In the cut-throat world that is the modern transfer market, bargain signings are few and far between.
To that end, Aussie clubs are perpetually on the look-out for talent they can develop for a season or two before selling them on to an overseas club.
These three men are currently plying their trade in NPL competitions around the country or overseas, but would light up the top tier of Australian football – and that’s why A-League clubs would be mad not to snap them up.
Alex Sanchez
Rising to fame after becoming the first player to play in La Liga with just one hand, Sanchez had a brief flirtation with top division Spanish football in a mediocre Zaragoza side in the 2009/10 season, before spending the majority of his career in the lower echelons of the Segunda Division.
Not to be confused with Manchester United star Alexis, Alex Sanchez moved to Sydney Olympic in 2018 and at only 29, he’s too good for his current club.
Sanchez should be the target of an A-League transfer. Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers, anyone?
Hakeem al-Araibi
The Pascoe Vale star made international headlines last year after being embroiled in a tug of war between Australian and Bahraini authorities.
A refugee who gained Australian citizenship in March 2019, unfortunately his status as a political symbol may have outstripped his recognition as a footballer, and unfairly so.
A solid, adept centre-half, he would be a good acquisition for any A-League club. Oh, and the publicity it would generate wouldn’t hurt, either.
Hakeem Al-Araibi. (Photo by Jaimi Chisholm/Getty Images)
Do Dong-hyun
The South Korean dynamo made waves when he became the youngest visa player to sign with an A-League club during the 2012/13 season, with the then-powerhouse Brisbane Roar outfit.
Since then, however, he has not quite reached the dizzying heights many have expected, with stints in the Indian and Malaysian leagues hardly the glamorous assignments he might have expected.
At just 25, he still has his best years ahead of him and an A-League club would be the perfect fit for his flagging aspirations.
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