Free agent XI with market value of £14m that Championship sides can target

The transfer market is alive and kicking, with plenty of clubs now involved in deals as the new season fast approaches.

In the Championship there are promising signs that club finances are getting somewhere near the pre-Covid levels with transfer fees once again starting to be paid out. Nevertheless, the free agent market continues to be a prosperous area with some hidden gems available each summer.

Here, Mirror Football casts an eye over a team full of players who are still without a club that could interest Championship sides. The team of free agents, according to respected industry website transfermarkt, has a combined value of just over £14.3m.

Alex Smithies

Goalkeeper Smithies left Cardiff after four years this summer. The 32-year-old is highly experienced in the second tier and has been a regular at this level for the last decade with Huddersfield, QPR and the Bluebirds.

Reports suggest part of the reason he left Cardiff was because of wage demands - he was the highest earner at the club. That may well limit the options available to him as he ponders his next move.

Market value : £720,000

Phil Bardsley

Veteran full-back Bardsley called time on his time at Burnley after five years following relegation. The 37-year-old failed to make a single Premier League appearance last term, featuring just three times in cup matches. Despite his advancing years, he offers bundles of experience and would be a canny signing on what would most likely be a one-year or even rolling contract.

Market value : £225,000

Gary Cahill

Centre-half Cahill left Bournemouth in the summer after their promotion to the Premier League. The 36-year-old will have been disappointed not to have featured for the final four months of the campaign - his last appearance proved to be a red card in a game at Barnsley on January 29.

Nevertheless, he showed in the vast majority of those performances why he won 61 England caps and is sure to have plenty of interest in him.

Market value : £360,000

Ben Mee

Mee departed Burnley after 11 years following the club's relegation from the Premier League.

In that time he has become part of the Turf Moor furniture after being captain and making well over 300 appearances. Such was his affinity to the Clarets that upon his departure he took out a full-page advert in a local newspaper thanking supporters and bidding them a farewell.

As he now looks for a new adventure, plenty of second-tier clubs will be eyeing up what would be a big coup.

Market value : £2.25m

Cyrus Christie

Full-back Christie has departed Fulham after four years with the Cottagers. He spent last season on loan at Swansea, having been shipped out to Nottingham Forest the year before. He has been linked with a move to Preston but there are sure to be plenty of suitors for the 30-cap Ireland international.

Market value : £1m

Conor Hourihane

Another Ireland international, midfielder Hourihane has officially left Aston Villa. Last season he was on loan at Sheffield United, Swansea the season before. He offers plenty of nous in the engine room and has already been linked with Huddersfield and League One Derby.

Market value : £1.62m

Luke Freeman

Freeman has ended his hugely forgettable stint at Sheffield United. Signed for what was then a club record in the summer of 2019, Freeman would make just 15 league outings in his three years at Bramall Lane. He was loaned out to Forest last term before a wretched temporary stint at Millwall saw him play just one game.

A fresh start is needed and plenty of second-tier clubs are likely to be in for him as he bids to get back to the form he previously showed for Bristol City and QPR.

Market value : £900,000

Ravel Morrison

The nomadic career of ex-Manchester United player Morrison calmed down last season when he enjoyed a consistent personal campaign at Derby.

He featured 36 times - the most appearances of any campaign in his career - and scored four times. Despite his chequered past, plenty of clubs would be open to bringing a player of Morrison's talent into the group.

Market value : £450,000

Sheyi Ojo

Ojo departed Liverpool this summer after seven years in which he made just 13 senior appearances. He was loaned out a whopping seven times and his latest temporary stint saw him spend the season at Millwall. He suffered an injury midway through the campaign before Liverpool announced his release upon his return.

An out-and-out winger, Ojo may well attract a second chance from a Championship club given there will be no transfer fee involved.

Market value : £1.8m

Tom Lawrence

Former Derby captain Lawrence was arguably the highest-profile player to leave following the club's off-field concerns prior to their takeover. A Wales international, Lawrence scored nine goals last term for a Derby side who were trying to climb a mountain in their bid to stay up.

Sheffield United have been heavily linked for a swoop but they will have serious competition for Lawrence's signature.

Market value : £4.5m

Andy Carroll

Carroll hit the headlines last month when a trial with Belgian side Club Brugge reportedly hit the buffers. Now 33, the former England man remains without a club and showed glimpses last term of what he could offer. He had temporary spells at first Reading and then West Brom, scoring five goals in 23 outings combined.

He will no doubt be eager to prove the Baggies were wrong to let him go and in a system that suits his game, he could prosper once more.

Market value : £540,000