Don't be surprised at the lack of activity at the top level of the transfer market; it’s just the calm before the storm.
It's been big business as normal for Chelsea, signing two big-name players in Michael Ballack and Andriy Shevchenko, but both Arsenal and Manchester United have been relatively quiet.
But that's to be expected. I suspect that Arsene Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson are working hard behind the scenes, setting up deals and finding out who is available. The World Cup was bound to delay matters - it always does.
It's also reasonable to assume that they are waiting on the results of Italy’s match-fixing trial. Suddenly, a player like Patrick Vieira could become available on the cheap – could he be the answer to United's midfield problem?
I think that when Sir Alex assesses his squad he'll conclude that midfield is the only department in which they are lacking. But he needs to hang on to Cristiano Ronaldo – and he will try everything in his power to do so.
Whether he regards the retention of Ruud van Nistelrooy in the same way is debatable. Sir Alex is already well stocked with strikers – there's Wayne Rooney, Louis Saha, the youngster Giuseppe Rossi is highly rated, and Alan Smith is coming back from injury. So too is Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. There will be a strong temptation to cash in on Ruud.
But you can be certain that Sir Alex does not want to lose Ronaldo. If he has to lose Ruud to keep Ronaldo then I think the Manchester United manager would accept that.
Don't pay much attention to claims that the Portugal winger will be hounded out of the Premiership after his behaviour at the World Cup. The stick that Ronaldo will receive will be no worse than what he has suffered in previous seasons. He may thrive on it, too. He was booed throughout the semi-final against France...and was arguably the best player on the park.
And don't for a second think that the Old Trafford fans will boo him. The most important thing in the world to Manchester United fans is Manchester United. They will back him just like they backed David Beckham after his 1998 World Cup dismissal.
Sol Campbell's departure from Arsenal came as a bolt from blue. But while Arsene is no doubt now looking for a replacement at centre-half, I'm interested in his plans for Tomas Rosicky. The Fabregas-Silva partnership won't be affected by his arrival, and although Rosicky could play on either flank, I just wonder if Arsene plans on using the Czech in the Dennis Bergkamp role.
Of Chelsea's closest pursuers, Liverpool have been the busiest so far this summer. Rafa Benitez seems intent on a wholesale restructuring of his squad but the signing that stands out for me is the capture of Craig Bellamy.
Craig is a very talented player but the criticism I have always made of the Welshman is that he just doesn't score enough goals. He responded last season with more than twenty for Blackburn and really impressed me. Can he do it again? At Blackburn, he had people around him who understood him and supported him. At Liverpool he will have to cope with extra pressure and expectation, and must prove that last season wasn't a fluke.
