In modern football, the ability to recruit a player on a free transfer is one of the few opportunities for teams with little resources to compete with much wealthier opponents.
Such teams aim to accomplish high sports performance through a well-constructed selection, after which a player who arrived for free is sold someplace for a pretty significant amount of money. Free transfers do, however, also occur with the best clubs and the most expensive players. Here are some of the largest free transfers of all time.
AC Milan, who allowed Andrea Pirlo to go on a free transfer in the summer of 2011, could serve as an example of mismanagement for teams that place too much emphasis on the number in the column “age” when judging a player’s chances and value. Andrea was 32 years old when he signed on as a free agent for Juventus, where he spent four incredible seasons proving his talent to the whole football world. It’s no surprise that Gianluigi Buffon dubbed Pirlo’s free transfer to Juventus “the signing of the century.”
If the transfer of Pirlo from Milan to Juventus can be dubbed the “signing of the century,” then the summer 2014 transfer of striker Robert Lewandowski from Borussia Dortmund to Bayern Munich may be labeled the “steal of the century.” The most successful team in Germany was able to lure this top scorer away from a rival for free, convincing them not to sign a new deal with the Black and Yellows. In today’s world, such a transaction would cost the buying club at least 100-150 million euros, but Bayern established their class even on the German domestic transfer market.
Rumors of a rekindled feud between Mkhitaryan and Jose Mourinho, which originated in Manchester United, were completely debunked. However, the midfielder left Roma at the end of his contract. Mkhitaryan took the safe route and will now play for Inter. Previously, Aleksandar Kolarov, Edin Dzeko, and others took this same path.
Javi Hernandez, one of the most iconic Barcelona players of all time, opted to quit the club in the summer of 2015. However, the superb midfielder did not call it quits, deciding to join Qatari Al-Sadd as a free agent, where he was granted a three-year deal with the prospect of continuing work with the coaching staff. The Spaniard did not lose, as time has proven. He won the Qatar title with the squad in the 2018/19 season, after which he chose to retire from football and accepted the post of head coach.
Raul Gonzalez Blanco, a Real Madrid great, decided in 2010 that he could no longer be as important to his hometown club as he once was due mainly to his age and increased competition. At the same time, the striker did not want to finish his career abruptly, so he accepted an invitation from Schalke and moved to Germany as a free agent. The Gelsenkirchen team, who won the league title in 2009/10, struggled in the following season, ending 14th, just four points above the relegation zone. Raul became the team’s leading scorer, with 13 goals. Without him, Schalke would almost certainly have entered the Second Bundesliga.