As another summer rolls around fans can’t help but speculate as to what player’s their respective clubs are trying to bring in.
In this feature we are going to look at why buying the right strikers in the summer transfer window is vital to a club’s success for their season ahead and take a look at a few examples as to why this is so.
The striker is the main focus of any team. The team is set up to deliver and create chances for the striker. The question is whether the striker has the capabilities to fulfil his duties in scoring the goals required for his team to be successful.
The importance of the summer transfer window cannot be underestimated.
We have seen in previous seasons that it is a determining factor in whether a team wins the Premier League, qualifies for the Champions League, or avoids relegation.
In the 2011/12 season we saw Manchester City spend big splashing out £38 million on Argentinian forward Sergio Aguero. The move was seen to be a revelation as the forward bagged 23 goals and the infamous final-day goal that saw City snatch the title away from their arch rivals.
The astonishing heart-break that United fans suffered that day was a direct result of City’s purchase of Aguero the previous summer.
However the roles were reversed in last season’s English Premier League when we saw Manchester United pick up their coveted 20th league title.
One player in particular decided that the trophy would end up on the red half of Manchester, one Robin Van Persie. He scored a whopping 26 goals en route to the red devils returning to the helm.
It was no secret that City were interested and desperately wanted the forward and it would not be foolish to say that if City acquired the flying Dutchman that they would have won the championship, but they didn’t, so United were a step ahead from the beginning last year.
Also, City’s failure and frustration in not attaining their prime targets last summer was a major reason why they didn’t retain their crown. The signings of Scott Sinclair, Javi Garcia, Jack Rodwell, Maicon and Matija Nastasic are never going to win you a title.
These two examples of top quality forwards coming in and delivering the goods cannot be undervalued and just underlines again the importance of recruiting your top goal-scoring targets.
Even in this current summer window the future of many top quality strikers around the globe is up in the air.
Players such as Robert Lewandowski and Edinson Cavani still don’t know what club they will be playing at this upcoming season. Whether Cavani or Lewandowski end up in the Premier League remains to be seen, but if they do, the clubs that manages to seize these world-class forwards will be a step ahead of their opponents in the title race.
At the opposite end of the spectrum a striker’s capacity for scoring goals is critical.
Avoiding relegation for clubs is so important as the financial rewards for staying in the Premier League are mind-boggling. Finding the forwards that can find the net in the bottom-half of the table on a constant basis can sometimes be a struggle. Although when a club do find this type of player it has many advantages. The player’s goals can fire the team out of a relegation scrap whilst also building up their own reputation and increasing their sell-on value.
One prime example of this is Christian Benteke. The Belgian arrived last summer for a mere £9 million and went on to score an incredible 19 goals helping Aston Villa secure their Premier League status for another season. In doing so he significantly upped his transfer value. A straight thinking fan wouldn’t see Benteke staying for a long time at Villa Park but when he does go they will receive a substantial fee and can therefore rebuild again.
These are but a few cases in recent times of clubs acting shrewdly as regards buying strikers. It really is imperative for managers and their scouting teams to identify right front men to fire their team to glory.
We will see in this upcoming year whether the clubs potential goal-scoring recruits will have proved to have been a triumph. Here’s to the new season folks!