MU, Barcelona, PSG, Chelsea and many others are in active searches.
Barcelona
The team’s best scorer in La Liga, Depay, has only 12 goals. It is the ninth or tenth among the top goal collectors in the Spanish championship. Benzema scored 27 goals. It is clear that Memphis did not always play, but for Barca, Messi could achieve 12 goals in six games.
Aubameyang has 11 goals in 17 games; it seems cool. Xavi is worried that Pierre-Emerick would crack and become difficult to handle. Also, consider that Gabonese is 32 years old and Luc de Jong is 31. Hernandez is creating a prize-winning Barcelona and needs an exceptionally stable striker.
Lewandowski is a suitable candidate, scoring on an industrial level like a professional blackjack player. But it is easier to survive in the world of Gavi and Pedri than in the world of Messi. Villa and Suarez are different, but now the Pole will be helpful. The only problem is that there is no money. The club must find 500 million euros ready to sell before buying.
Chelsea
There’s Mount, Pulisic, Ziesch and many other great passers, and Werner and Lukaku played so poorly that they scored a combined 12 goals in the EPL. Mount has 11, Kai Havertz, who substituted for the center forwards, has 8, mirroring Lukaku’s figures, although he spent not much more time on the field.
Lukaku wants to go to Inter, and the bidding is underway. Lewandowski’s wife refuses to go to London, although Chelsea has long had their eye on Robert, and Tuchel would love to work with a Pole who can communicate in German. Lewandowski fits the style, and no alternative has been found. Interest in Sterling or Neymar does not make up for a vacuum in the opponents’ penalty area.
Suppose Liverpool closes the striker position – the record-breaking Nunez will join Firmino and Jota with the same wide range. In that case, there are 113 million reasons over Chelsea (Lukaku transfer value) to make a new bid for a center forward. Abramovich has had problems with strikers – not everyone has played like Drogba.
Manchester United
In the spring of 2023, it will be ten years since MU’s last league title. There will be eighteen-year-old fans who saw the celebration with Rooney and van Persie as eight-year-olds. De Gea and Jones remember Ferguson’s league title, but it’s clear that without a tough center-forward, there are no new medals to take.
Ten Hag has motivated Haller to feats at Ajax, but it’s unlikely that a successful midfielder will solve MU’s problems. Ronaldo has done what he can, but Cristiano is not a central striker in the sense that van Persie or Javier Hernandez, who scored 18 goals in a season nine years ago. Ronaldo, by the way, has only 5 more, and he didn’t sit in reserve like the Mexican. The bar has dropped.
The problem with the Devils in the market is they are hard to tempt. Lewandowski doesn’t see MU as a priority option because they didn’t get into the Champions League. Kane and Conte will try to fight in the EPL. Going to an unstable United on the eve of the World Cup in Qatar is risky. It is clear that a Benzema-like substance is needed, a forward willing to share the ball and space with Ronaldo.
Arsenal
Arteta let Aubameyang go to Barcelona. Lacazette signed with Lyon the other day, back in a familiar harbor. Arsenal was left without an experienced forward.
Martinelli is a pleasant juvenile, but the Brazilian has a lot of positions. He will give out great matches if he does not catch a new injury. But it is no coincidence that the Gunners are actively negotiating with Jesus. The Brazilian is at the MC as a backup and will be in deep reserve after the arrival of Alvarez and Haaland. Arsenal is counting on the effect of Sanchez – after Barcelona, the Chilean gave a fantastic performance in London.
In addition to Jesus – who can play the second striker, Arteta is also interested in Dybala (another non-central striker), Schick (who had an incredible season at Bayer after a successful Euro), Nunez (to be taken over by Liverpool) and Scamacca. The last one deserves a separate discussion, but it’s not a fact that he’s a striker for the EPL.
PSG
No one has come to Leonardo, and the list is long, from Haaland to Lewandowski, with different age category characteristics. After Ibrahimovic and Cavani, everyone is aware that forwards can add balance to PSG, but Benzema will also refuse, even if the Parisians are led by his “big brother.”
In theory, Messi, Mbappe and Neymar could form an impact trio. But only Kylian is on the roster running at top speed. Lionel was a “false nine” when he gave out a different amount of work. Now the Argentine isn’t a right-wing insider but a free spirit player. And Neymar hasn’t been a classic left winger for a long time. PSG need to think about what style of striker they need.
Icardi should be given away; he didn’t play. The Parisians recalled Scamacca, and new advisor Campos suggested convincing the Lewandowski family with money. Gouri was mentioned, and this option is attractive because the Frenchman from the school of Lyon and the basis of Nice is more like a person who will share the ball but will not be an alien. Except that Nice played with a 4-4-2 scheme, not a 4-3-3.
Bayern Munich
The circle is locked because it begins with Lewandowski and ends with the need to compensate for the unavoidable loss of Robert for Bayern. Nagelsmann’s idea with Mane in the center of the attack is accepted. Sadio plans a move to Munich, and no one is hiding it. But Bayern has not been perfect with the false nine; they need a real forward.
The weaning effect is what Bayern needs to fear. Lewandowski is the ultimate selfish striker. His usual teammates will either feel free and have a strong goalscoring season, or they will lose their destination and Nagelsmann will be fired. It’s nothing new at Bayern; Ancelotti and Kovac both had issues with players and were fired.
Everything depends on the choice of forward. Bayern is interested in the Austrian Kalajdzic, but Schick and Haller are strikers who are not at the level to replace Lewandowski fully. Kahn and Salihamidzic did not expect Robert to initiate a departure right now publicly. So, many rich clubs are now inviting the Pole, and Bayern has not grabbed Haaland and is at a loss. Benzema’s success has convinced the coaches that the center forward is the key to trophies.
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