While clubs have been busy splashing the cash this summer, it’s worth remembering some of the huge names still available for free.
Manchester City, Tottenham and Chelsea have stolen the headlines in the Premier League so far this transfer window, with all three completing deals worth £100million or more.
The Citizens kicked things off by breaking the transfer record for a British player by signing Ellliot Anderson for a fixed £116m fee from Nottingham Forest.
Spurs then joined the party by smashing their own biggest-ever fee for a player, poaching Sandro Tonali from Newcastle in a £100m deal.
But Anderson’s reign as the most expensive British player lasted mere weeks, as Chelsea have now sealed the £117million capture of Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa.
While all of this has been going on though, there are some huge names that clubs across the globe can still nab at no extra cost.
Casemiro, Andy Robertson and Ibrahima Konate may all have already sorted their next move, but there are plenty more free agents that remain up for grabs.
And talkSPORT’s Rory Jennings and Ade Oladipo have taken a deep dive into this, putting together an XI made up of the best unattached stars who can save teams millions in transfer fees.
Back line
There are a number of goalkeepers still without a club, including Mathew Ryan and Neto, while Manchester City keeper Stefan Ortega this week joined Greek side Olympiacos.
Moving on to the back line, the talkSPORT Drive presenters had plenty to choose from and began with Dani Carvajal at right-back.
Arguably the best of his generation in the position, Carvajal left Real Madrid in the summer after two spells covering 23 years in which he won 27 major trophies, including six Champions League titles.
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Slotting in on the opposite side of defence is another Premier League winner in ex-Arsenal and Man City left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko.
The Ukraine star is available after his short-term deal with Ajax ran out, who made just two appearances after joining in February before an ACL injury ruled him out of the rest of the campaign.
And while Zinchenko boasts four Premier League winners’ medals on his CV, talkSPORT’s Jennings believes his race is run at the top level.
Jennings said: “Zinchenko doesn’t get a Premier League club. He was so out of his depth the second that he left Arsenal. Where would he go? What club? Name one Premier League club where he would get a game.”
At centre-back, John Stones and David Alaba made up the talkSPORT pairing at the heart of defence, following their respective departures from Manchester City and Real Madrid.
Stones recently brought a trophy-laden decade at City to an end, but is now set to join Italian champions Inter on a two-year deal.
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Meanwhile, Alaba left Madrid after seeing his last three years ravaged by injury, but returned to start for Austria at the World Cup, and has a strong reputation dating back to his 11-year stint at Bayern Munich.
On Stones, Oladipo said: “John Stones – without a club, still. He’s probably going to go to Inter Milan.
“Obviously, for you [Jennings], second-best centre-back ever in the Premier League, England’s greatest ever defender since Bobby Moore.”
As for Alaba, his co-host Jennings admitted the 34-year-old’s age and lack of game time in the last three years – who has missed 126 in total for club and country – could stand in the way of any big moves.
Speaking on talkSPORT Drive, he said: “The problem is as well, the kind of club that he’s going to want to go to, the kind of club that is going to satisfy him, is going to not want him. So, that’s where they’re kind of at an impasse.”
Midfield three
In midfield, Jennings and Oladipo named a trio of ex-Liverpool star Fabinho, former Bayern Munich enforcer Leon Goretzka and Colombia icon James Rodriguez.
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After leaving Anfield in 2023 having won the Premier League in 2020, Fabinho has since spent three years with Al Ittihad in the Saudi Pro League, before his contract expired at the end of last season.
Meanwhile, at 31, Goretzka is available on a free transfer after leaving Bayern Munich having won 15 trophies in eight years at the club.
But neither of the duo appealed to Jennings, who claimed Fabinho’s legs ‘fell off’ in his final season at Liverpool three years ago, while he insisted Goretzka will ‘Get a club if he wants one’, but not in the Premier League.
As for Rodriguez, Colombia’s 2014 World Cup star left MLS side Minnesota United in May after just four months in the USA, and talkSPORT’s Oladipo had some harsh words for the 35-year-old.
He joked about the ex-Real Madrid player who also popped up for a stint at Everton: “Minnesota United said: ‘You’re not good enough’ – just let it go. Even Saudis won’t respond to the emails.”
Attack
There were some household names in talkSPORT’s free agent front three, with none other than Mohamed Salah kicking things off.
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Arguably the biggest player currently available, the Egyptian King bid an emotional farewell to Anfield after a glittering nine years which saw him win nine trophies, whilst scoring 257 goals.
While Salah endured a disappointing final season in Red as the team, scoring just seven league goals, Jennings insisted that he would still back him to perform at the highest level.
He said: “I think Mohamed Salah is worthy of playing still Premier League football, arguably for Liverpool.
“Arguably for Liverpool, considering that the players that were signed last season were supposed to take the baton on from him, haven’t exactly hit the ground running.
“There have been injury issues as well. I think you could argue that Mohamed Salah could actually play a role for Andoni Iraola.”
Another huge name joined Salah on Oladipo and Jennings’ team sheet, in the form of four-time Premier League winner Raheem Sterling.
Having starred for Liverpool and Man City at the peak of his career, Sterling’s career has dipped in recent years, and was not offered a new contract at Dutch side Feyenoord at the end of last season, months after joining in February.
Though still just 31, Jennings admitted his time at the top could be over already, after scoring 174 goals in 585 games at club level.
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Hailing Sterling, the talkSPORT host said: “There comes a time in your career when it’s over, and I think for Raheem Sterling [it is], and I say this with celebration, not with cynicism.
“Raheem Sterling will go down as a Premier League great. He will be in the Premier League Hall of Fame. He’s scored over 100 Premier League goals.
“He was integral to one of the greatest teams ever assembled [at Man City]. That team, they scored over 100 goals and accrued over 100 points.”
Rounding off the talkSPORT free agents’ XI was Dusan Vlahovic, who is without a club just four years after joining Juventus for £66m.
Despite registering a solid 68 goals in 168 matches in Turin, the Serbi fell down the pecking order under several coaches and was not offered a new deal by Juve chiefs.
But Oladipo backed him to find his way back to the top, saying: “Dusan Vlahovic, by the way, 26-years-old, he’ll get a club as well. Last seen at Juventus, he’ll get a club.”
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