With only the Conference League and Champions League finals set to be played, the 2022/23 season is winding down to a close and the focus is starting to turn to the 2022/23 transfer market.
For the most part, strikers get most of the love on the transfer rumor mill, because goals are at a premium. However, midfielders are becoming increasingly coveted, as Real Madrid’s recent big-money moves for Aurélien Tchouaméni and Jude Bellingham have shown us.
So here are the best midfielders expected to be available on the summer 2023 transfer market.
10. Leon Goretzka, Bayern München: While Leon Goretzka did not have his best season in 2022/23, it wasn’t long ago when he was one of the very best players in the Bundesliga, even before joining Bayern München. He helped carry Schalke to second in the league in the 2017/18 season before joining Bayern for free. Schalke, by the way, haven’t even been remotely good since. (Well, except for that one half-season in 2019/20…)
Thomas Tuchel doesn’t seem to be happy with Goretzka’s performances and may want a different player next to Joshua Kimmich, who should be seen as untouchable despite the rumors. Goretzka will surely want to stay and fight, but the decision may not be his if Bayern’s manager pushes the new leadership to make a move.
9. James Maddison, Leicester City: Leicester City have gone down to the Championship due to a horrendous defense and a number of underperforming players elsewhere. But one star player who showed up? James Maddison, one of the best technicians in English football.
The playmaker could be signed at a discount this summer, and there are a number of teams who could use his sweet ball striking. Maddison quietly scored 10 goals with 9 assists on an otherwise awful Leicester side, having scored 12 with 8 assists in 2021/22.
8. Seko Fofana, Lens: Seko Fofana is still underrated despite being one of the elite players in Ligue 1 for yet another year running. Lens received plaudits across French football for being the most complete team in the league, though they couldn’t quite narrow the gap on PSG’s star-studded roster. In the end, they were only one point away from the Qatar project.
With seven goals, five assists, and three combined dribbles completed and fouls drawn per game, Fofana produced another fine season as one of Europe’s premier box-to-box midfielders. And have you seen his thunderous strikes from range? With Lens set to compete in the Champions League next season, Fofana is likely uninterested in leaving and seen as untouchable by his club. But you never know if someone sends Lens a financial offer they can’t refuse…
7. Gabri Veiga, Celta Vigo: Gabri Veiga was one of the major breakout stars of the 2022/23 LaLiga season, and although a transfer to Newcastle was rumored to be close, nothing is official yet. Veiga could be an excellent fit for the Magpies, who just qualified for the Champions League themselves, but he could also be a game-changer for any number of big clubs in Europe.
Last season, the 21-year-old scored 11 goals with 4 assists from midfield to help turn Celta’s season around and prevent them from being sent to the Segunda in what was an absurdly competitive title race in LaLiga.
6. Dani Ceballos, Real Madrid: But the best possible transfer target from LaLiga this summer is Real Madrid star Dani Ceballos. While recent indications are that the former Real Betis man will extend his stay in the Spanish capital in order to be a key role player for the biggest club in world football, that may only happen if Madrid meet his demands for minutes.
Ceballos knows he will not start every game, and the future of Madrid belongs to the quartet of Jude Bellingham, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga, and Fede Valverde. With Toni Kroos and Luka Modrić still set to play at least one more season in Madrid, the talented Spaniard may have to fight for opportunities despite outplaying all those Madrid players since the calendar turned to 2023. He could be THE value signing of the summer if someone can coax him to leave Los Blancos.
5. Manu Koné, Borussia Mönchengladbach: When it comes to up-and-coming, box-to-box midfielders who can do it all, you can’t do much better than Manu Koné. The Borussia Mönchengladbach bright spot in midfield first emerged on the radar in 2021/22 during a truly awful season under Adi Hütter, and while fortunes barely changed for the Foals in 2022/23 under Daniel Farke (also promptly fired by the club), Koné’s stock only rose.
Almost every top club wants to sign Koné, who seems destined for a Premier League move. Manchester United, Liverpool, and others would do well to sign the young man. Koné had a combined 4.4 dribbles completed and fouls drawn in the Bundesliga last season. Seriously, imagine him in a double-pivot with Casemiro.
4. Sergej Milinković-Savić, Lazio: On paper, Sergej Milinković-Savić could be the No. 1 midfielder on this list. The Lazio leader has been exceptional these past few seasons, producing numbers that compare favorably with any of the world’s very best midfielders. This season, it has been business as usual for SMS, as he scored nine goals with eight assists for a Biancocelesti side that surprised everyone by finishing second in another tense Serie A top seven.
The problem isn’t quality. SMS is an exceptional athlete with standout technical qualities as a creator and finisher. The problem is that the biggest clubs in Europe will be concerned with his track record in the biggest matches, which is why he was snubbed from our Serie A Team of the Season.
3. Enzo Le Fée, Lorient: Lionel Messi, Alexandre Lacazette, Seko Fofana, and Folarin Balogun all have cases, but Enzo Le Fée should also be on the shortlist of the Ligue 1 Player of the Season candidates for the 2022/23 season.
One of the major breakout stars of the league, Le Fée was outstanding in the middle of the park and is fully ready for a move to a top, top club in Europe, It could make more sense, though, for him to go to a big club that isn’t quite elite, such as Borussia Dortmund. They have done wonders with players from Ligue 1, such as Ousmane Dembélé, Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang, and a former Lorient star in Raphaël Guerreiro.
2. Bernardo Silva, Manchester City: The decision to stay or leave is entirely up to Bernardo Silva. As the likes of João Cancelo, Gabriel Jesus, and Oleksandr Zinechenko have shown us, Manchester City do not hold back their players from a transfer if they want a new challenge or fit in their careers. (Take notes, Qatar.)
Silva is one of the classiest and most versatile attacking players in world football, producing elite performances from the right wing or in midfield. Just ask Bayern München what this wonderfully intelligent baller could do. On paper, he looks like a sensational fit for the Barcelona project, though a lot depends on Silva’s wishes and Barça’s financial situation. A reunion with Lionel Messi would seemingly rule out a move for City’s talented lefty.
1. Declan Rice, West Ham: Like Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice is much more than just an overhyped English midfielder, and because of the backlash against the media’s proclivity towards hyping only players from England, Rice may also be undervalued.
Rice looks like the kind of young midfielder who can become a true superstar on a better side. West Ham aren’t bad on paper, but they were very disappointing in 2022/23. Rice was by far their best player, reading the game nearly perfectly on the defensive end while picking out brilliant passes and bravely leading the Hammers through pressure on the ball. The press does not phase Rice, nor does the need to be a leader.
