Transfer Deadline Day burning issues: What next for Cesc Fabregas? Can Jack Wilshere resurrect his career? Is Manchester United’s defence good enough?
Spending crashed through £1bn but big questions remain for Premier League clubs and players
PREMIER LEAGUE clubs spent a whopping £1.2billion on players as the summer transfer window turned in to a mega shopping spree.
Manchester United broke the world record when they signed Paul Pogba for £89m while Chelsea shocked everyone by re-signing David Luiz.
Thirteen top flight clubs broke their one club records signing players, boosted by the impact of the new £5.2bn television deal which has kicked in this season,
But now the window has slammed shut, each club will have to make do with the squads they now have - and questions still remain for clubs and players.
Have Manchester United got a strong enough defence to win the title?
Jose Mourinho only brought in Eric Bailly to bolster a defence that leaked goals to easily last season - and the Ivorian is likely to be absent for a month in January for the Africa Cup of Nations.
The return of Luke Shaw is a huge boost at left-back and has helped balance a defence that was pulled out of position too easily in the past.
But Mourinho was hoping to sign Fabinho or Jose Fonte for a reason because there are still concerns that area may be exposed if injuries and suspensions hit key players.
Will Liverpool be punished for failing to sign a left-back?
When you are going into the season playing James Milner at left-back, you know you are short.
Milner is an excellent footballer who will be as consistent as ever, but he is no natural in that position and the other option is Alberto Moreno.
Some of the criticism of the Spaniard has been over the top, but in truth he does look vulnerable - as was exposed in the opening match of the season at Arsenal.
Liverpool got away with it that day because of some exceptional finishing, but they may not be so fortunate over a 38-game season.
Can Jack Wilshere revive his career at Bournemouth?
After two years wrecked by injury, Wilshere knew he needed regular games to get back to peak condition and his decision to ask to leave was a brave one.
The talent is there but his displays for England and pre-season suggest he is not physically strong enough to cope with the demands on 90 minutes.
Wilshere has been assured his ankles are finally healed but now he needs to gain confidence in himself by assuming the lead role at Bournemouth.
In Eddie Howe, he has the ideal manager in terms of the way he likes to play the game, but it may be Novemeber or December before we really see whether Wilshere can return to former glories.
Have Chelsea made a mistake re-signing David Luiz?
The Blues couldn't believe their luck when they received £50m for Luiz from Paris Saint-Germain two years ago - and that speaks volumes.
The Brazilian is a great entertainer, passionate and charismatic which is why the Stamford Bridge supporters took to him.
But even those fans accepted he was lacking defensively at times, often in the biggest games, and at 29 he is likely to be too long in the tooth to adapt now.
Antonio Conte has been desperate for a top class defender ever since he joined the club, but Luiz was not on his radar until he failed to land a string of other targets.
What now for Yaya Toure?
The opening weeks of the season have shown Pep Guardiola doesn't fancy Yaya Toure in his first team plans at Manchester City.
Age, fitness and desire have all come into question for a player earning upwards of £300,000-a-week.
If he wanted to play regular football, Toure needed to get out of the Etihad this summer. The fact that didn't happen raises more questions about how much he still wants it.
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Has Arsene Wenger blown it again by not signing a world class striker?
The signing of Lucas Perez at least means Olivier Giroud is not the only recognised front-line striker in the Arsenal squad, but there are no guarantees he will fire in the Premier League.
Danny Welbeck (fitness permitting), Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott are attacking midfielders not clinical finishers while Alex Iwobi is still learning the game.
The need for a proven top nothch forward has been there at Arsenal for some years now, and Wenger hasn't ever plugged the gap.
Have Sunderland guaranteed themselves a relegation fight this season?
When Jermain Defoe fires, Sunderland do well. Without him, they have no-one else to score the goals - and that is a huge burden to place on one player.
There must also be huge question marks over why David Moyes was unable to bring in a goalkeeper before the window shut with Vito Mannone out injured.
Jordan Pickford is highly-rated but unproven and there is no-one else. Add that goalkeeping fragility to an unproven defence and lack of attacking options and the picture looks bleak.
Have we seen the best of Cesc Fabregas?
Having burst onto the scene as a brilliant youngster at Arsenal, Fabregas has enjoyed a brilliant career that also took in Barcelona.
But it is clear he is not part of Antonio Conte's thinking at Chelsea this season with Oscar, Willian and Eden Hazard all ahead of him in the pecking order.
Fabregas wasn't spoiling for a deadline day move, but looks a yard slower than earlier in his career and though the footballing brain is still there his impact on matches has diminished.