Bosman & GBE/ESC: Using contract lengths to maximise recruitment potential, including GBE Expert Player Report on Daiju Sasaki
Day 12 of the 12 Days of GBE Expert Hub Content
Some really impactful transfers in modern times have come as a result of a free transfer on the expiry of a player’s contract.
Robert Lewandowski’s move to Bayern from Dortmund is probably the biggest example in the last decade, but in terms of foreign players moving to England, we can think of the likes of Thiago Silva going to Chelsea, Joel Matip to Liverpool, Michael Ballack to Chelsea, and, my personal favourite, Jay-Jay Okocha to Bolton Wanderers on a free from PSG.
Free agency, or picking up players at the end of a contract, is how the majority of transfers work in the lower reaches of the EFL as well. 97-99% of transfers in League Two, traditionally, have been domestic, and, the vast majority of clubs in League Two don’t tend to use any of their budget on transfer fees either.
It can be a difficult bargaining system for those clubs, and also ones from the bottom-half of the Scottish Premiership downwards, or the Welsh, and Northern Irish clubs, who mostly operate under that same cattle market structure of no fee payments.
Sometimes, no fee can mean a hike in wages if the player is in demand. Though, of course, if a player is in demand, then he is often out of the reach of many clubs.
So how can clubs that are constantly being outbid or negotiated out of domestic players who will genuinely improve their team? Perhaps we can try a different route.
Free Transfers as GBE Transfers
It may be surprising to many that there is actually only 38 free transfers across all GBE transfers (not ESC) since the GBE regulations came into action for the January 2021 transfer window.
By our calculations at the The GBE Expert Hub, there have been 310 GBE transfers into the English league system (PL + EFL) since the January 2021 window, which means that only 13% of them have been on a free transfer. Some of the remaining 272 transfers will have been loans with no fee, but they are classed as loans rather than frees in the data set.
Point to note:
Loans under GBE/ESC will be an article that will be written for the paid tier of subscribers in the new year.
GBE Free Transfer Facts
Looking deeper into our dataset, there are some interesting bits and pieces to tease out.
TM value: 171.3m Euro
The total Transfermarkt value of the GBE free transfers brought in is just short of 200m Euro. Not a bad saving, but one has to wonder how much extra in wages has been paid as a result of those fees not being paid.
Mean value per player: 5.3m Euro
The total equates to just over 5m Euro per player. Much of this is very top heavy, the median is only 2.5m.
Mean age: 27
Whilst there is a top heaviness to the list here as well, with a number of 33 year olds brought in on short term deals, such as Yann M'Vila for West Brom last season, there some examples of young players moving at the end of their first or second senior contracts.
Noteworthy GBE free transfers in the Premier League
Boubacar Kamara - 22 - DM - Aston Villa
The player with the highest TM value when signed into England on a free is the Aston Villa midfielder. Now making an impact in the first team, he is clearly a big asset given his age and ability.
Manor Solomon - 23 - FW - Tottenham
Having made an impact in the Premier League on loan at Fulham, Tottenham swooped in to secure Solomon's signature on a permanent basis. The Israeli is now on loan in the Championship at Leeds, trying to help them return to the Premier League.
Successful GBE free transfers in the EFL Championship
Sondre Tronstad - MF - Blackburn Rovers
A great piece of recruitment by Blackburn in summer 2023. Tronstad was a regular for Vitesse in the Eredivisie so easily got the necessary GBE points. Tronstad has formed a formidible partnership with Lewis Travis for Rovers, and is perfect for John Eustace's team.
Paul Nardi - GK - QPR
Goalkeeper was a problem position for QPR, but they solved it brilliantly with the signing of Paul Nardi. He was surplus to requirements at Gent, where he had spent two seasons, and had enough GBE points from playing in Belgium.
Dimitrios Goutas & Manolis Siopis - CB/DM - Cardiff
These chaps had to be paired together. The twin threat from Greece certainly helped to solidify the Cardiff defence and both came from the Band 2 Turkish league, again, earning more than enough GBE points through their appearances there.
Free Transfers as ESC Transfers
There have been only 10 free transfers amongst all of the ESC transfers. This is quite a striking statistic, because the vast majority of the free ESC transfers are EFL based, only one of the ten is a Premier League move, and the vast majority of EFL deals are also free transfers.
Therefore, it would seem to me that there is something of a stumbling block over which many EFL clubs are reticent to approach.
Six of the buying clubs were based in the Championship, with QPR popping up twice.
None of the players have yet been sold, remembering that ESC has been around only since summer 2023, so it is difficult to pinpoint value acquisitions, but players like Paik Seung-Ho, Lucas Andersen, Tyler Bindon, Jeremy Kelly, and Svante Ingelsson have played a high percentage of available minutes for their EFL clubs.
Contract end dates across the Bands
It is interesting to note that four of the ten ESC free signings have been winter signings.
It is important for us to remember that although most European leagues run a winter schedule, and most contract end dates are in June/July, there are many leagues in the world that have different contract end dates, and the smartest clubs will have planned in to check these markets for players who have GBE (they will all have ESC if they have played).
Japanese and South Korean players have recently been heavily recruited. They have a very handy contract end date for EFL clubs who need a boost in January.
However, there are plenty of other Band 1-5 leagues who have similar contract expiries that should also be looked into.
The GBE Expert Hub has already selected their favourites from each winter expiry to look into deeper, clubs can contact for more info.
The usual contract end dates for:
Band 3
Brazil - December
Argentina - December
Mexico - June
MLS - December
Band 4
Colombia - December
Band 5
Sweden - December
Norway - December
Japan - January
S. Korea - December
Chile - December
Uruguay - December
Australia - June
As we mentioned above, Japanese players from the J-League are en vogue a little bit at the moment. With contracts running out in January, it is a great time for an EFL club to potentially pick up a talented operator from the J-League for no fee.
Our background data system has picked up on a handful of well scoring players, and Sam Hutchinson has reported on a couple who he thinks could play in the Championship. One is presented below, and one will be presented to paid tier subscribers next week.
GBE Eye Match Report
Biographical Details
Name: Daiju Sasaki
Age/D.o.B: 25 (17.09.1998)
Citizenship: Japan
Position(s): ST, CAM
Club: Vissel Kobe
Height: Approx 180cm
Preferred foot: Right
TM Market Value: £701,237
Contract: Expiry: 31.01.2025 - *APPROACHING END OF CONTRACT*
Current wage (FM24 estimate): £1799 pw
Status
GBE Status: Fail
ESC Status: Pass (appearences in Band 5 J-League)
Relevant Data
AWRSS Best Role: Power forward & Deep-Lying forward (Ranked #1 in J-League for both roles!)
AWRSS Best Attributes: Penalty area entries, progressive runs, composure (offensive)
Match Info
Observed: 26th November 2024 vs Central Coast Mariners (AFC Champions League) - Low difficulty
Final score: 3-2
Shape: 4-2-3-1 (vs 4-4–2 )
Brief match report: The first half saw Vissel Kobe dominate their Australian opposition preventing them from mounting any dangerous attacks. Vissel Kobe managed to convert two of the many chances they had in the first half. Central Coast Mariners did manage to make a comeback in the second half scoring two goals back, stunning Vissel Kobe. However, a powerful Sasaki strike was fumbled in by the Mariners goalkeeper to give Vissel Kobe the win.
Match report
Effectiveness of role
Lining up as the focal point of Vissel Kobe’s attack, Sasaki operated as a false 9, calling upon the qualities that he uses in his natural position of number 10. Sasaki would drift all around the pitch looking to receive the ball to feet with a view of creating dangerous opportunities for his teammates. He also wasn’t afraid to carry out the role of a traditional striker, using clever double movement in an attempt to be played in behind the opposition. His cunning off the ball runs were also seen in the penalty box where he would often find himself free of marking due to his ability to lose his marker. Sasaki was also excellent at rotating with his side’s attackers, giving them the ability to pick up dangerous spaces unmarked.
Defensively, Sasaki was a key component to Vissel Kobe’s high press. He was quick to put his opponents under pressure when he spotted a pressing trigger. In these situations, Sasaki did at times dive in, allowing his opponent to dribble by him easily. He was fantastic at cutting off passing lanes, scanning to see where the opposition’s midfielders were. When he wasn’t pressing the man on the ball he would also take up the responsibility of closely marking the Mariner’s deepest midfielder, cutting off their ability to cleanly progress the ball into midfield.
Physical attributes
Standing at 5ft’9, Sasaki was by no means the tallest player on the pitch. This was a contributing factor to how poor he was in the air. Despite possessing an excellent leap, Sasaki was outmuscled in aerial duels and failed to use his body effectively when competing for balls in the air. Both in and out of possession Sasaki proved he had incredible agility. When on the ball he was able to quickly shake off his opponent through quick body feints and changes of direction. This ability to change direction and pace was also seen when he was making dangerous movements to escape marking. His speed and agility were also key aids to his ability to fulfill the high pressing strategy of Vissel Kobe.
Technical skill
On the ball Sasaki demonstrated incredible imagination and confidence. He was able to control balls that were fired into him. He would then use his skill to outplay his opponents. Sasaki had the ability to play intricate first time passes making him excellent at linking up play. His ability to link play was also seen on several occasions when he took the ball on his back foot in between the lines, allowing him to play balls into the attacking third with either foot for forward runners. One disappointing area of Sasaki’s game was the quality of his end product. His crosses and shots lacked the needed accuracy to cause the opposition issues.
Decision making under pressure
An excellent feature of Sasaki’s game was his ability to scan. He would constantly scan to assess his options allowing him to understand whether he was being pressed or not. When being isolated in possession, he was able to maintain possession, losing the player pressing him in tight spaces. Sasaki would at times make bold decisions, such as ambitious shots and passes. This again highlighted his confidence yet were far from the best options he had available.
Psychological & Social
It was evident that Sasaki had high standards for himself. He would show a great deal of frustration when he failed to make the most of an opportunity. These high expectations also extended to his teammates. He would constantly moan if he felt they made the wrong choice, particularly if he believed he should have been passed to. Late into the game Sasaki used every means of slowing down the game and greatly annoyed his opponents. Surprisingly he didn’t receive a yellow card for his antics.
Any Other Business
I believe Sasaki would be the perfect profile for a bottom half Championship or top League 1 team that wants to play a possession based game. His level of technical ability exceeds many players that play at the top level of the Championship, yet I don’t believe he has the end product or physical capacity to be a reliable player for a promotion chasing Championship side.
Sasaki, wouldn’t suit Scottish football. I don’t believe that he could handle the competitive and physical nature of the Scottish Premiership. There are also a limited number of teams that play a possession based game that would suit his qualities.
Further assessment must be made into Sasaki’s ability to play in his natural position as a number 10.
Verdict
Key strengths
High level technical ability
Excellent at pressing
Has an incredible self belief
Risks to mitigate
Poor aerially
Can make rash decisions
Consistently showed he was upset when his teammates didn’t pass to him
Current UK level recommendation
CH- (Bottom-range Championship)
Potential UK level recommendation
CH (Mid-range Championship)