BPL players who will be on the move in this summer.
10. Matt Jarvis
While there's something of the tallest dwarf about hailing Jarvis as Wolves' most consistent creative outlet, teams will always crave wingers who can cross a ball, and when on form Jarvis can do just that. Wolves' relegation, as it will for entry number six, will be a factor in players like Jarvis needing to move to on.
Potential Suitors: I don't know why, but to me he's got Fulham written
all over him. Which means either I'm seeing things or he has a rubbish
tattooist. Stoke might be another possible destination.
9. Stephane Sessegnon
9. Stephane Sessegnon
I feel like he ought to be nearer
the top of this list, such is the high regard I hold him in, but
Sunderland's (admittedly now somewhat stalled) resurgence under Martin
O'Neill may keep him on Wearside. However, I do think clubs will come
a-knockin', and since Sunderland have spent a lot in recent years, they
may need to sell before they can buy this summer. Sessegnon may well be
their current prize asset.
Potential Suitors: Liverpool will need fresh blood this summer, so it
could be a different version of the red and white for Stephane.
8. Gabriel Agbonlahor
8. Gabriel Agbonlahor
Something, and it's surely not
entirely as straightforward as the words 'Alex McLeish', is not right at
Villa Park. It's vaguely unthinkable that a side which spent two
decades plotting to get into the top four are now desperate to stay out
of the bottom three. Local boy Gabby has spent his entire professional
career to date at the Villa, but this summer may be the time to fly the
nest.
Potential Suitors: Everton or Fulham might well have money to invest
after sales of players later on this list. Alan Pardew may also be able
to find a role at Newcastle for Agbonlahor.
7. Robin van Persie
7. Robin van Persie
Sorry, Arsenal fans, but money talks.
He's only so low on this list because Arsenal look like getting a
Champions League berth for next season. If they don't, as looked likely a
few months back, he'll be out of there. He is too good a player to have
to keep accepting Arsenal's false dawns. He'll look at Cesc Fabregas,
who finally lost patience last summer, and Samir Nasri and, while
neither or those are guaranteed any important silverware, they have at
least been in the running. Early summer investment in Arsenal's team
might keep him but if that isn't forthcoming it may be RVP's sale that
finances the Emirates refurb.
Potential Suitors: He'd get in any side in the world, so expect admiring
looks from Barca and Real, but the cash at Eastlands - and a Mario
Balotelli-shaped hole in the squad - might see him follow Nasri to the
light blue side of Manchester.
6. Steven Fletcher
6. Steven Fletcher
He's just too good for the
Championship. Two years ago, when Burnley went down, they sold their
best asset to Wolverhampton. And now that the Old Gold have gone down to
tier two too, history may well repeat itself. Fletcher has arrowed in
ten goals for the league's bottom side and, despite his hairline, he is
only 25. With better service than he has received at Burnley and Wolves
(and, let's face it, Scotland) he could be a handy asset.
Potential Suitors: I don't think we're talking European class here, but a
proper mid-table side would fit. Maybe Sunderland. Or Villa, as they
bid to get back up the table.
5. Michel Vorm
5. Michel Vorm
Few teams make as many friends as Swansea
have in their first season in the Premier League. This is largely due
their very personable manager and the attractive style of football he
demands. But a huge portion of their success is down to a sound defence,
behind which patrols a Dutch goalkeeper who at £1.5m was an absolute
steal. He's not some old clogger; he's a 28-year-old capped by the
Netherlands with a knack for making crucial saves. He might not come
cheap, but he'll be an asset to whoever prises him out of Wales.
Potential Suitors: If Reina were to return home, then maybe Liverpool.
If not, he may be seen as a successor to Brad Friedel at Spurs.
4. Clint Dempsey
4. Clint Dempsey
I know what you are thinking: has he
fired in 22 goals or only 21? Either way, it has been a landmark year
for the Texan marksman. Fulham's last few years have featured plenty of
Good, Bad and Ugly moments. But a constant has been Dempsey turning
defences Every Which Way But Loose, and it might well earn him attention
from bigger clubs. He might be a Million Dollar Baby. Or he may go For A
Few Dollars More.
Potential Suitors: Tottenham. With or without Dirty Harry.
3. Leighton Baines
3. Leighton Baines
His name might sound like a
middle-class town in the Home Counties, but he is most definitely a
footballer. And a very good one. This weekend he featured in the PFA
Team of the Year, he will likely feature in England's Euro 2012 squad
and he may well figure in the thoughts of many a top manager during the
close season. With over 200 Premier League appearances he has earned his
stripes, and at 27 is approaching the perfect age for a defender. He
has that great quality of being a defender rarely thought about, because
howlers are not his trade. Everton are known to be short of cash, and
might find it tough to resist any advances.
Potential Suitors: The tabs have linked Baines with Manchester United,
but is Fergie ready to discard Patrcie Evra? Baines is better than
Assou-Ekotto and he's also better than Gibbs and Santos, so he might be
house-hunting in North London, but I don't know if it's for a red or
white front door.
2. Victor Moses
2. Victor Moses
If Wigan are relegated this season, it may
trigger an exodus of players, and that would likely include their
biblically talented winger. Brought from the bulrushes of Selhurst Park
in January 2010, he has parted defences like the Red Sea this season,
and has commanded respect for his performances. Thou shalt take him
lightly at your peril. Quick, possessing the ability to drive at and
commit defenders and to score goals, he will be coveted. And at 21, he
may have much more development to come.
Potential Suitors: Liverpool. I sense a big turnover of faces at Anfield
this summer, and Moses' youth and pace are the attributes they must
seek to sort things out.
1. Junior Hoilett
1. Junior Hoilett
Three facts about the Blackburn attacker
you might not know. a) He's Canadian, b) He is actually called David
and c) he is out of contract in the summer. The last of those is
probably the most significant. It's been a tumultuous year for
Blackburn, and one that could end badly with relegation might be worse
when Hoilett walks away at the conclusion of his deal. The fact that he
has shone in a team that have struggled more than Rik Waller getting out
of a beanbag chair says much about his class and potential.
Potential Suitors: The only reason I'm not saying Manchester United is
that they already have Nani, Young and Valencia. He'd bring much to any
side that took him, but would provide a welcome injection of pace and
trickery at the Emirates.
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