The summer 2024 transfer window is into its final week, and much of the big business has been completed. Several high-profile and out-of-favour players are hastily attempting to move before the deadline at 11pm UK time (6pm ET) on Friday.
Some players entered pre-season believing they were part of their manager’s plans but found out they had been frozen out. For others, a move away has been on the cards for months, and they are waiting for the right deal.
The Athletic has picked 10 Premier League players who appear set to push for a move before the window closes until January.
As the news circulated that Sterling had been left out of Chelsea’s 20-man matchday squad for their Premier League opener at home against Manchester City last Sunday, the England forward’s camp released a statement indicating their surprise at head coach Enzo Maresca’s decision. It has since become clear that 29-year-old Sterling’s future lies away from Stamford Bridge.
When Sterling arrived from City in the summer of 2022 for a fee of £47.5million ($62.6m at the current exchange rate), hopes were high that he would be the star name to usher in a new era of success under the new owners, fronted by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.
Fifty-nine Premier League appearances and just 14 league goals later, Sterling’s return to his home city of London has not been a hit. In his two seasons, Chelsea have recorded disappointing 12th- and sixth-place finishes and not won a trophy, with Sterling, who turns 30 in December, struggling to replicate the form he had shown under City manager Pep Guardiola.
With a focus on getting back into the England squad, having not been involved since the 2022 World Cup, and re-establishing himself as one of the Premier League’s most prolific and consistent wingers, Sterling, who earns about £300,000 a week, needs a move.
Since simmering tensions with manager Guardiola reached a head in training after the Portugal international full-back was left out of City’s 1-0 FA Cup fourth-round win over Arsenal in January 2023, a permanent exit for Cancelo has been inevitable.
At his best, the 30-year-old has game-changing attacking qualities.
In the 2021-22 season, his most productive of the four he has played at City, he registered 10 assists across 52 matches, playing an integral role as City won the Premier League and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Within a year of that defeat to Real Madrid, Cancelo found himself out of Guardiola’s plans, with the Spanish coach preferring the defensive stability of Manuel Akanji or Nathan Ake at left-back.
Cancelo spent last season on loan at Barcelona (Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
After loan spells away to Bayern Munich and Barcelona, Cancelo has been left out of City’s matchday squads this season. A permanent move would be the best solution for the club and the player.
When Diego Carlos left Sevilla in 2022, it was seen as a significant coup for club Aston Villa and their then-manager Steven Gerrard.
In his three years at Sevilla, Diego Carlos established himself as one of the best central defenders in La Liga and was instrumental in their Europa League triumph in 2020. He was on the verge of the Brazil squad, having starred for the team as they won a gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Diego Carlos, 31, had a nightmare start to life at Villa Park, rupturing his Achilles tendon in his home debut, sidelining him for most of the season. He returned to the line-up under Unai Emery in 2023-24, starting 20 league matches as Villa finished fourth, but fell out of favour and is surplus to requirements.
Carlos was seen as a coup when he arrived from Sevilla (Bradley Collyer/PA Images via Getty Images)
Villa rejected an opening £26million bid from Fulham in early August, but talks have continued and he has admirers from the Saudi Pro League. Whether Fulham completing a deal to sign Joachim Andersen from Crystal Palace affects their pursuit of Carlos remains to be seen, but the door is open for suitors should they meet Villa’s asking price.
James Ward-Prowse might consider himself unlucky to be on the transfer block this summer, having joined only West Ham last year.
Ward-Prowse had a mixed season after starting exceptionally well, playing in a more advanced midfield position than he was used to at Southampton. The 29-year-old scored two goals and added three assists in West Ham’s opening four league matches of 2023-24.
While seven goals and as many assists is not a bad return for a midfielder at a new club, Ward-Prowse’s form declined in the second half of last season. Since then, David Moyes, an admirer of his qualities, has been replaced by Julen Lopetegui, who appears content to let the 11-time England international depart should a reasonable offer arrive.
Ward-Prowse’s West Ham stay could be a short one (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Still in his prime, Ward-Prowse, who was left out of the starting line-up for the opening defeat to Aston Villa, has a lot to offer a Premier League club and remains optimistic about adding more England caps.
There was a surprise at the Emirates Stadium when Kiwior, a versatile defender who has generally performed well under Mikel Arteta, was left out of Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers last weekend.
Kiwior played an important squad role for Arsenal last season, making important contributions in the league and Europe. He was an ever-present for Poland at the Euros but could not help his nation avoid a disappointing group-stage exit. Now, with the £42million addition of Riccardo Calafiori and the return of Jurrien Timber from injury, Arteta does not seem to have much use for Kiwior’s services.
Kiwior played a prominent role last season (Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)
Aside from Premier League experience and versatility, Kiwior is 24, an attractive age for potential suitors, and has developed inside an environment under Arteta geared towards winning.
Turner’s stock has taken a significant hit over the past 12 months.
The USMNT goalkeeper joined Nottingham Forest from Arsenal last summer, harbouring ambitions to establish himself as the club’s No 1 after deputising for Aaron Ramsdale at the Emirates. A year later, he finds himself as Nuno Espirito Santo’s third-choice and was left out of Forest’s squad for the 1-1 draw against Bournemouth on the opening day.
With the arrival of Pochettino as the USMNT’s new head coach, Turner’s place could be less secure than under Gregg Berhalter, who retained faith in the 30-year-old through Copa America.
Several top-level goalkeepers are still searching for a move away from their clubs in the Premier League, including his former team-mate Ramsdale. Does the Championship beckon, or potentially a return to MLS, where Turner was goalkeeper of the year in 2021?
Sancho returned to Manchester United this summer as a Champions League finalist with Borussia Dortmund, having gone a significant way to repairing a reputation tarnished by a difficult couple of years at Old Trafford.
Then, after mending a fraught relationship with Erik ten Hag, it appeared Sancho, 24, was back in the plans and would spend the 2024-25 season as a United player. However, after he was left out of the squad for the 1-0 win over Fulham, it seems a departure is still likely.
Sancho returned for pre-season but was left of United’s opener (Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
United are asking for £40million for the permanent sale of Sancho, which would be a significant loss on the initial £72.6million they paid Dortmund in 2021. Still, given Sancho’s inability to reach anywhere near the levels he consistently produced at the Westfalenstadion, it is more than the club would have expected to receive in January when he was banned from training.
Finding a club willing to take on Sancho’s initial £250,000 per week wages is a significant obstacle.
Trippier was Newcastle United’s first signing under their Saudi Arabian owner, but it appears his time has come to depart.
The 33-year-old full-back was instrumental in the 2022-23 season as Newcastle finished fourth to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in two decades but was criticised by sections of the support for a perceived decline in performances last season.
After deputising at left-back for England at the Euros in Luke Shaw’s absence, Trippier returned to Newcastle to find himself behind Tino Livramento on the right side of defence in Eddie Howe’s plans.
Trippier has lost the Newcastle captaincy to Bruno (MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
He was an unused substitute for Newcastle’s 1-0 win over Southampton on the opening day and has seen the captain’s armband handed to team-mate Bruno Guimaraes. Now, he is seeking a move away.
Everton have held conversations about bringing the 54-cap England international on loan to reunite with Sean Dyche, whom he worked under at Burnley between 2012 and 2015.
Gomez was a favourite of Jurgen Klopp’s last season, featuring as a centre-back, a right-back, a left-back and a defensive midfielder.
His versatility earned him a spot in Gareth Southgate’s squad for Euro 2024 but he did not play a minute as England reached the final. He looks set for a diminished role once under Arne Slot.
Would a move suit Liverpool and the versatile Gomez (Barrington Coombs/Getty Images)
Gomez joined Liverpool in 2015 as an 18-year-old as one of the country’s brightest talents. Now 27, he was linked with a move away to Newcastle during the Euros as a makeweight in a deal to bring Anthony Gordon to Anfield. Then, on the opening day, Gomez was left out of Slot’s first Premier League squad as Liverpool beat newly-promoted Ipswich Town 2-0.
His departure would leave Liverpool light for cover in defence.
Like Sterling, Chilwell finds himself firmly out of favour under Maresca.
Twelve months ago, Chilwell looked set to become an important part of Chelsea’s future under Mauricio Pochettino after being handed the vice-captaincy. By the fifth game of the season, he had lost his place in the starting line-up in favour of Levi Colwill, nominally a central defender. Ten days later, the 27-year-old was sidelined for 13 league matches after suffering a hamstring injury during a 1-0 Carabao Cup win over Brighton & Hove Albion.
Maresca has told Chilwell he can leave (Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Because of further injuries, illnesses and the re-emergence of Marc Cucurella, Chilwell failed to win his place back last season. Now, after being left out of Chelsea’s defeat to City on the opening day, Maresca has asked Chilwell to train away from the main group.
Chilwell is among the club’s highest earners, which could prove prohibitive for a possible move. Still, given his current situation, it seems likely Chilwell can only re-establish himself as a first-team player and England international if he finds a move away from Stamford Bridge.
(Top photo: Sterling, left, and Turner need moves. Getty Images)
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