champions proved to be toothless in the summer window.
With multiple outgoing transfers in every position, Real Madrid are left with a paper-thin squad ahead of the 2021-22 season. David Alaba is the only defensive signing completed by Los Blancos to compensate for the monumental loss of Raphael Varane and Sergio Ramos. Alvaro Odriozola's loan move to Fiorentina means that Carlo Ancelotti only has seven first-team players at his disposal to cover for four positions.
A long-term injury to any of their first-choice back-four could derail their season, causing massive ramifications. To assist their defensive predicament, Real Madrid's aging midfield and inconsistent attacking options can result in further disappointments. Having failed miserably in their pursuit of Kylian Mbappe, they also dwindled in shifting the deadweight upfront.
With Luka Jovic, Gareth Bale and Eden Hazard still on their books, the La Liga giants have truly experienced one of their worst transfer windows in recent history.
#1 Valencia
Arguably the worst-run club in La Liga, Valencia continue their journey on a downward trajectory under the inept leadership of Peter Lim. The Bats slumped to a 13th place finish last season after hiring youth team coach Voro in place of the more experienced Marcelino. Adding insult to injury, Valencia followed their abysmal transfer window of 2020 with another woeful showing in the market this summer.
Having lost integral players like Rodrigo, Ferran Torres and Dani Parejo for pennies last year, Los Murciélagos replicated that act again in this window. Only this time, they failed to recoup any kind of money from three outgoing transfers. While Kevin Gameiro swapped the Mestalla for his boyhood club Strasbourg, Korean talent Kang-in Lee joined RCD Mallorca instead of extending his contract with Valencia.
As if losing a promising academy prospect like Lee on a free transfer wasn't bad enough, the La Liga linchpins completed some lackluster signings to fill in for the departing players. Marcos Andre and Dimitri Foulquier joined for a combined fee of €11m to add to their striking and right-back positions respectively.
While the incoming players are not necessarily bad in terms of footballing abilities, their arrival signifies the mid-table mediocrity which the club is heading towards.
Valencia are in dire need of a long-term project to be established at the club. Instead, they are out there signing stop gates like Helder Costa on a one-year loan deal from Leeds United. A dreadful transfer window coupled with their worst La Liga finish in 33 years last season could signal their first relegation since 1986 if they don't act on it quickly.
Also read: 5 new signings to watch out for in La Liga (2021-22)
