10 Players Who Can Still Complete Summer Transfers
Another gluttonous summer isn’t in the books just yet, even if Europe’s premier divisions are no longer open for business.
The Premier League, intent on eating itself, once again splurged a record amount, while the rest of the continent, superpowers notwithstanding, focused on survival by securing scraps for relatively modest fees. The English top flight spent more than its big-five counterparts combined.
And there’s still scope for some big money to be thrown around. The absence of a universal deadline means Türkiye’s financial behemoths and Saudi Arabia’s PIF-owned clubs have the chance to pry talent from Europe’s leading clubs, including several very familiar faces.
Here are some notable players who could find new homes after the Premier League’s transfer Deadline Day.
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Which Transfer Windows Are Still Open After Premier League Deadline Day?
Country | League | Transfer Deadline (Local Time) |
|---|---|---|
Belgium | Belgian Pro League | Sept. 3, 11:59 p.m. |
Netherlands | Eredivisie | Sept. 2, 11:59 p.m. |
Saudi Arabia | Saudi Pro League (SPL) | Oct. 12, 11:59 p.m. |
Scotland | Scottish Professional Football League | Sept. 3, 5 p.m. |
Türkiye | Turkish Süper Lig | Sept. 4, 11:59 p.m. |
Gabriel Martinelli
Arsenal’s transfer window ended without the addition of a star attacker, despite the club’s pursuits of Morgan Rogers, Vinicius Junior and Julián Alvarez.
Christos Tzolis joined the club as Leandro Trossard’s replacement, but the Gunners will have to wait until 2027 to mitigate Gabriel Martinelli’s proposed departure.
The Brazilian is set to become Arsenal’s record sale after the Premier League champions agreed a $75 million deal with Al Hilal. With the Saudi Pro League’s deadline not arriving until mid-October, there’s still plenty of time for the deal to go through.
Given that no fresh face arrived post-Tzolis, supporters have called on the club to retain Martinelli, who hasn’t developed as many would’ve liked after his breakthrough 2022–23 campaign, but was a handy contributor in the domestic cups last season.
However, Arsenal have been offered a fee they simply cannot refuse, and they’ll expect Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke to support Tzolis down the left-hand side.
Richarlison
Richarlison defended himself from disgruntled Spurs suppporters who erroneously blamed him for Manchester City’s hijacking of the deal they had in place for Iliman Ndiaye.
The Brazilian was believed to be heading back to Everton, but failed to agree terms with his former club. Having previously requested to leave the Lilywhites, he now faces an uncertain future in North London, especially after Omar Marmoush joined Roberto De Zerbi’s ranks.
Trabzonspor have since made a play for the 29-year-old, but their first bid was unsuccessful. Still, the Turkish club could come back in for the scrappy center forward for Friday’s deadline.
Richarlison has just a year left on his Tottenham contract.
Folarin Balogun
After missing out on Richarlison, Everton panicked their way to the deadline and remarkably ended up without a striker after allowing Beto to join Fiorentina.
USMNT’s World Cup hero Folarin Balogun looked for all money to solve the Toffees’ depth issue up top until a rather bizarre transfer fiasco ensued on Merseyside, which ultimately ended with Balogun staying put at Monaco.
The former Arsenal starlet eventually decided against joining the Toffees after an issue arose during his medical.
Monaco, needing to sell, could yet facilitate Balogun’s departure with, as CEO Thiago Scuro put it, "markets that have the financial capacity to do something" still open.
Alexander Sørloth
Some classic rumor fodder in the final days of the Premier League’s summer window tied Atlético Madrid’s Alexander Sørloth to Manchester United. The Red Devils had no interest in bolstering their attack after last summer’s splurge, with a major midfield rejig their priority this time around.
Sørloth, though, could be one to watch in the Saudi market.
While Diego Simeone insisted that he wants to retain Sørloth after the club ensured Julián Alvarez didn’t secure his "dream" switch to Barcelona, the arrival of Jonathan David from Juventus means Atléti have more wriggle room if they receive a mammoth offer from the Gulf (or Türkiye).
Sørloth’s output was down last season, dropping from 20 La Liga goals to 13, and he’ll turn 31 in December. It might be time to cash in.
Jadon Sancho
Jadon Sancho’s drastic fall from grace hasn’t stopped. Clubs continue to take punts on the former Manchester United and Borussia Dortmund winger, but no one is willing to seriously commit.
He was among Europe’s most exciting performers when his stock peaked, but his $100 million move to the Red Devils in 2021 ignited Sancho’s staggering demise. Erik ten Hag failed to platform the winger correctly, but his time at Man Utd highlighted the limitations that were masked by the Bundesliga’s space-haven.
Sancho has since offered spurts of his pre-COVID genius, particularly during a loan spell back at BVB. A relatively productive spell at Chelsea was followed by utter indifference at Aston Villa, but at least he’s no longer bound by that horrifically lucrative Man Utd contract.
Now a free agent, it’s unclear what the future holds for the 26-year-old.
Ismaïla Sarr
Crystal Palace simply cannot allow Ismaïla Sarr to depart.
They at least had the chance to mitigate his exit by signing a replacement when the Premier League’s transfer window was still open, but the Eagles were edged out by Sunderland to Malick Fofana’s signature.
They’re short on quality in attack, especially while a disgruntled Jean-Philippe Mateta is out injured, and losing Sarr would be catastrophic.
Palace have so far resisted advances from Galatasaray and Liverpool. They’ve got to hold firm for a little while longer.
Karim Benzema
There are several options on the table for Karim Benzema after reaching a mutual agreement with Al Hilal to leave the club, including retirement.
The legendary French striker joined the record Saudi Pro League champions at the start of the year and scored nine times in 10 league games. However, his addition failed to prevent old buddy Cristiano Ronaldo from claiming his first league title since moving to the Gulf region.
Al Hilal essentially chose Ollie Watkins over the 38-year-old, who has garnered interest from Al Shabab in the SPL.
Richard Ríos
26-year-old Richard Ríos played a surprisingly limited role for Colombia at the 2026 World Cup, having risen to prominence at the Club World Cup the previous summer.
Ríos earned a move to Benfica off the back of his impressive campaign with Palmeiras, but the imposing midfielder is moving on from the Portuguese club after just a season.
He’s Benfica’s fourth-most expensive signing, and had been tenuously linked with a move to Everton earlier in the summer. Now, though, Ríos is ready to leave Europe after a brief stay and head to Saudi Arabia.
Al Ittihad have agreed to sign the midfielder on loan for the 2026–27 season without an option to buy.
Leon Bailey
Leon Bailey was one to keep an eye on in the remaining days and hours of the Premier League’s summer window, with the newly promoted Hull City among the clubs interested in signing the wantaway Jamaican.
Bailey has been training on his own all summer after Aston Villa made it clear that he was no longer a part of their plans.
He’s been a steady performer at Villa Park for several years, but was another who was ultimately compromised by the lofty expectations a productive Bundesliga season thrust upon him.
A loan to Roma didn’t work out, and he barely played 700 minutes of soccer across all competitions last term. With his number of potential suitors dwindling, Al Ittihad and Diriyah Club are the most likely destinations for the 29-year-old.
Lamine Camara
Chelsea’s late pursuit of a midfielder suggests they were almost caught off guard by Manchester City’s interest and eventual agreement with Enzo Fernández.
The Blues considered Manu Koné on Deadline Day, but were rebuffed by Roma. It then seemed that Monaco would sanction the $63.4 million departure of Senegalese international Lamine Camara.
It was quite the saga with a litany of dominoes, concluding with Monaco retaining Camara and the Everton-linked Folarin Balogun, meaning they were unable to sign Mexican international Erik Lira.
A Premier League switch seems apt for Camara at this stage of his career, but Galatasaray are reportedly sniffing around.
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