{"id":1101607,"date":"2019-08-14T18:13:54","date_gmt":"2019-08-14T17:13:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?p=1101607"},"modified":"2019-08-14T18:13:55","modified_gmt":"2019-08-14T17:13:55","slug":"best-free-agents-european-football","status":"publish","type":"features","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/features\/best-free-agents-european-football\/","title":{"rendered":"Ranked: Top 10 free agents still available to European clubs"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Premier League transfer window may have slammed shut last week but clubs still have the freedom to dabble in the free agent market.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As managers now get to grips with their current playing squads, some may feel they underinvested in the summer and there are still one or two discernible vulnerabilities that need patching up.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/audioboom.com\/posts\/7336082-10-predictions-for-the-2019-20-premier-league-season<\/p>\n

The likes of Juventus have proven in the past that you don’t need to\u00a0jeopardise the balance sheets in order to improve a squad, instead showing that a free transfer can be just as influential as a marquee acquisition.<\/p>\n

So, will clubs in England follow the Old Lady’s blueprint and take a punt on a freebie? Well, there are still\u00a0a number of top players unattached and looking for their next footballing venture, and we’ve ranked the current top 10.<\/p>\n

10. Andrea Bertolacci<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Former club: <\/strong>AC Milan<\/p>\n

Position: <\/strong>Central midfield<\/p>\n

Released from the\u00a0Rossoneri earlier this summer,\u00a0Bertolacci’s four-year stint at the San Siro was plagued by inconsistency and injury problems, with the\u00a0Roman never truly establishing himself as a prominent first-team member following his \u00a319m move from Genoa in 2015.<\/p>\n

Such was his form for the\u00a0Griffin that\u00a0Antonio Conte handed him six caps for the Italian national team when he was head of Gli Azzurri, while he also impressed during a loan spell back at the\u00a0Stadio Luigi Ferraris during the 2017\/18 season. The dynamic footballer is still only 28 and could yet transform any midfield should he rediscover his early-career form.<\/p>\n

9.\u00a0<\/strong>Fabio Coentrao<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Former club:\u00a0<\/strong>Rio Ave<\/p>\n

Position: <\/strong>Left-back<\/p>\n

It never quite worked out for the 52-time Portugal international at Real Madrid after relocating to the Bernabeu from Benfica with high expectations in 2011 but, at just 31, the seasoned defender would still be a tidy piece of business for any middling club.<\/p>\n

He left the Spanish capital to return to boyhood club\u00a0Rio Ave in 2018, but both parties went their separate ways this summer and, so, the buccaneering full-back is now on the hunt for his next adventure, though he recently made an Eleventh Hour\u00a0transfer U-turn on Greek outfit PAOK<\/a>, so he remains up for grabs.<\/p>\n

8. Ignazio Abate\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Former club: <\/strong>AC Milan<\/p>\n

Position: <\/strong>Right-Back<\/p>\n

Italian football’s equivalent to Kyle Walker: a right-back with pace and power to burn. The Italian stalwart closed the curtains on his decade-long spell at the\u00a0Giuseppe Meazza Stadium at the end of the season, captaining his side out to a cauldron of noise during his final home appearance against Frosinone, which prompted the 32-year-old to break down in tears.<\/p>\n

That emotional farewell illustrated just how highly-regarded Abate is in Milan, and with the full-back still being in the prime years of his career, he could prove a hit at most top-flight clubs should someone take a gamble, adding great tenacity and speed to any defence.<\/p>\n

7. Claudio Marchisio<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Former club:\u00a0<\/strong>Zenit Saint Petersburg<\/p>\n

Position: <\/strong>Central midfield<\/p>\n

The Juventus legend most recently turned out for\u00a0Russian Premier League champions\u00a0Zenit Saint Petersburg but terminated his contract prematurely last month and is now a free agent, though the main problem is, he only recently recovered from knee surgery and will be severely lacking in match sharpness.<\/p>\n

But as the old adage goes: ‘form is temporary, class is permanent.’ And\u00a0Marchisio’s name is almost synonymous with class, with the\u00a055-capped Italy international in that rare bracket of majestic midfielders who exude elegance. At 33, he is certainly in the twilight years of his career, but his innate technical ability would still thrive if deployed in any industrious midfield.<\/p>\n

6.\u00a0Markel Susaeta<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Former club:\u00a0<\/strong>Athletic Bilbao<\/p>\n

Position: <\/strong>Winger<\/p>\n

The one-time Spain international expressed his desire to see out his career at the\u00a0San Mames Stadium but along with stalwarts\u00a0Ander Iturraspe and\u00a0Mikel Rico, the trio left\u00a0Los Leones at the end of the campaign. With the small pool of players available to\u00a0Gaizka Garitano, as per the club’s\u00a0cantera policy \u2013 or, unwritten law dictating that they can only sign players in the Basque region \u2013 it seemed nonsensical that they chose to part with three first-team members.<\/p>\n

However, unlike\u00a0Iturraspe and\u00a0Rico,\u00a0Susaeta is yet to find a new club, but at 31, and having made over 500 appearances for\u00a0Athletic Bilbao, he should be signed up fairly soon.<\/p>\n