5 forgotten players angling for summer moves

Sergio Ramos, David De Gea, even Cristiano Ronaldo. All names that have maintained their stranglehold over the headlines this summer and all players rumoured to be nudging closer to the exit door. While it is of course inevitable the heavier price tags will attract more interest from the media, seldom do we see them reach their potential as the most effective moves in the transfer market.Instead, the better deals tend to be those that give a club a lot for very little and there are a whole host of speculated switches brewing across the continent, but some individuals slip to the backs of our minds.I am not necessarily talking about the wonderkids who have plummeted from the dizzy heights of stardom to Sunday league football or even those past their prime and rotting away in the changing rooms of their life-long clubs. Instead my focus lays with the unfortunate crop of players who have been set back by injury or have witnessed a bigger name fill their boots, both cases which have forced them out of the first XI to the point where the club’s tea lady struggles to recognise their face. More often than not, the players in greatest need of a summer shake-up are those who have fallen down the pecking order at their respective club and, as these players have found themselves short of game time, they are unlikely to catch the eyes of the big guns. So, as a lover of the obscure and growing obsolete, I have shortlisted five players I believe are eager for a new challenge, whatever age, and have the potential to impress in a new outfit, depsite being under the radar somewhat over the past season or so.

#1 Fernando Llorente

A prominent figure in Basque country, Pamplona-born Fernando Llorente was not long ago propelling his beloved Bilbao up the Spanish footballing ladder with his clinical eye for goal, which saw him net 85 times for the club. Such sharp form earned him a switch to Turin where he made an immediate impression, scoring in his second and third Champions League appearances for new side Juventus. It was a fairytale start, but one that was not to last.

Perhaps the writing was on the wall come the official fall of the European football curtain last season when Llorente saw just five minutes of the final against Barcelona, indicating Fernando was falling out of favour. Ultimately though, it’s the Old Lady’s summer business which has all but eradicated the Spaniard’s hopes of fuelling the remainder of his career and thrown up questions about his future at the reigning Serie A champions.

Allegri has adopted a scattergun approach in this window, acting acutely to replace the outgoing oldies Andrea Pirlo and Carlos Tevez. Changes in the attacking armoury have come like running water with the trio of additions Mario Mandzukic, Paulo Dybala and, most recently, Simone Zaza. Couple that with the emergence of Alvaro Morata as a key figure up-top and Llorente’s status as a star striker is fast diminishing.

Therefore, one cannot help but feel the forward will be sniffing out a move elsewhere over the coming weeks, as the young guns bash down the door to become first choice. Not all is lost for this experienced profile though, with talks about an impending diversion to the Emirates developing after a statement came through claiming Arsenal are looking to table an £8-million bid for the Basque striker.

North-London would be a prime location for Llorente to re-invent himself as the vital component he once was and, with the Gunners looking to add depth to their attacking options, it could be a match made in heaven.

Wherever Fernando’s future lays, it certainly looks like his time at Juve is up and, unless he puts pen to paper with another club before the start of September, it is inevitable he will decay at the lower end of the Italian club’s ranks.

#2 Fabio Coentrao

Endowed with great pace and consistency, Portuguese international Coentrao first made an impact in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa where he put together a string of solid shifts at the back. It was thought at the time he was signed that the left-back was brought in by Real Madrid to provide back-up for, and potentially supersede, Marcelo but the hype was short lived and Fabio has since played a small fraction of games compared to his Brazillian counterpart.

Yes, he still managed 17 appearances last season. But it seems increasingly evident Coentrao is destined to play second fiddle to Marcelo for the remainder of his days and, following a thigh injury during pre-season, he is showing no signs of breaking through as a vital first team member.

Furthermore, Real Madrid are a club not averse to playing Chinese whispers in the transfer market and, having recently become tangled in talks surrounding the Swiss full-back Ricardo Rodriguez, it looks as if even Fabio’s position as the alternative choice at left-back could shortly come under fire. Rodriguez, 22, shows far greater potential development in his career and would bolster Los Blancos’s youth policy as well as adding a new attacking dimension to the position.

Coentrão has not been short of suitors himself, with Manchester United’s loan deal falling through last summer, while Jose Mourinho has also been keen on a move for his fellow Portuguese. Some of you may question my decision to include this dynamic full-back on a list of ‘forgotten’ players but the fact is, when at a club like Real Madrid, it can be easy to slip into the shadows of heavyweights Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos for example.

This means even a relatively humble offer would tempt the giants to sell, with it no difficult task to lure in a replacement. Couple that with the fact Coentrão failed to register ten appearances in La Liga last term and we can see that he is not viewed as the fresh, exciting youngster he once was.

So Fabio will no doubt face an imminent dilemma. Whether Ricardo Rodriguez signs or not, the full-back from Vila do Conde has to decide whether to stay and fight for his spot, although the brutality of Real Madrid as a club indicates he wouldn’t stand a fighting chance, or he needs to search for a new challenge.

#3 Glenn Murray

Alright, perhaps this isn’t the biggest name on the list but the fact is very few fit the category of being forgotten and having their previous club heroics discarded more than poor Glenn Murray. Fault can’t lay with Palace; when a club begins to excel from a Championship side to one flirting with top-half status in the Premier League, star quality is needed but one has to say Glenn has been unfortunate in the latter stages of his career.

Now 31-years-old, Murray has been the hot topic for a lot of Championship clubs as well as the odd Premier League outfit this summer and looks a certainty to be the next Eagle booted out the door as Steve Parish looks to add steam to the Crystal Palace transformation. One of football’s typically romantic tales, the forward started out in non-league football with Workington Reds before climbing the ranks to Brighton, where a fruitful return of 53 goals in 118 appearances earned him a move to Palace in 2011.

After narrowly avoiding relegation in Murray’s debut season, the Eagles secured top-flight status in 2013 and a project to affirm a place in the Premier League for years to come was put in place.

Two seasons later in England’s prestigious division and the club have a variety of striking options to choose from, with Gayle, Chamakh and Campbell leading the way in Premier League appearances in the 2014/15 campaign. Add that factor to the host of attacking midfielders avaiable at Palace’s disposal and the arrival of the championship player of the season last time out Patrick Bamford and it seems difficult to envisage Glenn breaking into the first-team frame anytime soon.

Murray is not getting any younger and, with proven goal-scoring prowess, deserves to be at a club where he has the game time to deliver. With Pardew adopting a quicker approach for the forthcoming season, it is unlikely the aging legs of Murray will see much action and a transfer elsewhere would undoubtedly be favoured by both parties.

While rumours have circulated about a £3,500,000 offer being made by Bournemouth, the Cherries are expected to battle Norwich for his signature, as the pair of newly-promoted sides eye the man who's been there all before and could now face the chance to revitalise his career.

#4 Jose Enrique

Plagued by injuries since joining the Reds from Tyneside in 2011, Enriqué managed just two Premier League outings last term, with a string of niggles and knocks forcing him out of the side for most of the season. As a result, last summer’s addition Alberto Moreno has been deployed as first choice left-back, moulding himself from an inital error-prone, inconsistent performer to an influential figure in Liverpool’s defence.

At 23-years-old, Moreno is six years Enriqué’s junior and, as the former-Newcastle man delves into the business end of his career, first-team football is essential. This is a factor which will be determined by not only injuries, but the favour he holds in Brendan Rodgers’ game-plan.

Now many of you will be questioning Enriqué’s inclusion on this list, with the Spaniard still recognised as the second-best option at left-back and his recent return to training showing no signs of his desire to leave the Merseyside club. Well, although it may not be a mutual agreement to offload Enriqué at present, should Liverpool’s reported interest in PSG’s Lucas Digne step up a gear, then he may be looking to conclude his career somewhere else.

Should the Digne deal come through, then Enriqué will be the oldest of the three left-backs and, with a lack of game time in recent months, he will surely fall away as a rather diminutive figure. Furthermore, with the arrival of Nathaniel Clyne already this Summer, Liverpool will struggle to bring through the likes of Andre Wisdom and Jon Flanagan into the side, so Rodgers may choose to utilise them at left-back on the odd occasion.

The chances are, if Enriqué can slip into the team early and stay free from injury, his consistency at the back could anchor down a spot at left-back for the rest of the season.

However, with other options plentiful, a single blunder can cost one their place and Enriqué may be on the look out for a move himself, after he joined the Reds in search of regular Champions League football; something the Spaniard has had limited taste of at Anfield to date. Therefore, a temporary switch to a bigger side should not be ruled out, as this forgotten face looks to stay well in the picture of top-flight football.

#5 Edin Dzeko

The Bosnian boy whose story continues to frustrate. It seems no matter how clinical Edin Dzeko is when given the rare opportunity to perform, City still dismiss his under-rated goal-scoring talents as unworthy of a first-team place. An illustrious character in City’s recent history, scoring a vital goal to hand the club their first title in 44 years on the final day of the 2011/12 season, Dzeko now desperately needs a move to save himself from footballing purgatory.

Since the change of formation and a couple of injury spells, Dzeko simply cannot find his way into the Manchester Club’s first eleven, with bigger names keeping him out of the picture. Last season saw one of Edin’s worst returns of his career as, despite finishing the club’s second highest scoring forward behind Aguero, he looked unable to build a sound relationship with Pellegrini and a smile was hard to come by.

Boasting a fine eye for goal and a sizeable, bold build, the Bosnian has all the potential to unravel the meanest of defences and has been linked with a potential move to the Emirates as another option for Arsenal to contemplate in the ongoing striker search. Pellegrini is unlikely to have sleepless nights worrying about the price City get for Dzeko and their opulent status suggests the forward could be snapped up on the cheap.

With Sterling signed from Liverpool and Enes Ünal brought in from Bursaspor, last season’s runners up are bolstering their attacking options and Edin Dzeko is beginning to fade into the background. He has a choice to make – spend the remainder of his days at a competitive side where he will see little game time or possibly take a wage cut to change the scenery and ensure regular football at another side, where his expert finishing will be correctly utilised.

Dzeko is a fine forward and it’s no disgrace to admit some of you may have failed to consider him as a striking option for your club this window but, as we saw in his time at Wolfsburg and early career in Manchester, this boy rarely disappoints and can bag vital goals at the death, something we would all love to see again.