Even after the exposure of familiar failings by familiar opponents at a familiar stage of the Under-21 European Championship, a rosy glow remains about English youth football. World champions at under-20 level, victors in the Toulon tournament, finalists in the European Under-17 Championship and semi‑finalists in the European Under‑21s, we have never had it so good. Call this generation golden and prepare for the bitter retrospectives when they have won nothing in a decade and the question of whether the Lewises Cook and Baker can play together in the same midfield remains frustratingly unresolved.
But enough of that: the transfer window has officially been open for three weeks, but as aficionados know it is on 1 July, after all those contracts that expire on 30 June have expired, that the wheeling and dealing really gets into full swing. And, amid the decadence of late capitalism, with recent falling viewing figures leading some to theorise that younger generations can no longer endure a full 90 minutes of actual football, it is trading far more than any naive ideal of sporting prowess that really gets social media humming.
Related: Transfer window 2017 – every deal in Europe's top five leagues
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