JUST be thankful that the transfer window is closed now and we can all get on with the more straightforward business of trying to win some football matches.

It’s always a tense time of year, whether we are seeing phantom signings on the club’s official website or just buying James McFadden and Kevin Kilbane at the last minute, but this particular deadline day probably capped the lot.

The fact that Everton need to strengthen the squad was clear as they struggled at the tail-end of last season, even before they lost Lee Carsley and Andy Johnson, so it came as little surprise that two decent sides full of established Premier League players have already turned the Blues over at Goodison Park.

Clearly there were problems that needed addressing, not least in the centre of midfield, and many Evertonians went to bed on Monday night believing that hadn’t happened.

It came as a pleasant surprise then – the first for some time – when it was announced that Everton had broken their transfer record to bring in Standard Liege’s Marouane Fellaini.

It’s seemed ludicrously difficult for Everton to bring in their main targets, with Stephane M’Bia and Joao Moutinho eventually staying put, and the moves in the bargain basement were beginning to lend credence to the increasing rumours of financial meltdown behind the scenes.

You only had to look at the increased agitation among shareholders ahead of last night’s EGM to see that all is not well.

However, the manager has at least been allowed to spend the money he raised through sales and hopefully he is sincere when he talks about how highly he rates Fellaini.

At six foot four he is certainly the sort of big specimen we’ve been crying out for in the middle of the park, and he was impressive, along with a number of his team-mates, when Standard were unluckily dumped from the Champions League by Liverpool.

There are certainly a lot of expectations of him at that price then, but he is only one player. For Everton to even match their achievements of last season we need to hope that some of the other signings can bring something to the table too.

For a start, there’s not been a really convincing right-back at the club for years, so it would be a boost if Lars Jacobsen could improve on Tony Hibbert and Phil Neville’s often-erratic performances.

As an Ecuadorian playing in Belgrade, Segundo Castillo is almost a complete unknown quantity, while Louis Saha has shown great quality in the past for Fulham and Manchester United. Obviously though, there are genuine doubts over the Frenchman’s fitness.

Carlo Nash is clearly just experienced cover for Tim Howard, and with all due respect to the ex-Manchester City keeper, let’s hope we don’t see a lot of him.

The international break is well timed for Everton, because it gives a bit of breathing space and the chance for David Moyes and his players to hopefully approach the Stoke City match as almost a fresh start to the season.

Because what’s been even more alarming than the perceived lack of movement in the transfer market and the results on the pitch has been Moyes’s reaction to these setbacks.

Evertonians have been used to him showing defiance in the face of adversity in the past – like when he replaced Wayne Rooney with Marcus Bent and finished fourth in the league – so seeing him so downcast has been troubling to say the least.

Hopefully we will see the Everton manager perk up a bit and his new players give the whole club the lift it so badly needs.