5 Players Who Could Be Available For Bargain Prices

As teams look to find cost-friendly solutions in a transfer market that continues to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, relegated teams have generally proven to be a reliable source of quality players for bargain prices. One only has to look at Liverpool’s recent success after signing Georginio Wijnaldum and Andrew Robertson to realize that it’s imprudent to turn your nose up at a player just because their team was relegated.

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Savvy teams have continued to exploit this source, with recently promoted Norwich City replacing star playmaker Emiliano Buendía with Milot Rashica after the latter suffered relegation with Werder Bremen. Let’s take a look at five players who could be available for bargain prices as their clubs prepare for life in the second tier. (Note: players who spent the past season on loan at relegated clubs but who are owned by a top-flight club, such as Joachim Andersen and Alphonse Areola, have been excluded from this list).

Ryan Gauld

From Ryo Miyachi to Bojan Krkić, from Marko Marin to Amir Sayoud, the ‘next Lionel Messi’ tag has generally proven to be a curse rather than a blessing in the case of young players. That was certainly the case with Ryan Gauld, whose impressive performances for Dundee United attracted attention from a host of clubs, with Sporting eventually winning the race for the 18-year-old and paying a fee in the region of £3 million for him in the summer of 2014. Gauld struggled for game-time in the Portuguese capital and was promptly loaned out to Vitória de Setúbal, Aves, Farense and Hibernian before eventually joining Farense on a permanent deal in July 2019. The Scottish midfielder joined on a two-year contract with the option for a third year, with Farense inserting a €4 million release clause in his contract.

It was here in The Algarve where Gauld finally delivered the consistent performances that had seen him marked as a wonderkid just five years ago. Gauld finished as the club’s top scorer in the 2019/20 season, which was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and was voted as the best player in LigaPro as Farense earned promotion to the top-flight. He continued his stellar performances in the top-flight, picking up the most Man of the Match awards (9) in Liga NOS and grabbing 9 goals and 7 assists, although it wasn’t enough to keep Farense in the top division or earn a spot in Steve Clarke’s Euros squad.

Ryan Gauld has been one of the best players in Portugal this season; if Farense do stay up, it's thanks to him.

Superb performance from the "Scottish Messi" against Benfica today..it's been nearly seven years since he left Scotland, but he's finally leaving his mark in Portugal.

— Zach Lowy (@ZachLowy) February 21, 2021

Here’s where it gets tricky. Farense claim that they triggered their option to extend his contract for another year in February, whilst Gauld claims that the clause is invalid due to the club’s relegation. Gauld, believing he is a free agent, has verbally agreed a contract with Vancouver Whitecaps that will see him earn £1 million per year through 2024. However, this imbroglio could deter the MLS side’s interest, who have given Gauld a week to resolve the issue, and it could land Farense in a legal battle with their talisman. In the meantime, various European teams could capitalize on the ‘misunderstanding’ and attempt to keep the Scottish playmaker on the other side of the Atlantic for the coming season.

Javi Galán

On the other side of Iberia, there is another gem that is ripe to be picked by a cunning top-flight side. Huesca’s relegation will likely force incoming Mexican coach Ignacio ‘Nacho’ Ambriz to begin his adventure in the Segunda without Javi Galán, whose performances have drawn the attention of a host of clubs across the continent.

The 26-year-old is capable of operating as a left-back or a left-winger and is reportedly available for €4 million due to Huesca’s relegation. A pacy defender who is capable of overlapping on the left flank and threatening with his technical ability, Galán completed the third-most dribbles in Europe’s top five leagues (114) behind Lionel Messi and Adama Traoré. He combines sensational dribbling with diligence and focus to win tackles in deep areas and relentless running, and his performances have drawn attention from the likes of Leeds United and Sevilla.

It’s true that Leeds have recently purchased Junior Firpo from Barcelona for €15 million plus add-ons to replace the departing Ezgjan Alioski, but Galán could provide solid competition at left-back and enable Marcelo Bielsa to move Stuart Dallas further up the pitch. On the other hand, Sergio Escudero’s departure means that Sevilla only have one recognized left-back in their squad with Marcos Acuña. 

Galán could be a superb option for a Sevilla team that will be aiming to compete in the Champions League and on the domestic stage under Julen Lopetegui, and he may just end up being the next bargain buy to get snapped up by Monchi. There are rumours that Celta Vigo are close to completing a deal for him, so either side will need to act swiftly if they are to beat the Galicians for him.

Zinedine Ferhat

Out of all the relegated teams in Europe, perhaps no club has more talent available for reasonable prices than Nîmes. Anthony Briançon, Andrés Cubas, Niclas Eliasson and Moussa Koné are just a handful of the names that Les Crocodiles could cash in on this summer after the sales of Birger Meling to Rennes and Renaud Ripart to Troyes, and one player who will surely have no shortage of suitors is Zinedine Ferhat.

Born in Bordj Menaïel, Algeria, Ferhat left Africa in 2016 and joined Le Havre, where he would play alongside the likes of Pape Gueye (Marseille) and Ferland Mendy (Real Madrid). A stellar 2017/18 campaign saw him register a whopping 20 assists in Ligue 2, and a year later, he made the move to Nîmes on a free transfer. He has doubled his numbers in his first two Ligue 1 seasons — going from 3 goals and 5 assists to 6 goals and 10 assists in 2020/21 — but Nîmes’ relegation and the fact that he only has one year left on his contract means that he will be available for a bargain rate. The club are reportedly willing to sell him for €5 million, but will also listen to bids in the region of €3 million.

Ferhat is a late bloomer at 28 years of age, but he could provide a unique profile for various clubs who are looking for a cheap, creative threat on the flank. Capable of weaving his way through defences with his close control or playing a teammate through on goal with a pinpoint through ball, he is an effective playmaker on either the right or the left, capable of evading pressure, holding his own against physical defenders, and launching counterattacks against the run of play. Rangers, Marseille and Strasbourg are reportedly in the race to sign him, and with Nîmes’ low asking price, he is another bargain buy waiting to be snapped up.

Matheus Pereira

Less than three weeks remain before the start of the 2021/22 Championship season, and yet, all three of last season’s relegated Premier League clubs remain in a state of limbo. West Bromwich Albion and Fulham have both replaced managers, with Valérien Ismaël and Marco Silva coming in for Sam Allardyce and Scott Parker, respectively, whilst Sheffield United have entrusted Slaviša Jokanović to fill a Chris Wilder-sized void at Bramall Lane. On the contrary, there has been precious little player movement, as the likes of Sander Berge, Sam Johnstone and André-Frank Zambo Anguissa wait to see whether they will remain in England’s second-tier with the rest of their teammates.

One player who could be set for a move away is Matheus Pereira, who has emerged as a sensation since joining West Brom two years ago. Born in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Pereira moved to Portugal at a young age and worked his way up Sporting’s academy, but like Gauld, his attempts to break into the first team were impeded by various loan spells and managers who were unwilling to give young prospects opportunities. He joined the Baggies on a season-long loan deal that was later made permanent for a total fee that approached £9 million, a bargain considering the fact that his performances landed him the Supporters’ Player of the Season award and led West Brom back to the top-flight after narrowly missing out on promotion the previous year.

Despite the fact that the Baggies finished 13 points behind 17th-placed Burnley, the attacking midfielder ended his season on a high note with an impressive 11 goals and 6 assists, often proving to be the sole driving force for a team that looked completely bereft of ideas in the final third under Allardyce. With West Brom strapped for cash, the club may be forced to cash in on Pereira in order to bring in some of Ismäel’s transfer priorities and prepare for another gruelling campaign in the Championship.

Simy Nwankwo

They haven’t won an AFCON since 2013, but there can be little debate that Nigeria have the strongest collection of centre forwards in Africa. From Victor Osimhen to Terem Moffi, from Paul Onuachu to Kelechi Iheanacho, Gernot Rohr is spoiled for depth when it comes to fielding a 9. It’s why, despite scoring 20 goals and 2 assists in 38 Serie A appearances for Crotone, Simeon Tochukwu Nwankwo, or Simy, finds himself surplus to requirements for the Super Eagles.

Born in Onitsha, Nigeria, Simy grew up idolizing Nwankwo Kanu, but unlike his countryman, his time in Europe has been more of a ‘slow-burner.’ After spells at Portimonense and Gil Vicente, Simy left Portugal and joined Crotone in 2016 and gradually became the team’s attacking talisman, leading them to the top-flight with 21 goals in the 2019/20 season. The 29-year-old flourished in attack for the Calabrian side upon their return to Serie A, dazzling alongside Junior Messias and breaking a laundry list of records.

He became the top-scoring Nigerian in a single season in Europe’s major leagues, surpassing Yakubu Aiyegbeni’s tally of 17 goals for Blackburn Rovers in 2011/12, and leapfrogged Obafemi Martins to become the top-scoring Nigerian in Serie A history with 30 goals. He has grabbed an incredible 15 goals in 19 appearances in 2021, a figure only bettered by Robert Lewandowski, Lionel Messi and André Silva since the start of the year.

While it hasn’t been enough to earn him a recall to the national team for the first time in three years, he has attracted interest from various Serie A clubs such as Udinese, Genoa and Fiorentina. Crotone look keen to cash in on their all-time top scorer in order to avoid losing him for free next summer, and their sporting director Beppe Ursino has admitted as much, stating in a recent interview:

“Simy has requests from Serie A, but above all from the Bundesliga. Many Serie A teams have requested for him and he will certainly be sold. Simy is on the market because he is in great demand.”