He's another left forward and it's the only position where we don't need reinforcements bar left back.
The centre-forward market...
- Thread starter Rozay
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He's another left forward and it's the only position where we don't need reinforcements bar left back.
If we bring in someone cheaper like Thuram, Dembele or Zaha on a free or a young #9 like Sesko, with an eye to Kane or a big striker in 2024 and Havertz goes to Germany and lights it up, could he be the next Salah/De Bruyne, failing at Chelsea when he was still quite young and then going to another Prem team?
He's probably a 10 and not a 9, but Ten Hag uses our 9 fairly deep and we could have him to link up as a healthier Martial and then sign a goalscorer.
It's probably a no, but he was good as a false 9 the couple of times I saw him at Leverkusen, and he is at 10 in 23 for Germany the last 2 years and guys his size often take time to mature. On the other hand, Germany looked 10 times better with a Weghorst level #9 in Fullkrug so it's probably not on and he might go to say Dortmund to replace Reus as their long-term 9 if they're not convinced by Brandt and think Reyna is a wide man.
I think we've seen enough to know that he would suit the system nicely with his pressing and link play, but tough to see him doubling his scoring rate in the Prem, though considering Chelsea 9s like Lukaku have struggled and he's 23 it's certainly possible.
He's probably a 10 and not a 9, but Ten Hag uses our 9 fairly deep and we could have him to link up as a healthier Martial and then sign a goalscorer.
It's probably a no, but he was good as a false 9 the couple of times I saw him at Leverkusen, and he is at 10 in 23 for Germany the last 2 years and guys his size often take time to mature. On the other hand, Germany looked 10 times better with a Weghorst level #9 in Fullkrug so it's probably not on and he might go to say Dortmund to replace Reus as their long-term 9 if they're not convinced by Brandt and think Reyna is a wide man.
I think we've seen enough to know that he would suit the system nicely with his pressing and link play, but tough to see him doubling his scoring rate in the Prem, though considering Chelsea 9s like Lukaku have struggled and he's 23 it's certainly possible.
Think Erik ideally wants two different profiles of strikers. One who is strong and pacy like Osimhen and another who is more of a playmaker who holds it up like Kane.
Obviously we cannot sign both but IF we can get one then need to bring in someone that won't cost the earth but offers similar attributes as the one we don't get.
Obviously we cannot sign both but IF we can get one then need to bring in someone that won't cost the earth but offers similar attributes as the one we don't get.
More I think about it and watch his highlights, the more I think it's Goncalo Ramos. Just looks like he can score goals while doing all the back to goal link up stuff that doomed Cristiano and has made Martial and Weghorst look decent fits in the system. Very good goal record as a youth and now as a pro. Kane can too, of course, but papers say he might stay now.
People are against Zaha because he flopped here, but if Ten Hag is only given 100M and wants to spend it on one of De Jong/Caicedo/Rice/Enzo, then at gunpoint I think I’d take Zaha over Thuram or Dembele. He can turn players like Martial does when back to goal and he’s more of a pure threat than Martial. 31 in 82 for Palace the last 3 years and that includes lots of LW games.
Don’t think Ten Hag will care about him flopping here damn near a decade ago. Also Thuram’s dad says he wants to play for Barca and they need a backup for Lewandowski and need free transfers, so we might be looking at guys who would cost 10-20M and be fliers. Is there a better option than Zaha if that’s the budget?
Think a very wise approach would be to try and get both Benzema and Sesko in the summer and move Martial on. Benzema is out of contract and the perfect age profile for a Sesko succession plan too.
Benzema with no transfer fee and Sesko for 60m would be a good summer’s work in the CF department. Get the best striker now, and the best of tomorrow all at once.
Benzema with no transfer fee and Sesko for 60m would be a good summer’s work in the CF department. Get the best striker now, and the best of tomorrow all at once.
I’ve said this a few times that I’d take Zaha on a free as he’s versatile, consistent, pacey, holds the ball up well, links play well and plays for the team. If we were to get one of Kane or Osimhen and Zaha then moved Martial on as even though he’s a perfect fit he’s always injured.
Be greedy let's get Benzema & Osimhen
That would make far less sense.
Isn't Benz just going to be resigned?
In another thread I posited going after Toney and Sesko instead of just spunking the budget on one big name striker. Think Toney would be great for us and wouldn't be so high profile that we'd have an issue rotating Sesko in as the Greenwood replacement
Still think Toney could be made an example of when you see how many betting charges
Yeah obviously it's all contingent on what the outcome of that is.
What's your gut feeling on the outcome
I always feel that Zaha is more a moment kind of player rather than system player. Our manager has his own system and I'm not sure if he fits into the manager's system.
Yeah actually you are right Benzema only makes sense if we get a prospect striker like Ramos
That's fair, though I'm not sure he's really had the chance to play in a system since he matured into a proper goal scorer (31 in 82 over the last 3 years is pretty decent considering there's games played at LW and Palace lack real top half of the table level passing apart from Eze, Olise and Andersen). Vieira is doing a good job, but they still just play on the counter a lot and he hasn't actually found a clear lineup. Their talented CBs and overall work ethic and moments from Zaha, Olise and Eze are pretty much the sum of the team.
I'm smarting to get convinced we're just going to buy Ramos, but because it's a free it's conceivable. Zaha and Thuram seem like the only even mildly likely free transfer options, and I doubt we're going to loan in a striker for the entire year. Goes from highly unlikely to genuinely plausible if:
-We don't have more than 100M to spend
-De Jong decides he wants to join us
-Either Martial gets hurt some more or Weghorst doesn't score enough goals and looks like a 1 in 3 (starts) at best type striker.
-Thuram picks Barcelona/Barcelona picks Thuram over him as their free backup for Lewandowski and look to sell Ferran Torres to get some cash in to not go bankrupt/pay their players/bring in Bernardo Silva or Zubimendi or whoever.
Only a coupel of striker that have been mentioned a million times seem to fit for me.
However, by no means a fan of his channel but watch the occasional video of Stephen Howsen. He did a video the last day or two mentioning a Harry Kane Regen as he put it.
Mateo Retegui - Personally never heard of him and try not to judge players from a youtube video....but, he looked very good and hsi body shape, movement, even his penalties lookedvery similar to that of Harry Kane.
Can hold my hands up and say I never rated Kane as a youngster, but no doubt he has become a quality striker. Personally paying out £100m for him at this stage of his career is a no thanks for me. I dont know exactly what it is, but I have a feeling he has already peaked and onoy has a coupel of seasons shelf life at the top now.
We have been heavily linked with a few SOuth AMerican talents the last couple of years for peanuts Caicedo now £70m+, Fernandez now moved for a British transfer record, Alvarez looking like a very good striker.
Personally feel we need a couple of big signings this summer up front and in central midfield, but there are other areas also need strengthening and signing these kind of players cheaply (rather than 17/18yr olds) in two or three positions could be very fruitful.
For me we probably need two strikers anyway this summer. I gave up on Martial a long time ago, Wieghorst will never be made permanent (I hope, he is dreadful) so effectively we could haveno strikers at the club
However, by no means a fan of his channel but watch the occasional video of Stephen Howsen. He did a video the last day or two mentioning a Harry Kane Regen as he put it.
Mateo Retegui - Personally never heard of him and try not to judge players from a youtube video....but, he looked very good and hsi body shape, movement, even his penalties lookedvery similar to that of Harry Kane.
Can hold my hands up and say I never rated Kane as a youngster, but no doubt he has become a quality striker. Personally paying out £100m for him at this stage of his career is a no thanks for me. I dont know exactly what it is, but I have a feeling he has already peaked and onoy has a coupel of seasons shelf life at the top now.
We have been heavily linked with a few SOuth AMerican talents the last couple of years for peanuts Caicedo now £70m+, Fernandez now moved for a British transfer record, Alvarez looking like a very good striker.
Personally feel we need a couple of big signings this summer up front and in central midfield, but there are other areas also need strengthening and signing these kind of players cheaply (rather than 17/18yr olds) in two or three positions could be very fruitful.
For me we probably need two strikers anyway this summer. I gave up on Martial a long time ago, Wieghorst will never be made permanent (I hope, he is dreadful) so effectively we could haveno strikers at the club
I think a lot now depends on the outcome of what came out earlier in the week, before this week someone like Osimhen who’s coming into his prime was the way forward with Martial or someone free like Zaha coming in as back up.
One thing for sure is that after this season Martial can not be anything more than back up or sold as he’s clearly made of glass and can barely play once a week let alone stay fit for a run like we have this month.
One thing for sure is that after this season Martial can not be anything more than back up or sold as he’s clearly made of glass and can barely play once a week let alone stay fit for a run like we have this month.
I agree. I think ETH likes his striker to drop short and link play.
Ramos seems to be an all rounder . I wonder what his market value is
My guess is like 70M since he's 21 and a striker but not quite seen as an elite player and only 2 years left on his deal. Maybe 55M and Pellistri or Elanga or something even.
Be nice to have a proper quick, lethal striker as lots of the great strikers of the last 20 years would look good in this system, but there seems to be a real lack of truly sharp players. Someone like prime David Villa would be incredible here.
This is oversimplifying, but I see 3 conceivable options here, depending on budget and then how much we spend elsewhere:
New owner, insane budget:
1) Kane
2) Martial stays as backup
3) Sign a teenager, good chance it's from South America, to learn on the job or maybe go on loan for a year in Europe
75-100M budget
1) Ramos, Kane or Osimhen
2) Martial or Weghorst stays, the other goes, depending on Ten Hag's view of Martial health
60M budget
1 - Sign someone in their early prime for 40M like Muani or David to be the #1
2 - Sell Martial or let Weghorst go, depending on Ten Hag's view of Martial health
3 - Sign a teenager, good chance it's from South America, to learn on the job or maybe go on loan for a year in Europe
40M budget
1 - Sign someone in their early prime for 40M like Muani or David to be the #1
2 - Sell Weghorst and keep Martial since we have a clear #1 now and can risk Martial's fitness less by playing him less and getting better production than we get out of Weghorst for now
New owner, insane budget:
1) Kane
2) Martial stays as backup
3) Sign a teenager, good chance it's from South America, to learn on the job or maybe go on loan for a year in Europe
75-100M budget
1) Ramos, Kane or Osimhen
2) Martial or Weghorst stays, the other goes, depending on Ten Hag's view of Martial health
60M budget
1 - Sign someone in their early prime for 40M like Muani or David to be the #1
2 - Sell Martial or let Weghorst go, depending on Ten Hag's view of Martial health
3 - Sign a teenager, good chance it's from South America, to learn on the job or maybe go on loan for a year in Europe
40M budget
1 - Sign someone in their early prime for 40M like Muani or David to be the #1
2 - Sell Weghorst and keep Martial since we have a clear #1 now and can risk Martial's fitness less by playing him less and getting better production than we get out of Weghorst for now
There is no way to get Kolo Muani for 40m in the summer. There are plausible reports that Frankfurt would start negotiations with a 100m demand, realistic fee would probably be somewhere around 70-80m, simply because he has a long contract and Frankfurt doesn't need or want to sell under that circumstances.
We don't own Weghorst.
Damn, I'm still getting used to how expensive strikers are now.
Right, I got it right once but wrong the other time.
Interesting with the news of us looking to offload Martial in the summer. Would mean us signing two strikers in the summer surely?
If Everton get relegated, I think Calvert-Lewin would be a very smart signing - he wouldn't demand a starting place, is English and would settle in well, knows the Premier League and is a pretty tidy player. With him and let's say Osimhem as our primary target, we'd be set for years and could offload both Weghorst and Martial
I'd agree if he wasn't such a sick note. I'm also not convinced you wouldn't have to pay a king's ransom even if Everton were relegated for him which would make it just too risky.
Not necessarily, ETH could rely on Rashford or Greenwood as cover in the middle.
We now have eight squad players effectively competing for three positions. Rashford, Sancho, Garnacho, Martial, Weghorst (loaned in), Antony, Greenwood, Pellestri and Amad (loaned out) is probably more depth than ETH would want. Swap Martial for Kane or Osimhen, and the issue is that Amad for Weghorst leaves one dedicated striker and only Rashford and Greenwood for cover. Is that enough, or would we want a second number 9? I could see us selling Amad and buying a cheap South American number 9. I wouldn't mind us bringing in Sesko or Evan Ferguson in a couple of years as cover.
Also worth remembering Felix is only on loan and I don’t see why he couldn’t be an option in the summer for those favouring a more all round link up striker.
We can discuss this now?
If toney gets cleared of betting charges then he would seem like a level headed signing vs the crazy fee for osimhen or messing around with trying to negotiate with levy for an unambitious kane who seems content to give up on winning trophies and play it safe and stay at spurs
Yeah but him being cleared still feels unlikely
If there is any truth in Kane and Osimhen being top targets in the summer, Toney should be at least first among backup options.
I will put him somewhere between Osimhen and Kane, not quality-wise but in terms of his playing style: great in the air, work pretty hard without possession but also is comfortable dropping deeper, making space for other players and making those through balls and key passes splitting opposition's lines.
He was very impressive against Arsenal yesterday, apart from his goal and other opportunities he unfortunately missed, he defended and worked out of possession extremely well and gave Saliba a nightmare winning almost every aerial duel against him despite the obvious difference in height (179 cm vs 193 cm).
He was so reliable and crucial in escaping from their press and brought play into their half so many times.
I will put him somewhere between Osimhen and Kane, not quality-wise but in terms of his playing style: great in the air, work pretty hard without possession but also is comfortable dropping deeper, making space for other players and making those through balls and key passes splitting opposition's lines.
He was very impressive against Arsenal yesterday, apart from his goal and other opportunities he unfortunately missed, he defended and worked out of possession extremely well and gave Saliba a nightmare winning almost every aerial duel against him despite the obvious difference in height (179 cm vs 193 cm).
He was so reliable and crucial in escaping from their press and brought play into their half so many times.
My choice would be Toney but I reckon it will be Johnathan David.
It could be different if money is no object and then anything is possible I suppose.
It could be different if money is no object and then anything is possible I suppose.
That ship has sailed. He’ll stay at Chelsea 99%, we dropped the ball here.
Depends on a number of factors;
1. Finding a buyer for martial and his ridiculous wages.
2. Whether ETH wants wout loan turned permanent as a cheap option off the bench.
3. Whether the striker we cant talk about comes back into the fold
4. Whether we get our main striker target this summer or the backup option.
5. Whether we qualify for CL.
6. Whether there is a full takeover of the club and if that frees up additional funds.
Imo it's not that complicated. If Martial can't improve his fitness record imo we'll buy a new #9 regardless of all the above.
Next season ETH will aim for the title and no way he'd let his main #9 to be unavailable most of the time. We have Ronaldo off the books and that alone would allow us to afford two 250k a week strikers. The only thing might affect this is a potential take over in which case would put all transfers on hold until it's finished.
Would Rashford up top be a viable option long term? I'd be previously thought no chance but he's made such strides this season, and he looks a real threat when played up top. His goals against City and Leeds are perfect examples, a poachers effort and a brilliant header. And with his pace and ability to run in behind, it does force the opposition defence to drop back a further 10-15 yards as they're terrified of pushing up too far and allowing the space behind. It's not like we haven't got wide options with Sancho, Antony and Garnacho.