Football's appeal has always been largely based in it's sincerity. Being a 'true' supporter who stuck by a club regardless of who played for it, how they did, who managed it and any number of reasons that cause fans of other sports to lose interest. We demand that players conduct themselves with honour, and our clubs build natural success through the strength of its fanbase and chairmen and boardmembers who look out for the best interests of the club.

But with Liverpool joining Aston Villa, Portsmouth, West Ham, Manchester United and of course Chelsea as being placed firmly in the hands of foreign businessmen (operative word being "business") the Premiership is changing quickly. Before long, even those clubs who have carved out a niche for themselves on limited budgets (Bolton, Curbishley's Charlton) will be firmly swept aside as the more popular clubs are bought out and given cash injections. Even the likes of Tottenham, traditionally a big spender beyond its success on the pitch, are in serious danger of falling behind as clubs below them start matching their spend levels.

This time next season, we could well see as many as half of the Premiership clubs enjoying foreign money and suddenly a massive part of the natural appeal of football will be dead. If your club isn't part of that "lucky" group, you may as well pack it in.

I like a bit of spice with my football. Some controversey, a shock result or incident and especially a spectacular transfer story.

But this window was one big let down. Aston Villa spent almost as much on Ashley Young as Tottenham did on Dimitar Berbatov, while Tottenham tried to outdo that by spending 10 million on an unproven 17 year old left back.

Other than that, there was nothing. West Ham signed a bunch of average players for silly money, and tried to sign a decent player in Bent for simply outrageous money. The big four stayed clear, with only Manchester United throwing out their bi-annual 20 million bid for Owen Hargreaves to no avail. Admittedly, this is exactly what the window system was introduced for. To allow smaller clubs the chance to hold onto their star players while still strengthening mid-season. The fact that only Liverpool made any signings of significance (Mascherano) suggests that things are working.

Working, for the clubs that is, because as a fan the January window is fast becoming as disappointing as watching my club each week.