The deadline day deals for Robinho and Dimitar Berbatov generated huge excitement - and nowhere more than in the offices of the Premier League.

General secretary Mike Foster and his team were as much on tenterhooks as any of the supporters as midnight approached, waiting anxiously for the fax machine to burst into life with the two biggest deals ever done in this country.

Berbatov's signing for Manchester United may have been widely predicted in the press but Manchester City's capture of Robinho took the football world by surprise.

Both deals were believed to have topped the previous British transfer record paid for Rio Ferdinand and the dramatic transfers set fans talking across the globe - and especially in the Premier League offices.

Staff there worked tirelessly to ensure the smooth registration of the two superstars along with a series of other signings which received equal care and attention in the frantic final minutes.

It meant an intense workload for the team but Foster admitted it was a huge thrill to be at the hub of such a major news story.

He said: "I and four staff stayed in the office until around one o'clock in the morning which is fairly typical for a transfer deadline day.

"In terms of volume of work, this was not particularly different to any previous year. But certainly the value of the transfers was significantly up!

"And my own perception is that the amount of deals between 11.30pm and midnight was greater than I can remember. Normally you have one or two going through at the last minute but this time there were six or seven queuing up to send documents through.

"Most of the day was relatively quiet until the last couple of hours when both the workload and the excitement increased.

"The clubs are very good at keeping us in touch with what they are doing and how things are progressing so often we will have slightly more information than the media.

"But we still have Sky Sports News on - and sometimes they are telling us what is going on which all adds to the excitement. And there is a real buzz about the place.

"You do feel in the thick of things and there is an adrenaline rush when you see deals reportedly being done and then waiting for the fax machine to start up. You know you are playing a pivotal part in something which everyone is talking about.

"I don't think the Berbatov deal came as a big surprise to most fans - but it is fair to say when I woke up on Monday morning, I was not expecting Manchester City to be signing Robinho!

"With Sky following every move, there is a real air of excitement which demonstrates what a fantastic product we have at the moment and the volume of interest in the Barclays Premier League."

For Foster and his team it was a huge task to ensure the deals were all done correctly via a series of manned fax machines with staff liaising closely with the clubs to resolve any problems.

Chairman Dave Richards and chief executive Richard Scudamore were also on the end of a phone in case of major contract issues but the whole process went smoothly with no-one missing the cut-off point.

With so many different forms to be sent, it can take up to half an hour for them all to be received so transmission has to begin rather than finish by midnight.

It is a far cry from the days when there was just one transfer deadline - the fourth Thursday in March - and forms had to be delivered by hand to the Football League offices in Lytham St Anne's by the more civilised time of 5pm.

Foster added: "Nowadays deals are becoming increasingly complicated and there can be as many as 30 separate pieces of paper so it is a major task to keep them all together.

"There are reams of paperwork all coming through at the same time so we have to make sure they do not get mixed up and that every necessary document is received in the correct way.

"At the start of the day I thought we might be busier than we actually were. The Home Office kindly agreed to have a work permit appeals panel on standby and we told clubs to let us know by last Friday if they were likely to need that.

"We expected to have five players in that category but three fell through over the weekend and the two remaining both had their applications rejected by the panel. We do work very closely with clubs to ensure everything is done correctly. Although we do have rules and regulations, we never forget this is the entertainment industry and we all want to see these top players appearing in the Premier League."

Even so, Foster admits there is a collective sigh of relief once the transfer window has closed and life gets back to normal.

"It is a high pressure situation, especially when you consider the large amounts of money changing hands and the urgency for clubs to bring in new players," said Foster.

"It was exciting but hectic and it is good to have a respite now. Things will calm down because people know their squads and get on with it.

"Overall I am in favour of the transfer window which was brought in by FIFA back in 2002 as part of a range of measures designed to safeguard the transfer system.

"Initially it was felt that it should just be for the summer and it should close before the start of the season - but that created problems with various countries beginning their seasons at different times.

"For instance, the French season traditionally gets under way at the beginning of August, we are the middle of the month and the Italian and Spanish Leagues are usually later. That created the possibility that French clubs would not be able to sign players but could still lose them to other countries so it was agreed by the leagues collectively that the end of August would be the universal cut-off point - unless it fell on a weekend or a Bank Holiday.

"The first time that happened, we stuck to the 31st and then found other countries moved it to the first of September so ever since we have adopted that system to ensure our clubs were not at a disadvantage.

"The good thing about the transfer window is that it does bring stability because clubs know they cannot buy or sell now until January. However it does mean an intense workload on deadline day so I am relieved it happens only twice a year!"