The debate continued throughout the week.
Every new report generated another round of speculation, with supporters scrutinising journalists' wording and trying to work out which players might actually leave.
At the training ground, meanwhile, Dawson had a match to prepare for.
Burnley were waiting, and the Premier League did not pause for the transfer window.
The sessions leading up to the game were not disastrous, but something about them had changed.
The players still worked hard, the drills were completed, and the coaching staff continued to push the group through its preparations.
Yet the usual rhythm seemed to be missing.
Conversations stopped when certain subjects came up, and more than once Dawson noticed players looking distracted between exercises.
It was difficult to blame them entirely.
Some had spent the week seeing their names linked with clubs they had never expected to hear from.
Others were watching teammates become the subject of increasingly large bids.
