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A Different Approach to Transfer Analysis
This post marks a shift in my newsletter approach. Rather than purely analytical pieces, I'm venturing into transfer opinions and player recommendations - starting with an intriguing question: which quality players got caught up in Serie A relegation this season?
With Monza, Empoli, and Venezia all dropping to Serie B, there's potential value hiding among their squads. Using my radar methodology with Dixon and Coles team ratings to weight metrics appropriately, I analyzed the 30 highest-rated players from these clubs (minimum 1000 minutes played).
The Relegated Talent Pool
The list reveals both expected and surprising names. Several players have already moved or were clearly destined for bigger things:
Already Secured:
Daniel Maldini → Atalanta (January)
Warren Bondo → Milan (January)
Pablo Marí → Fiorentina (following Palladino in January)
Luca Marianucci → Napoli (practically confirmed)
Loan Players Returning:
Filip Stankovic (Inter)
Alessio Zerbin (Napoli)
Akpa Akpro (Lazio)
Serie A Veterans:
Stefano Turati (previously relegated with Sassuolo)
Youssef Maleh
Alfred Duncan
Danilo D'Ambrosio
Tino Anjorin - The Injury-Prone Talent
Age: 22 | Former: Chelsea Academy
Despite another injury-hit season, Anjorin looked completely out of place at Empoli's level when healthy. His physical tools and spatial awareness suggest significant untapped potential for Serie A, and maybe even for a return in the Premier League. Both Atalanta and Juventus have reportedly shown interest - a calculated risk that could pay dividends if his fitness issues can be resolved.
Saba Goglichidze - The Versatile Defender
Age: 20 | Position: CB/RB
Nearly 3,000 minutes across multiple positions demonstrates remarkable consistency for his age in Serie A. His radar shows solid number in defensive actions, value allowed in his responsibility zone, progressive passing, and tactical fouling. While he needs patience and development given his age, interest from Roma, Juventus, and Milan suggests his potential is widely recognized, but no one has yet pulled the trigger on him, suggesting there’s cold feet around him.
Sebastiano Esposito - The Repositioned Wonderkid
Age: 22 (turns 23 in July) | Position: AM (per my clustering analysis)
Once heralded as Inter's next big thing after his 2019/20 Serie A and Champions League debuts, Esposito has found himself in limbo. Interestingly, my positional clustering suggests he's now played effectively as an attacking midfielder rather than the striker/second striker role he's traditionally played.
Areas for improvement:
Shot quality (xG per shot)
Chance creation for teammates (npxG assists)
Defensive contribution
Potential destinations: I could see him moving to Como if they want to bet on him – maybe to replace Paz –, or at Torino to allow better rotations. More pressured environment but not pressured enough to not allow him to growth and continue to rack up minutes.
Special Mentions from Empoli
Cacace & Viti: Both solid players deserving better platforms
Viti specifically: Left-footed, born 2002, failed at Nice but showed promises at Sassuolo and now Empoli. Given his left footedness I’d seem playing a role almost everywhere apart from Inter where Bastoni and Carlos Augusto provide huge competition.
Monza: Limited Appeal
Frankly, Monza's remaining talent pool didn't warrant deep analysis. The standout names were either shipped out or represent aging assets:
Kyriakopoulos (turns 30 in February)
D'Ambrosio (turns 37 in September)
Carboni, Birindelli and Turati sit in optimal age ranges but didn't generate enough interest in me for detailed examination.
Venezia's Intriguing Options
Hans Nicolussi Caviglia - The Juventus Selloff
Age: 24 | Position: Central Midfielder
Another player sold by Juventus for pure profit to balance books. His strengths lie in progressive passing and press resistance, though he's average or below in most other areas. Bologna and Milan have shown interest, but he needs a possession-based system to thrive - perhaps not ideal for Milan's current rebuild phase depending on what Allegri will build.
Kike Pérez - The Spanish Addition
Age: 29 | Background: Mid-season arrival from Spain
Despite limited time at Venezia, Pérez shows promise as a high-risk, high-reward midfielder. He’s a player who could add creative spark to the right system while also offering dedication to the defensive side, has to be noted he’s not exactly effective in that though.
Yeboah - The Mobile Winger
Age: 24 | Style: Dribbling/shooting winger
Limited game time makes assessment challenging, but his profile suggests a player which is an all out attacking and dribbly winger. Could provide value for lower-mid table Serie A clubs willing to work on him and unlock his potential before he hits his peak age. There could certainly be some strength schedule effect in play here, but interested clubs should do their due diligence.
The Bottom Line
Relegation often creates market inefficiencies where quality players become available below market value. While some gems have already been snapped up before the relegation actually happened, opportunities remain - particularly for clubs willing to invest in development (Anjorin, Goglichidze) or seeking specific profiles (Viti's left-footed defending, Pérez's creativity).
The key is identifying which players were victims of circumstance versus those whose limitations contributed to relegation. The data suggests several fall into the former category.