Can't we just enjoy a summer of international football without getting more excited about transfers that might not happen?
In short, the answer to that question is a big, fat "no."
In the internet age in which we find ourselves, transfer speculation isn't restricted to the pages of newspapers. Nowadays, a player liking something on Instagram is as good an indication that they're about to switch club as the words of a well-respected and well-informed sports journalist.
Social media is a breeding ground for Transfer Muppets - those that get more excited at the prospect of a transfer than they do about actual football and spend their days trawling through any social media accounts associated with a specific player in search of any clues, no matter how small, that they're set to move to a new club.
Look at the case of Borussia Dortmund's Armenian midfielder, Henrikh Mkhitaryan. The word is he's set to leave Germany this summer with a couple of Premier League clubs keen to bring him to England.
Already linked with Arsenal, the news that his sister had followed the club on her LinkedIn profile was clear enough indication to some that the deal was done.
https://twitter.com/Will2153/status/742483463476019200
And if that (and the excited responses it generated) wasn't enough Transfer Muppetry for one week, there's more...
Antoine Griezmann, fresh from narrowly missing out on Champions League glory with Atletico Madrid, is being linked with a move to tenth greatest side in England (Chelsea).
Why? Well, because eagle-eyed Chelsea supporters spotted him playing as the club on Football Manager. Enough for some to suggest that the 25-year-old Frenchman, currently starring for the hosts over at the Euros, is dreaming of a move to London.
https://twitter.com/CarefreeDaily/status/743549672162271233
Who knows? Perhaps both of these transfers *will* go ahead. But in a summer where there's more than enough football on telly to keep our minds occupied, do we really need to be going to such painstaking lengths to prove a transfer might happen?
