Still out-of-contract best XI: Mario Balotelli, Daniel Sturridge, Franck Ribery
Friday 9 August 2019 15:09, UK
Who's been left on the side even with the transfer window shut? Here's our best XI of players who could still help your club...
Some of this summer's out of contract players did find new homes by the end of the transfer window, even up until the last minute with Andy Carroll re-signing for Newcastle on Deadline Day.
These guys still without a club might want to get a team together and keep their fitness up - because, until September 2, they could be snapped up by a Premier League side, who can still add free agents to their squads so long as they stay within their 25-man limit.
So who could be adding some quality to a club near you soon?
Goalkeeper
Former Swansea favourite Michel Vorm might have fallen behind Paulo Gazzaniga to third choice at Tottenham before he was released by the club at the end of last season, but the Dutchman has Premier League pedigree at the Liberty Stadium.
He's also a 15-time capped Dutch international - and who can argue with that - while any club needing to add to their goalkeeping ranks could do a lot worse than giving the 35-year-old another shot at the big time.
Defenders
Three years ago Danny Simpson was lifting the Premier League title, now he's out in the cold. Those are the breaks, but at 32 the right-back isn't over the hill by any means and still managed six Premier League appearances for Leicester last season behind Ricardo Pereira.
Former Liverpool hardman Martin Skrtel is also up for grabs after leaving Fenerbahce, despite playing 40 times last season. The 34-year-old doesn't have much in the way of pace any more but he's still going to be knocking anyone who tries to get past him straight into row Z.
You might not have heard of Daniel Schwaab but don't cast him aside if you're missing a centre-back in your squad. Marco Silva, listen up. Schwaab has only just turned 30 and was a regular in PSV's back-line for the last two seasons, including their Eredivisie-winning campaign in 2017/18.
There's also Fabio Coentreao, who has lost his way a little since he was Real Madrid's first-choice left-back on the way to their Champions League win in 2014. Injuries have hampered him in recent years and he recently left native side Rio Ave after a single season - but get him firing again, and he could provide some solid defensive width.
Midfielders
Yohan Cabaye was a real coup for Crystal Palace back in 2015 when he joined them from Paris Saint-Germain, and on the back of a year in the Middle East with Al-Nasr, he's ready for a new start. The Frenchman was never the fastest and though he is now 33, central midfield is the perfect position for him to re-invent his game.
Another smooth operator in midfield is Claudio Marchisio, approaching his 34th birthday but still just as classy as ever, as anyone with 13 years of first-team football at Juventus would be. Pass master Marchisio was cast aside by Zenit last season, but their loss could be someone else's gain.
One of Newcastle's biggest regrets of recent years may be not seeing more of Hatem Ben Arfa at his best, but he could provide any willing suitor with some technical wizardry given the chance. He left Rennes at the end of June and surely has one more moment of magic left in his locker aged 32.
Forwards
Mercurial talent Mario Balotelli looks like he could be on his way to Brazil, but there's still time for someone to nip in quick before he puts pen to paper - and as Manchester City saw a few years ago now, get him right and you've got a player on your hands.
Daniel Sturridge has had his injury problems but the player who tore up the Premier League alongside Luis Suarez in 2013/14 is still in there somewhere, and we saw a glimmer of it with his wonder-strike against Chelsea last year.
He could flourish alongside Franck Ribery, who hung up his shirt at the Allianz Arena after 12 years with Bayern Munich at the end of 2018/19. Age has caught up with the 35-year-old a little, but he still made 25 Bundesliga appearances en route to Bayern's title win last season.
