The studio lights washed the Sky Sports desk in a muted glow as the morning panel settled in, papers spread, tablets lit, and coffees at the ready.
The ticker beneath them scrolled with fresh transfer updates that felt almost impossible to keep up with for the summer.
"Alright, let's get into it," the host said, turning slightly toward the two pundits beside him.
"Another day, another pile of signings across the league. You look around, and it feels like everyone's trying to rebuild at once."
"Well, they kind of are," one of the pundits replied.
"And not just the big dogs. Sunderland, back in the Premier League after a while, have been making signing after signing, and it's getting a bit weird to watch."
"Take Manchester United. Two deals above sixty million already, and they're not slowing down. Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha, and now apparently Benjamin Sesko are edging closer. That's serious spending for a squad that finished where they did the past season."
