GM, Free Agents.

Welcome to the The Free Transfer— the 5-min daily newsletter making you smarter about football.

Monday morning blues for Leicester & Leeds fans have never been worse.

What we’ve got for today:

• PL Final day 🏁 

  • Leicester & Leeds relegated — firesale begins 🦊 ⚪️ 

  • Liverpool & Southampton 8-goal thriller— a microcosm for their seasons 💥 

  • Waterworks time— fan favorites say goodbye 👋 😢 

PREMIER LEAGUE FINAL DAY 🏁 

Unfortunately for Leicester fans, the Gaffer’s bet (that Leicester would stay up) didn’t come good.

Let’s check out what happened on the final day & its repercussions. But first, let’s see that final table. ⤵️ 

RELEGATION BATTLE 🔻 

Fixture results— TLDR;

Everton beat Bournemouth 1-0 at home with a goal from Abdoulaye Doucoure— his third goal in the last 4 matches. He has been their savior from relegation.

Leicester beat West Ham 2-1 at home, but are still relegated thanks to Everton’s win.

Leeds are pummeled at home 4-1 by Tottenham to confirm relegation.

Firesale begins 💸 🔥 

The relegation of Leicester, Leeds, & Southampton will result in clubs circling like vultures for their talent.

As relegated clubs need to cut back wage bills & rid themselves of unhappy players, these sales usually come at a cut price.

Leicester City

James Maddison— 10 goals, 9 assists

• Has been linked to many big 6 clubs throughout his 5-year tenure at Leicester.

• After relegation & with only 1 year left on his contract, he could be sold for a cut price.

  • Leicester rejected bid of £70mm 2 years ago.

  • Could go for less than £40mm after relegation

• Manchester United & Newcastle are the two clubs who have been most linked with him over the past few months.

Youri Tielemans— 3 goals, 2 assists

• With his contract expiring this summer, he will be able to leave Leicester on a free transfer.

• He has been linked with a move to Liverpool, Manchester United, Tottenham, Newcastle, and more. His on-ball & attacking quality is clear.

• Although he may not start for some of those clubs, he is quality quality depth and enables them to use budget elsewhere.

Harvey Barnes— 13 goals, 1 assist

• The 25-year-old left winger/forward scores for fun.

• With only 2 years left on his contract, he is very attainable.

• He has been linked with moves to West Ham & Aston Villa, both of whom could be in Europe next season.

• A rumored move to Tottenham could make sense if Levy cuts ties with Son Heung-Min this summer.

Leeds United

Tyler Adams— 4 tackles & 2 interceptions per match

• #6/#8 who can also play at right back. He loves to win the ball back quickly— duel monster, smart, never stops running.

• Rumors of a move have begun— most notably to Manchester United.

  • This could make sense with rumored departure of both McTominay & Wan Bissaka, as he could simultaneously fill both #6 & RB depth roles. His ability to invert at RB would play into Ten Hag’s system well.

Wilfried Gnonto— 2 goals, 4 assists

• 19 year old left winger— 1v1 dribbler, chance creator, & decent end product

• Rumored interest from Tottenham, Lazio, & Juventus (among others)

Illan Meslier— -13.14 goals prevented

• 6’6”, 23-year-old goalkeeper. Great shot stopper, solid with ball at his feet, struggles in the air

• Has been linked in the past with moves to Manchester United, Tottenham, & Chelsea among others.

Southampton

Romeo Lavia— 1 goal, 82% passing success rate

• 19-year-old #6 from Manchester City’s academy— strong passer & defender at the base of midfield

• Manchester City have a buyback clause of £40mm

• Lots of top teams have been linked with interest since January— Arsenal, Tottenham, Manchester United, Chelsea, Newcastle, etc.

Armel Bella-Kotchap— 2 assists, 76% of ground duels won

• 21-year-old, German international center back— tall, athletic defender who is strong in the tackle & solid with the ball at his feet

• Would be very useful for any top team looking to bring a technical/physical presence to their defense.

• Been linked with a move to Tottenham, Dortmund, RB Leipzig, & Liverpool

Kamaldeen Sulemana— 2 goals, 1 assist; 2 dribbles completed per match

• 21-year-old forward with electric pace & skill on the ball, solid finisher

• Can play left & right winger— would be an asset to any team who needs depth at both, and is willing to help him develop more.

• No strong links with a new club yet— one to watch in coming weeks

LIVERPOOL & SOUTHAMPTON 8-GOAL THRILLER IS VERY TELLING…💥🔍️ 

Yesterday’s 4-4 draw tells us a lot more about both teams than may meet the eye 👇️ 

Southampton

Going down 2-0 from individual mistakes & poor defending pretty much sums up why Southampton have been relegated this season.

On the other hand, their exciting attacking play & counter attacks show us exactly what this team is capable of going forward, which makes it all the more disappointing that they have been relegated so easily.

• This team is full of so much unrealized attacking threat— Kamaldeen Sulemana, James Ward-Prowse, Mislav Orsic, Paul Onuachu, Sekou Mara, Carlos Alcaraz, etc.

• Scoring 3 goals away to Arsenal & 4 goals vs. Liverpool shows what they could have been.

Liverpool

This team will miss Bobby Firmino’s style & flair in attack.

• In the “system” era of football, where such traits are less & less common, his individual brilliance stood out. Maybe not the most efficient attacker, but one who came up in huge moments & pulled many rabbits out of his hat.

Conceding 4 goals to league-worst Southampton is not an exception, but a theme this season.

• Kamaldeen Sulemana’s second goal where he ran the length of the pitch & scored an uncontested shot from the top of the box was a microcosm for Liverpool’s defensive woes this season.

  • Aging midfield doesn’t have the legs to get back on counter attacks to cover their advanced fullbacks, which leaves defenders on an island.

  • Defenders who are used to “delay” tactics (until midfield is back) do not engage attack & are overrun.

  • Fullbacks are blamed for being poor defenders, when in reality they never were great defenders—they just lost the midfielders who could cover for their advanced positions in previous 5 seasons.

Elite chance creators

• This team’s attacking threat is still top 2 or 3 in the league.

• They create chances all over the pitch whenever they want.

WATERWORKS TIME— FAN FAVORITES SAY GOODBYE 👋 😢 

Lucas Moura

Who could forget his hattrick away to Ajax in 2019 to send Spurs to the UCL final?

Granit Xhaka

If you told Arsenal fans a few years ago that Granit Xhaka would leave as a “fan favorite”, they would’ve laughed you out of the Emirates. His turnaround in the past 3 seasons has been remarkable. He leaves Arsenal with his head held high, as a cornerstone of Arteta’s rebuild.

Roberto Firmino

An Anfield legend, a cornerstone of Klopp’s Liverpool rebuild, & absolute baller. His presence will be missed at Liverpool next season.

Mason Mount

Mount looks to be on his way out this summer as well. His UCL-winning assist etched his name into Chelsea lore forever. He will be missed by the fans.

Have a good Monday folks. Europa League Final to look forward to on Wednesday.

Ciao for now,

— The Gaffer