2 days ago
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Euro Bargains
©IMAGO
This summer untold fortunes will undoubtedly be spent as Europe's biggest clubs pursue the signatures of the continent's most exciting and coveted players. Whether it be the riches of the Premier League or the deep pockets of the biggest clubs in France, Spain or Germany, the best players in the world have never demanded higher transfer fees. However, aside from the blockbuster deals, there are a number of players that will be on the hunt for a new club this summer that won't garner nearly as much interest. And that's perhaps where the best deals could be done.
Indeed, signing a player right after his best every season in senior football is undoubtedly the most exciting prospect for any football fan, but more often than not swooping in for a player whose stock is at its lowest is where the smartest deals can best be found. So which star players around Europe's top leagues are in desperate need of greener pastures and an opportunity to once again prove themselves at the highest level? After taking a look at the top five in the Premier League , here's a selection of players that are worth keeping an eye on this summer from the continent.
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Loïs Openda - €10m market value drop last season
The first player on our list is a striker in the Bundesliga that could certainly use a change of scenery next season. Loïs Openda made the move to RB Leipzig from Lens in the summer of 2023 for what was at the time a club record transfer fee for the German club. However, since then he's been largely outshone by brighter prospects like Benjamin Sesko and Xavi Simons and at times found himself shoe-horned into formations and tactics that don't suit his dynamic center forward play. After a fantastic debut season in which he bagged 31 goals and assists in 34 league games, he managed just 18 last time around and saw his market value drop by €10m. And unless the club sells either Simons or Sesko this summer, it's hard to see how Openda will be able to change its reputation at the Saxony club as little more than a supporting cast member to the bigger stars.
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Gonçalo Ramos - €10m market value drop last season
Another striker that has found his light diminish at his current club in recent seasons is Paris Saint-Germain forward Gonçalo Ramos . Last season the Portuguese No.9 featured in just 35% of his club's league campaign and, crucially, started just one of the club's games in a Champions League campaign that saw them eventually be crowned European champions. Unquestionably, Ramos' profile at the Parisian club has taken a nose dive since his €65m move to the club in January 2024, which has led to a €10m drop in market value in the last 12 months. However, having just turned 24 and with a decent goalscoring record of 0.81 goals per 90 at the club, Ramos is poised to jump ship and get back to playing a starring role for a new club next season if the right kind of offer were to arrive for his services.
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Rafael Leão - €20m market value drop last season
Unlike Openda or Ramos, Rafael Leão is by no means a forward player whose talents are underappreciated by his current club AC Milan . But that is unlikely to stop his continued fall from grace or his desperate need to move clubs this summer. Having just completed his sixth season in Serie A, the Portuguese winger has long since passed the point of proving himself in Italian football and now looks like a dejected and want-away figure in Massimiliano Allegri's side. A total of 18 goals and assists in the league last season is by no means a poor return, but it's a notable dip on his best ever return of 25 a few seasons ago and there's a growing sense that Leão will need to depart Milan sooner rather than later if he wants to continue improving as a player. Such a malaise is evident in his market value, which has fallen from a career high of €90m last summer to where it now stands at €70m.
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Dušan Vlahovic - €30m market value drop last season
Another Serie A star that will undoubtedly need to find another club this season to turn his fortunes around is Dušan Vlahović . Once heralded as one of the most talented No.9s in the world when he made his €83.5m move from Fiorentina to Juventus in 2021, the Serbian talent has unfortunately failed to live up to the billing with just 58 goals in 145 games for the “Old Lady”. In that time Vlahović's influence in Juventus' squad has diminished with each passing season and now as he enters the final year of his contract it seems as though the Serie A giants would prefer to sell him for the right price this summer. What they hope to get for the out-of-form striker remains to be seen, but there's little doubt that his market value has suffered alongside his standing at Juventus, falling from a career high of €85m in 2022 to where it now stands at €35m.
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Eduardo Camavinga - €40m market value drop last season
It's a remarkable testament to the undoubted talent of midfielder Eduardo Camavinga that despite only being 22 years of age, it seems as though he's been a staple of Real Madrid squads for some time now. However, while the French talent's €31m move from Stade Rennais was unquestionably a bargain for the LaLiga giants, Camavinga has since found himself become a victim of his own utility as a player in recent seasons. Whether played as a left-sided midfielder or left-back, Camavinga has rarely been given the opportunity to thrive in his preferred role as a central midfielder. In fact, the 22-year-old talent played just 15 games as a central midfielder last season and featured in just 32% of Madrid's league campaign. As a result, his market value has dropped by a remarkable €40m in the last 12 months, suggesting that the former Ligue 1 prospect may be in need of a new club this season if Xabi Alonso isn't prepared to start him as a midfielder going forward.
