Duran: petulant and sublime.
Who are the top 5 central strikers in the world under the age of 30?
- Thread starter Fortitude
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I don't agree tothe extent of "the most difficult position" in terms of what it's is need from a technical point of view, yet I think that with the keeper, it's one of the most demanding in terms of pression, patience and discipline.
And like you've said, GOALS are the salt of the game and you have to buy those goals. The easier way it's to find someone, a striker that lives for them. There are lots of old anecdotes from coaches that after sellecting the names of their teams demand the President to bring him the "goals".
Many players do not even like or have the patience to play that role even if they have lots of technical conditions to do it.
PD: I can guess very few here knows how cool of a nickname you've chose to use here, quite a cult hero the man of your nick, he coudl easily have a Netflix serie
Not real pure and per se strikers, yet they are quite a better than you think of them as players.
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CB are struggling as well. Slim pickings if top top players these days.
The tendency was already there with these fellas closer to be support strikers, or mediapuntas/ off mids with forward tendencies in general than pure strikers, thought Kun adapted quite well to the Romario alike striker for a big period of his carreer.
In fact Suarez, Torres, Villa, Etto and even Benz, also weren't Balbo, Vieri, Palermo, etc alike, even Luis from this list that always felt and acted like a striker, had a lot more in his bag than the usual classic ones.
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Luca Toni, Mario Mandžukic & so on, miss these days.
Yet there it's a lot of nostalgia involve too, some sense of Baresi was perfect kind of vibe and some lack of real focus on how much the game change for instance for the CBs and the keepers in recent years.
Regarding the lack of TOP players, this is a transition period, the thing it's that it will be hard for any Wirtz, Lamine, Palmer, etc etc to develope correctly with the huge demand from any sort of media over their heads, never in the history of the game everyone is a sport journalist, everyone can make a highlight or have an agenda towards anyone, that's an scenario that never existed till recent years.
Remember when striker where proper poachers. They just balanced on the offside line all game.
Inzaghi, Vieri, Klose, Batistuta, Romario, Stoichkov. If you asked them to press or work back they just laughed at you. When the other team had the ball they just strolled
Inzaghi, Vieri, Klose, Batistuta, Romario, Stoichkov. If you asked them to press or work back they just laughed at you. When the other team had the ball they just strolled
Omorodion at Porto looks like a future star, tore us a new one as well
No it's not the most difficult in terms of how good a technical footballer you need to be, but it's the most difficult in terms of 90% of the time you're chasing lost causes, making runs for passes that never come, trying to hold the ball up with some thug of a central defender breathing down your neck and kicking your ankles, and having to be a constant outlet for your team. And all for the off-chance that you MIGHT get a goalscoring chance (which if you miss you're slated for a week until your next game!)
It's an absolute bastard of a position and so, so few players can do it well but it's amazing how many people say "just put Johnny in there" like anyone can just slot in there and play it!
Yeah only one other poster has commented on my name. I know he was a great Argentinian boxer who fought Ali but lived a wild life and was shot dead in Reno aged just 33. He was one of the few boxers who could wind up Ali, called him a chicken for refusing to fight in Vietnam! As Ali said "never have I wanted to whoop a man so badly!" I just thought it was a cool name to use!
Tradtional CFs only.
My Top 5:
Haaland, Isak, Gyokeres, Lautaro, Thuram.
Rest of the top 10:
Osimhen, Vlahovic, Watkins, Duran, Alvarez
My Top 5:
Haaland, Isak, Gyokeres, Lautaro, Thuram.
Rest of the top 10:
Osimhen, Vlahovic, Watkins, Duran, Alvarez
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In the past, the dynamics of attacking play were quite different. Strikers were often the focal point of the team, with a clear emphasis on providing them with service. Traditional wingers played a significant role, staying wide to stretch the play and deliver crosses into the box. Full-backs, too, frequently overlapped to add width and contribute similar deliveries, all aimed at maximising opportunities for the striker to score.
Today, the game has evolved. Inside forwards, who cut inside to shoot or play intricate combinations, have largely replaced traditional wingers. The emphasis has shifted from simply creating chances for a central striker to a more fluid and collective approach.
While we still have some exceptional strikers today, their role has transformed. The modern striker is no longer just a goalscorer but also a facilitator, tasked with linking play, dropping deep, and creating space for others. They're often judged as much on their ability to bring teammates into the game as they are on their goal tally. Meanwhile, wide forwards now share the goalscoring burden, a responsibility that once rested almost entirely on the striker.
As a result, I believe this shift explains why the striker market isn’t as prolific in terms of pure goalscorers as it once was. Traditional, out-and-out goal poachers seem to be a rarity now.
Having said all of that, to answer you question, I would probably say:
Haaland
Isak
Osimhen
Gyokores
Martinez
Today, the game has evolved. Inside forwards, who cut inside to shoot or play intricate combinations, have largely replaced traditional wingers. The emphasis has shifted from simply creating chances for a central striker to a more fluid and collective approach.
While we still have some exceptional strikers today, their role has transformed. The modern striker is no longer just a goalscorer but also a facilitator, tasked with linking play, dropping deep, and creating space for others. They're often judged as much on their ability to bring teammates into the game as they are on their goal tally. Meanwhile, wide forwards now share the goalscoring burden, a responsibility that once rested almost entirely on the striker.
As a result, I believe this shift explains why the striker market isn’t as prolific in terms of pure goalscorers as it once was. Traditional, out-and-out goal poachers seem to be a rarity now.
Having said all of that, to answer you question, I would probably say:
Haaland
Isak
Osimhen
Gyokores
Martinez
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Isak is the real thing. Newcastle got real good one there.
Weghorst
Zirkzee
Lukaku
Ronolad
Anton Flamingo
Zirkzee
Lukaku
Ronolad
Anton Flamingo
No they’re not. Who next? Havertz and Hojlund?It's all you-know-who-he-is-bald's fault
We're now flush with midfielders and wide forwards, but no CBs or CFs...
Right now, aside from Haaland, I'm going with Osi, Nico Jackson, Isak, and Gyokeres
We're now flush with midfielders and wide forwards, but no CBs or CFs...
Right now, aside from Haaland, I'm going with Osi, Nico Jackson, Isak, and Gyokeres
No love for Artem Dovbyk?
I don't think any of them have an overall skillset or specific trait that's very rare and only found in a small portion of elite players. I think players like them can be found basically every summer for much cheaper than their perceived market values.
Well man they do not need to have a special trait, or rare one, they are actually very complete and polivalent as forwards.
Reading many times your opinion of these two, sometimes it's just how we feel about certain players. Everyone has its own taste regarding players, if I'm not wrong I remember you thinking that Rasmus money was logical or Harry's one too and that Garnacho was looking more promising than Lamine, I'll be far from those opinions.
For instance to me no matter what Piojo Lopez did in his days, I never liked him and I found him as symbol of everything I didn't like from Bielsa's approach and he certainly received more shyte from me than he deserved, or Crespo that I always had a thing against him no matter what.
I never ever said that Garnacho was more promising than Yamal.
You must be confusing me with someone. I never rated Garnacho as highly as most of the fanbase. His ceiling IMO is solid PL level winger but not elite. He comfortably has the lowest ceiling from our U21 players IMO: Yoro, Hojlund, Mainoo, Amad, and Garnacho himself. I've stated this several times on this forum as well this year. Whereas Yamal is clearly going to be one of, if not the best player of his generation, based on raw talent, and at 17 is probably already way better than Garnacho can ever become.Yes, I do think the fees for both Maguire and Hojlund can be explained without rushing to the "omg United massively overpaid as usual" argument.
Regarding your first paragraph, I don't see how Martínez or Álvarez can ever be considered as elite or "complete". They are missing too many things from their skillset for me to ever consider them complete. Rooney was close to complete. Kane is close to complete. Álvarez and Martínez are specialists in a few things like ball-striking and off-ball work / pressing / movement, but definitely don't do enough things to an elite level, hence me viewing them as heavily overestimated in the eyes of many football fans. Same with Gyökeres IMO. He doesn't possess enough traits that the best strikers usually do.
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What a weak generation of strikers.
- Haaland
- Isak
- Osimhen
- Lautaro
- Gyokeres (based on last year, not sure if it's just a big year and he'll drop down)
I never ever said that Garnacho was more promising than Yamal.
Yes, I do think the fees for both Maguire and Hojlund can be explained without rushing to the "omg United massively overpaid as usual" argument.
Regarding your first paragraph, I don't see how Martínez or Álvarez can ever be considered as elite or "complete". They are missing too many things from their skillset for me to ever consider them complete. Rooney was close to complete. Kane is close to complete. Álvarez and Martínez are specialists in a few things like ball-striking and off-ball work / pressing / movement, but definitely don't do enough things to an elite level, hence me viewing them as heavily overestimated in the eyes of many football fans. Same with Gyökeres IMO. He doesn't possess enough traits that the best strikers usually do.
I thought you did with Garnacho, my bad
.Back to the beggining, they certainly are not strikers per se and what they bring to the table as players (forwards and sometimes even off mids), as a package, even not being as special in some aspect or overall as players in the past, it's way enough for an elite level and both already have proven to play on that elite level, so to diss on them too much, by now it just feel more a question of personal taste, predilection than sthg in the realm of actual facts.
Yes, they are not Aguero, nor Batitsuta, but two players that already can retire with a great a carreer. Thinking that everything with them it's just due to their teams (and timing) and at the same time thinking that Rasmus right now it's already better than both and that his transfer fee was more justified than the one of Julian or Martinez, because of his "promise" (I wasn't talking about what Man Utd or any huge clubs sometimes be charged with big sums, nor the volatile aspect of current market), for me speaks more of what sometimes we feel about players no matter what they do because we don't dig them, than anything else. That was what I was trying to say.
Now compare that to the nineties, with Ronaldo, Romario, Batistuta, Raul, Cantona, Klinsmann, Inzaghi, Yorke...
Posts reminded me of this thread: https://www.redcafe.net/threads/what-is-the-greatest-ever-decade-for-players-and-teams.444205/
Which will eventually be updated to include the 2020's. I suppose the early 20's strikers will carry as the representatives (sans Haaland), unless there's a resurgence in the next few years.
There's an easy reference point to the top strikers of each decade in there; it's interesting to compare and contrast to what we have now.
Not all those players were playing or peaking at the same time, Cantona's peak was before Ronaldo, Inzaghi or Raul had established themselves and he retired by 1997. Cantona was more of a number 10 than a straight striker as well I would have thought. Plus Cantona would have no longer been over 30 by the end of 1996, Klinsmann over 30 by 1994.
If you did a list including over 30s right now and you include Mbappé as a striker then you might have Haaland, Kane, Mbappé, Lewandowski and Martinez/Isak as your top 5 forwards and that's pretty good.
Probably just me being nostalgic, but that group of players lacks star quality and class.
You're thinking of the best strikers of the decade, not any individual season.
Of course there are fewer strikers around now. All the players who are wide forwards now either developed as poachers or wide midfielders in the past, as most teams played with 2 up top. But the current elite list is still quite good I'd say. Names from the past give you thoughts of their whole careers, not just that specific season level, and not the "best under 30 current CFs who haven't hit their peaks yet".
Kane, Lewandowski, Benzema, Suarez and Haaland are all some of the best center forwards of all time and have had brilliant careers. Add Ibrahimović, Cavani, Falcao, etc in over the past 10 years too. There's been plenty of iconic center forwards, and no doubt there will be more coming through. Alvarez and Isak are both fantastic players with world class potential, Haaland of course already there, and others who are younger but are showing big promise.
A lot of those strikers started out nearly 20 years ago, in the last 10 years a lot of these players have been in their 30s. So in the last 10 years Kane and Haaland are the only 2 that have moved into the same bracket the ones that broke through near 10 years earlier, when we had many top strikers, I also agree Isak and Alverez look good to move into that category as well. There was probably more top strikers in the premier league 20 years or so ago than there is now in the world, RVN, Shearer, Henry, Rooney, Owen, Van Persie, Drogba, Anelka etc. (Off the top of my head, Shearer might have been a bit old by this stage)
You really can't compare what was about 20 years ago with today in the striker position. I also think the same can be said in the CB position as well.
Nice way to coin it. That's damning.
It's expected though. The amount of striker positions in the majority of teams got cut in half... Of course it's going to have an impact. You go from a squad needing 3 strikers at least to rotate over a season, to having at best 1 top CF who is a key player and 1 other who can sometimes play CF to cover but usually fill elsewhere.
Haaland
Mbappe
Isak
Gyokeres
Osimhen
Mbappe
Isak
Gyokeres
Osimhen