Good riddance to bad rubbish

t was the most memorable transfer window of my lifetime. Mainly because the Premier League finally saw the back of Mario Balotelli.

I never did understand why fans , and not just Manchester City’s, took to this talentless, moody, lazy and dangerous freak show.

If he had been a regular goalscorer or creator, I’d have understood abit of indulgence towards his immature posturing, but basically he was an irrelevant blot on the Premier League landscape.

Balotelli ( right) took a decent penalty, but City only stormed to the title last season after Mancini had come to his senses and benched his bad boy.

And yet Balotelli’s departure still left some Etihad worshippers with a sense of mourning.

‘ But he’s a character,’ his supporters cry.

Yes and so is Barry Fry, but he wasn’t known for delivering much success either.

Other than the opportunity to re- patriate idiots, I fail to see what purpose the transfer window serves.

I may be biased, because supporting a tiny club with a small fan base in a division where they have to punch above their weight just to stay a float, means transfer window months are about as welcome as toothache.

Managers at Posh’s level must be on ten ter hooks in August and January as any player showing decent form could be whisked away by vague promises of riches for sitting on another club’s subs’ bench.

I agree totally with Darren Ferguson’s view of the window.

Of course Fergie has borrowed plenty of players ( not always from his relatives), but he’s forced to play a game he doesn’t want just to give Posh a fighting chance.

He’s still right to say that clubs should build a squad in the summer and stick with it for the season.

Let the clubs then sink or swim on their recruitment, coaching, and man management skills.

But that of course wouldn’t suit the richer clubs or football agents - both of whom profit greatly from the mad scramble and panic- buying.

Transfer windows are football’s equivalent of the Boxing Day store sales. A load of tat that no- one would buy under normal circumstances is suddenly seen as a must- have accessory.

And I bet no- one has said that about Christopher Samba, now a defender worth £ 100,000 per week in wages apparently, before.

Seriously, I mean even dead- beats like Kieron Dyer and Jermaine Jenas found clubs on transfer dead line day.

How desperate must you be to want Dyer?

Although I guess that if he’s signed on a pay- as- you- play deal at Middles brough, he could well end up owing the club money.

Jenas ended up at QPR to help satisfy Harry Redknapp’s lust for player merry- gorounds and TV time.

It was inevitable that Redknapp would be at the centre of most transfer deals in the month. He can’t manage without the aid of a cheque book.

I be the doesn’t bother with eye tests for his transfer targets though.