Khamis, 26 April 2012

The Upwardly Mobile


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
 
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

 
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

 
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
 
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
 
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
 
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

 
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
 
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
 
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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