Top 5 players who were allowed to leave on a free transfer

#3 Sol Campbell (Tottenham Hotspur to Arsenal)

Sol Campbell is jeered by Tottenham Hotspur fans

Perhaps the most controversial Bosman transfer in the history of this beautiful game. Sol Campbell made the perilous cross-town journey from White Hart Lane to Highbury in 2001, earning the infamous tag of 'Judas' in the process.

However, the Englishman's move was justified, and aside from his mouthwatering pay, he amassed an impressive haul of trophies.

Campbell is a two time English Premier League winner, and he also won the FA Cup on three occasions in the famous red & white apparel of Arsenal. He appeared 210 times for the Gunners, with the highlights of his time at Highbury being the double in 2002 and the club's unbeaten title win in 2003-04.

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#2 Andrea Pirlo (AC Milan to Juventus)

The legendary Andrea Pirlo

Maybe this will go down as the greatest gaffe in the annals of free transfer history. In 2011, AC Milan allowed the bearded darling of Italian football, Andrea Pirlo, join Serie rivals Juventus without batting an eyelid.

Perhaps the Milan club assumed like many in the footballing community that the maestro was a spent force, and was on the brink of retirement. However, it turned out that the midfielder was anything but a spent force, as he enjoyed yet another very successful spell in his glittering career.

Pirlo re-established his dominance in midfield, pulling the strings for the Turin giants in the middle of the park as they clawed their way to the top of the Italian football landscape with ruthless efficiency.

In the stripes of Juve, the maestro won 4 consecutive Scuddeto, and he was named the Italian footballer of the year in 2012, 2013, and 2014. He played 164 games for Juve, scored 19 times, and provided 38 assists.