For most teams, deadline day is defined by the players who arrive at the club, but for Manchester United this year, it was more about those who remained as yellow ties were being loosened by reporters across the country.
As expected, United ended the January window without any new faces to flaunt on social media, instead focusing on trimming their bloated squad by allowing out-of-favour players the chance to leave.
Well, some out-of-favour players, anyway.
Jesse Lingard and Dean Henderson are both on the periphery at Old Trafford and both wanted to leave last month to get regular playing time as they eye a World Cup call-up at the end of the calendar year. Both were England internationals last season, but both have fallen down the pecking order since.
Lingard, 29, is out of contract in June, and has not started in the Premier League for United since New Year's Day in 2020. He has only started twice all season and expressed a desire to leave in January.
However, United sources claim Lingard had made it clear at the start of the window he wanted to stay and they believe he will be an important player for the rest of the season.
Henderson, 24, has also only started twice for United this term and is the latest player likely to be left aggrieved by the club's refusal to let him leave on loan, following late interest from Watford on Monday.
This time the word was that United had been reluctant to let him go as they would not have enough time to recruit a back-up goalkeeper, while Watford would have had to shift one of their own senior shot-stoppers. It only added further confusion to his situation at the club.
Henderson made 25 starts for United last season and more than proved his worth as a top-flight goalkeeper, despite obvious room for improvement.
The academy graduate had been pencilled in to start the season as United's first-choice but contracted Covid-19 in the first week of pre-season in July and was not available again until mid-September. David de Gea has improved immeasurably and is widely regarded as United's player of the season so far.
De Gea has once again monopolised the No.1 spot at Old Trafford and it seems the only chance of him losing such a firm grip would be if a new permanent manager at United wanted to have a keeper more accustomed to playing out from the back and coming off his line.
Last season, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer referred to the De Gea and Henderson dynamic as "unsustainable", but further complicated things by bringing veteran Tom Heaton back to the club and labelling the Spaniard "the best in the world".
Six months on and United's refusal to let Henderson leave indicates that Heaton is not actually trusted to be the back-up to De Gea for the remainder of the campaign.
It's even odder given Lee Grant is still a registered squad member, despite effectively being a coach, while Nathan Bishop, now at Mansfield, is also recognised as a senior keeper.
Matej Kovar, who has trained with the senior squad on numerous occasions, left the club on loan on deadline day after signing his own contract extension until at least 2023.
United have a whole host of keeping options, but right now, De Gea is the only one who appears to actually be trusted, and Henderson is being treated like a commodity, just in case they might need him further down the line.
The club have not indicated their willingness to sell Henderson, who is contracted until 2025, and United have the option of an additional year to further protect his long-term valuation.
With United's unsustainable dynamic still unsolved, their next permanent manager will once again have to try and find a solution when they arrive at the end of the season.
It's a shame for Henderson that United view him as a keeper.
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