As the World Cup has wound down, the transfer market has not taken long to spring into life.Though some headline transfers were resolved during the World Cup — Marc Cucurella’s switch from Chelsea to Real Madrid and Elliot Anderson’s British-record move from Nottingham Forest to Manchester City are two examples — it has been a relatively quiet period with attention elsewhere.But as teams’ journeys end in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, that is changing. Following England’s semi-final defeat to Argentina, it took only three days for one of the biggest stories of the summer to accelerate. The Athletic broke the news on Saturday that Chelsea have reached a verbal agreement to sign Aston Villa and England’s Morgan Rogers for a new British-record fee of £117million ($157m).With the tournament now over, the focus turns to where World Cup stars will line up at the start of the club season in August.How does a World Cup affect the transfer market?Christopher HamillMarcus Rashford (Manchester United)Barcelona decided against taking up an option to buy Marcus Rashford (Al Bello/Getty Images)The England international spent last season on loan at Barcelona, but after they decided against taking up an option to buy him for €30million (£25m; $34m), Rashford’s future is unclear.A £40m exit clause has now expired, so any sale will have to be negotiated. Rashford is set to return to United training with other team-mates who were involved in the latter stages of the World Cup.He could stay at his boyhood club, but there are complicating factors: his weekly wage of more than £325,000, Manchester United’s pursuit of other options on the left, and the fact that the decision for him to leave in 2025 was not only made by former head coach Ruben Amorim, but also executives who remain at Old Trafford.However, The Athletic has been told by sources with knowledge of the situation, who spoke anonymously as they were not authorised to speak publicly, that the player has turned down proposals, some of which were more lucrative than his United deal.The Athletic’s Mark Critchley has explained Rashford’s situation in more detail — and it is a saga that could run deep into the window.Folarin Balogun (Monaco)The United States’ Folarin Balogun (No 20) celebrates scoring his side’s third goal against Paraguay with team-mate Chris Richards (AP Photo/Andre Penner)Dominating headlines around the world, Balogun had a one-match ban suspended after a red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina, allowing him to play against Belgium.The USMNT lost 4-1 in that last-16 tie but, before the controversy, all the stories around the striker had been of his impressive World Cup performances. As The Athletic reported in June, he is expected to depart Ligue 1 side Monaco this summer, with the French club’s asking price around €50million (£42.5m; $57.2m).There have been no talks about extending his contract, which expires in 2028, and Balogun is believed to prefer a transfer. There is interest from clubs in the Premier League, where he would count as a homegrown player after coming through at Arsenal, and elsewhere in Europe.Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa)A deal has been agreed between Chelsea and Aston Villa for Rogers (right) (Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images)A key summer story was always whether Rogers would follow international team-mate Anderson in making a high-profile move — and he is now set to do so, breaking Anderson’s record in the process.The Athletic reported in June that many top Premier League teams admired Rogers. In the Transfer DealSheet on July 7, The Athletic set out Villa’s position that they did not want to lose Rogers, but any deal would need to include a fee exceeding the £116m it cost to take Anderson to Manchester City from Nottingham Forest.Though Rogers was among Premier League champions Arsenal’s top targets, their London rivals Chelsea have pounced and Rogers has chosen them. Villa have accepted a £117m bid, and personal terms are in place, though the deal is still being finalised according to sources briefed on the situation, speaking on the condition of anonymity.Yan Diomande (RB Leipzig)Liverpool were prepared to offer a package approaching €100m for Yan Diomande (Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)Despite Liverpool’s efforts, 19-year-old winger Yan Diomande wants to join Paris Saint-Germain if he moves this summer.Following some dynamic performances on the way to a round-of-32 exit with Ivory Coast at the World Cup, attention will turn to whether any club can match RB Leipzig’s asking price.