Monthly Archives: February 2018

With the setup of the summer transfer window reportedly meant to be changing, where the business completed by the teams will have to be done before the new season starts, most clubs and managers will have to prepare themselves by creating a small list of targets before the current campaign is over.  

Sometimes, the best way to be effective within the market and be one step ahead of the other teams is by looking out for which individuals are close to being available on a free transfer. One of the huge factors to this, is that a potential club can negotiate and come to an agreement with a player that is in the final six months of his contract to go on to completing a move to his next destination on a summer Bosman move.

Here are the six European players that will become a free agent at the end of the season...

• Bundesliga – FC Schalke’s Max Meyer

Although the big sides in Europe tend to focus on bringing in central midfielders

It is clear to see that at 33 years old, Cristiano Ronaldo’s overall influence on the game has been decreasing, but it does not, however, suggest that the Portuguese superstar is any less efficient or instrumental to Real Madrid’s immediate success.

The former Manchester United winger once again proved his critics wrong with a sublime performance in the Round of 16 in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain. While he was fortunate for one of his two goals, Ronaldo was continuously in the right place at the right time to finish off the attacking plays that Los Blancos’ architectures created.

Interestingly, Ronaldo has only scored two goals fewer than he managed after playing 30 games in all competitions this time last year. While there is more to be said at how he is used sparingly by Zinedine Zidane, his overall stats are not trudging behind as some are keen to point out.

Having scored 26 goals and recorded five assists in 30 appearances, Ronaldo’s performances

In 2011, Manchester United set up with a team against Swansea in the Premier League that consisted of Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia on the wing, with Chris Smalling at centre back and Phil Jones at right back.

Wind forward six years and instead of Young and Valencia occupying the wing, they are now Manchester United's first choice left and right back, with Jones shifting inwards and creating a feeble partnership with Smalling.

While Valencia has been a useful asset more often than not for the Red Devils, it is astounding to think that this is the state of Manchester United's four-man defence six years into the future.

It has been alarming to see the lack of quality in Man United's squad, emphasised by Smalling's presence in the starting XI. José Mourinho might have spent a fortune already, but he, and the club, simply have to be ruthless this summer in clearing out the deadwood and recruiting smartly.

Here are the players that should be sold:

The rivalry between Arsene Wenger and Jose Mourinho will go down as one of the biggest that the Premier League has ever seen. The personalities of coaches, the excitement and hype ahead of the London Derby has made it a thriller of an event to watch.

However, the story itself has not been the same due to the sacking of Mourinho by Chelsea’s board back in December 2015. Since then, the 55-year-old Portuguese has had his own battles with managers such as Antonio Conte and Pep Guardiola, but despite these, he has not forgotten to make an occasional dig towards long-term rival Arsene Wenger.

Following last month’s swap deal, which saw Alexis Sanchez join Manchester United whilst Henrikh Mkhitaryan travelled in the opposite direction, to Arsenal, both players are now part of an elite list of players that have played for Wenger and Mourinho.

It’s time to go through the players that have relished the chance of working under both managers...