5 players who the Premier League's big clubs should move on in the summer | Premier League 2019-20

Despite the next transfer window not opening for a good few months yet, news outlets are already awash with plenty of stories regarding which big-name players could be making mega-money moves to the Premier League’s giants this summer.

However, less talk has come around which players could be about to leave those big clubs. All of the Premier League’s big sides have huge squads these days, and so if they want to bring in more new talent, the likelihood is that they’ll have to move on some current players first.

Here are 5 players who the Premier League’s big clubs should look to move on during the summer.

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#1 Andreas Pereira (Manchester United)

Manchester United should part ways with Andreas Pereira in the summer

Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seems to have made it part of his mission to move on some of the Red Devils’ so-called “dead wood” ever since taking over at Old Trafford in late 2018, and thus far he’s seen the likes of Ashley Young, Chris Smalling, Alexis Sanchez and Matteo Darmian all depart for pastures new.

However, United still have some players who could be considered surplus to requirements, and one of them could be Brazilian midfielder Andreas Pereira. Pereira has been with the club since the age of 16 and has currently made nearly 70 appearances for United’s first team since the 2014-15 season, but questions still about over exactly what role he actually fills at Old Trafford.

Solskjaer has used him in 22 Premier League games this season, deploying him as an attacking midfielder, a playmaker and a defensive midfielder, but the Brazilian has been largely ineffective in all areas, contributing just one goal and 3 assists across those matches.

With the signing of Bruno Fernandes looking to provide the Red Devils with a spark of creativity in the middle, the likes of Fred and Scott McTominay excelling in the deeper areas – and Paul Pogba set to return any time now – it seems like Pereira could be the odd man out. Therefore, United would probably be smart to let him move on during the summer.

#2 Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham Hotspur)

Tottenham's Jan Vertonghen has struggled this season

Spurs defender Jan Vertonghen is out of contract in the summer and thus he’ll be able to move to a new club on a free transfer should he choose to do so, but current reports suggest that Jose Mourinho is still open to keeping the Belgian veteran in North London. But despite his long tenure at the club and popularity with the fans, to hand him a new deal now would likely be an error in judgment.

Vertonghen has been largely fantastic for Spurs since signing for them in the summer of 2012; he’s averaged over 30 Premier League appearances in each of his 7 full seasons, has scored some important goals for the club, and was even named in the Champions League’s Squad of the Season during the 2018-19 campaign.

However, recently he’s looked like a shadow of his former self. The Belgian wasn’t used by Mauricio Pochettino in Spurs’ early games this season and when he has been deployed since, his pace appears to have gone entirely and it was this issue that partially led to Tottenham’s embarrassing 2-7 loss to Bayern Munich in October.

With Tottenham able to call upon Vertonghen’s international teammate Toby Alderweireld – who has signed a new deal – as well as younger defenders like Davinson Sanchez, Japhet Tanganga and Juan Foyth, it may be better for all parties if the Belgian simply moves on at the end of the season – likely being remembered as cult hero by Spurs fans.

#3 Adam Lallana (Liverpool)

Adam Lallana has become surplus to requirements at Liverpool

Attacking midfielder Adam Lallana has been linked with a move away from Liverpool for some time right now, and with just a handful of months remaining on his contract, which expires during the summer, it’s almost definitely time for the Reds to let the former Southampton man move onto pastures new.

Lallana has played just 13 games for the Reds this season – starting on just 3 occasions in the Premier League – and while he’s actually managed one goal and one assist in that time, including an all-important equaliser against Manchester United in October, it’s quite clear at this stage that the former England man has become surplus to requirements at Anfield.

It’s also notable that Jurgen Klopp seems to have a ready-made replacement for Lallana in the form of 19-year old academy graduate Curtis Jones, who has impressed during his appearances in the domestic cup competitions for the Reds this season. With his creativity, dribbling skills and eye for goal, Jones needs more game time in 2020-21 – and that means keeping Lallana would block his path.

At the age of 31, Lallana still has a lot to offer at the Premier League level – but the truth is that he doesn’t have a lot to give Liverpool at this stage, and so he should be allowed to move on.

#4 Nicolas Otamendi (Manchester City)

Nicolas Otamendi has been guilty of some sloppy mistakes at Manchester City this season

Much has been made of Manchester City’s struggles this season; Pep Guardiola’s men are still second in the Premier League table and are still in with a shout of winning the Champions League, but it’s clear to everyone that they haven’t been at their imperious best, and they’ve already lost as many games during the current campaign than they have done in the previous two combined.

It’s clear that Guardiola needs to carry out a rebuild at the Etihad, and one area he definitely needs to look at is in defence. That probably means moving on a couple of players, and one likely candidate for a summer exit could be Argentine centre-back Nicolas Otamendi.

Not only is the Argentine an older player at the age of 32, but he’s also come under fire on numerous occasions this season for his reckless on-field decisions and sloppiness on the ball in difficult defensive situations. Most notable of course was the individual error he made that cost City a key goal during their shock 3-2 loss to Norwich in September.

Otamendi simply doesn’t command the respect that his teammate Aymeric Laporte – and former captain Vincent Kompany – do in the centre of City’s defence, and so it’d be a smart move for Guardiola to look to ease him out of the Etihad and bring in a younger, and hopefully superior replacement.

#5 Olivier Giroud (Chelsea)

Olivier Giroud has barely been used at Chelsea in 2019-20

Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud was rumoured to be about to make a move away from Stamford Bridge in the recent January transfer window, but despite moves to Tottenham, Inter Milan and Lazio all being mooted, the Frenchman remains part of Frank Lampard’s squad at the current time.

It’s hard to understand why, to be honest. The French striker has barely kicked a ball for the Blues this season, appearing in just 5 Premier League games – 3 of them as a substitute – for a total of 192 minutes. Even the various cup competitions that Chelsea are involved in have seen Lampard prefer to use Michy Batshuayi as a stand-in for first choice striker Tammy Abraham.

With every week that he doesn’t play, Giroud’s dream of making the France squad for the upcoming Euro 2020 tournament seems to be fading, and in a lot of respects that’s sad. The striker’s contract is up in the summer meaning he can move away from Stamford Bridge on a free transfer, and so it’d be the clear and obvious move for him to do so – perhaps heading away from the Premier League for the first time since 2012.