Looking for a scorer? Center forward transfer targets from outside the Premier League

So, you want yourself a big goal-scoring machine to take your team up a level in both the Premier League landscape and world football in general, and you know it's going to cost you,
You're also hoping not to put your team at risk of Financial Fair Play woes by not just breaking the bank but incinerating it by trying to purchase an Alexander Isak. Conversely, you don't want to put your eggs in baskets labeled 'teenage prospect' or 'less-proven lottery ticket.'
In other words, you want to Three Bears this thing — Not too big, not too small, but just right.
Who could be your guy this summer? We're here for that.
MORE — Erling Haaland out 5-7 weeks
Let's start by eliminating the record-clobbering guys, or at least who should be a record-clobbering guy. With all due respect to Rasmus Hojlund or Antony, if we're going to spend close to nine figures on a player, he's going to have either a much-stronger resume and/or fewer question marks when it comes to making the leap to the Premier League.
Once upon a time there were very few players in world football that could cost $80 million or more. Currently, about 40 players have cost that figure on the market and more than 75% of those moves have happened in the last decade.
Yes, even good bets miss or don't hit their perceived heights. Timo Werner and Kai Havertz felt safe bets to be instant stars upon their Premier League moves. The former never hit and the latter took plenty of time to hit that mark and some might say he still is wide of it.
Which players in the world right now are unquestionably threatening the suspensions of several armored cars? Transfermarkt lists Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe, Bukayo Saka, Cole Palmer, Alexander Isak, Julian Alvarez, and Harry Kane as those with market values nearing or well-above $100 million. The next tier down includes Michael Olise, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, and Raphinha (For this practice, we'll also exclude recent Man City buy Omar Marmoush, who just made a big money move to a Premier League team in January.
We'll also, for this exercise, ignore players currently on Premier League rosters and likely to carry an extra intra-league tariff of sorts. Think Matheus Cunha, Joao Pedro, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Ollie Watkins, Bryan Mbeumo, Yoane Wissa, et. al
Anything below that is in play, money-wise, as we consider fits.
Level jumpers — Can they thrive quickly after making a big leap in league?
Samu Aghehowa, Porto — Love this player. Still 20 for another month, Aghehowa — you might know him as Samuel Omorodion but he changed his name in November in honor of his mother — is raw in some places but an absolutely lethal finisher. He has 15 goals from 23 games in his first season in the Portuguese Primera Liga and scored against Man United (2x), AS Roma, and Hoffenheim amongst his six Europa League goals to somewhat ease concerns about the jump from Portugal to England. He cost Porto around $40 million from Atletico Madrid.
Viktor Gyokeres, Sporting Lisbon — There are reports that Ruben Amorim's former talisman has an agreement to leave Lisbon for less than his release clause, and has 42 goals and 11 assists in 42 games this season after scoring 43 in 50 last season. His solid production in the Champions League and with Sweden help his case and he's scored buckets of goals in England albeit below the Premier League level.
Jonathan David, Lille — The French league is stronger than many think even if names like Nicolas Pepe and Tanguy Ndombele often dance through Premier League fans' heads. David has been piling up goals at Lille (and Gent before that) since he was a teenager, and this season's Champions League outlay includes goals against Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, Liverpool, and Dortmund.
GOLAZO 🇨🇦🇨🇦
THIS IS WHY JONATHAN DAVID IS ONE OF THE BEST STRIKERS IN THE WORLD 💥#CanMNT up 2-1 over the #USMNT at the hour-mark ✨
🔴 Watch on OneSoccer & @TSN_Sports pic.twitter.com/xMDR2tTwZX
Record risks — Is there a risk of this season being an outlier?
Mateo Retegui, Atalanta — The 25-year-old is enjoying his best season so far, with 22 goals in his first season at Atalanta and second in Serie A. Argentine born, he has 18 caps and six goals for Italy.
Hugo Ekitike, Eintracht Frankfurt — His name has been long-mentioned as a hot prospect with all the tools to be a megastar, but this is his first season looking like a focal point forward after a growing-pain season at PSG and promising but relatively-quiet first half-season at Eintracht.
Ceiling touchers — Is there room to grow, or to refind previous peaks?
Victor Osimhen, Galatasaray (on loan from Napoli) — This one's just about wages, as Osimhen played down his Napoli contract and has scored for fun in every competition for club and country.
Benjamin Sesko, RB Leipzig — The towering 21-year-old Slovenian has scored at every level in following an Erling Haaland-like path through Europe, though his numbers aren't as audacious as Haaland's were at Salzburg and Dortmund. Leipzig's poor season may help suitors, because Sesko's size, age, and profile make him a nine-figure guy waiting to happen.
Rafael Leao, AC Milan — A fantastic finisher whether played centrally or on the left wing, Leao's big assist totals from wide positions do make the idea of him as a winger a pretty important moment. Think Heung-min Son or even a taller Bukayo Saka.
Victor Boniface, Bayer Levekusen — The 24-year-old Nigerian didn't post audacious figures thanks in part to decent absences from this and last season at Leverkusen, but his profile when fit is perfect for the Premier League.
Dusan Vlahovic, Juventus — At 25, there's a question as to whether the Serbian has another level. He's going to score 15-20 goals in all competitions, but his 2021-22 between Fiorentina and Juve (29 goals and six assists in 45 matches) had us thinking he could hit loftier goals.

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The Business of Football: Why Tottenham have not been bought, and how much are Wrexham worth?

Among the many things this column is waiting for — a result in the Manchester City vs Premier League cage fight, Fenway Sports Group to buy a Spanish team, Gianni Infantino to give a press conference — none has been imminent for quite as long as a takeover at Tottenham Hotspur. Much like soccer has been the fastest-growing sport in the United States for half a century, Spurs have been the next big English club on the block for a decade. Advertisement In that time, Spurs have built the best multi-purpose stadium in Europe and sold lots of shirts, but won only one trophy. During the same period, the Premier League has become majority-owned by American billionaires and Tottenham's billionaire former majority-owner, British businessman Joe Lewis, has put his shares into a family trust, pleaded guilty to insider trading, and celebrated his 88th birthday. This is a fruit ripe for picking and every investor, private-equity firm and sovereign wealth fund looking for a prize asset in the world's most popular domestic football league has kicked the tyres at Spurs, taken the tour and run the numbers. So, why hasn't anyone bought them yet? Well, one big reason is that the club has been run by Lewis' business partner, Daniel Levy, since 2001 and he owns just over a quarter of the club's shares. Most experts believe Spurs are worth about £3billion ($4bn), or perhaps a bit more now that they are back in the Champions League and the likes of Beyonce are filling the stadium over the summer. But Levy wants £3.75billion, another $1billion at today's exchange rate. Quite the gap, then, but not so wide that you cannot start haggling, which is why the Spurs takeover story re-emerges every few months and will continue to do so until someone hits Levy's number, which may have to come down a tad when Joe Lewis' family decide they want their inheritances. None of this is particularly shocking and has been widely reported, but The Athletic has been told by several potential suitors that there are two under-reported factors which may influence where this meeting of minds will come. The first is that not everybody sees the same potential in Tottenham — the north London district, not the club — that Levy and Lewis did. Spurs are by far the biggest attraction in an area that has not seen much gentrification. It is also usually an hour's taxi ride from the West End hotels and restaurants that the Premier League's overseas ownership class enjoy. Advertisement And the second is the £775million in private placement notes that Levy used to refinance the cost of building the stadium. The size of that debt is not the problem, as the additional revenue from the club's new home is more than meeting the interest payments. The issue is that Levy, thanks to his good timing and great salesmanship, got a sweet deal when those notes were sold to asset managers, investment firms and pension funds in 2021. Spurs issued nine tranches of notes, with a range of repayment dates from 2035 to 2051 and interest rates between 2.49 per cent and 3.02 per cent. According to the club's most recent accounts, Spurs had total borrowings of £851.5m at the end of June 2024, at an average rate of 2.79 per cent and average maturity of almost 19 years. This means Spurs are paying an interest rate that is lower than inflation. So, in financial terms, they are not really paying any interest at all. This is great for Spurs but terrible for everyone who holds that debt, which is why they are all hoping for a takeover, too, so they can exercise their change-of-control clauses, get their money back and do something else with it. The club's new owners would have no problem finding other people — and perhaps even the same people — with whom to refinance the debt. It will just cost them about £20million a year more at the current rates, which adds up over 19 years. However, neither of those two issues — Spurs' location or Levy's luck with the interest rate cycle — are permanent or insurmountable. London is a city of villages that have ebbed and flowed in appeal over the centuries, and any extra interest payments could be covered by a naming rights deal. Interest rates are also meant to be coming down. So, sit tight, takeover watchers. Spurs will be bought by someone, at some point. Not the boldest of predictions, maybe, but it is the best we can do. On the subject of valuation gaps, Spurs' is a hairline fracture compared to the gaping chasm at Wrexham or, more accurately, the debate about Wrexham's valuation on this column's favourite social-media channel, LinkedIn. It all started earlier this month with a Bloomberg report headlined 'Wrexham AFC Weighs Raising Funds at £350 Million Valuation'. Citing unnamed sources, the report said the newly promoted Championship club were talking to advisers about selling a minority stake to boost the playing budget and pay for a new stand. Advertisement Sensible stuff, right? And entirely in keeping with what the club's owners have said they would do and — in fact — have already done, as they sold a stake to the New York-based Allyn family last October. But that deal was at a valuation of £100million ($135million). OK, Wrexham were still a League One side back then, but it was a record for a third-tier side. So are we really suggesting they have more than tripled in value in less than nine months? The answer is of course not… or perhaps, because Wrexham are unlike any other club in the English football pyramid. First, they are Welsh. Second, they are the subject of a very popular Disney-made docuseries. And third, and we feel this column deserves a pat on the back for not mentioning this sooner, they are owned by Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds. For those among you who only have time in their lives for football, McElhenney is an American TV actor, producer and writer, and Reynolds is one of the world's best-paid actors and most recognisable faces. They bought the then-fifth-tier club for £2m in 2021, but three straight promotions, all charted in heart-warming fashion by Disney's cameras, have brought them to the gates of the Premier League. But come on, £350m?!? That's not far off half a billion U.S. dollars. Most English Football League clubs are lucky to be valued at double their annual turnover. In Wrexham's case, that would be £70m based on last season's earnings or £100m on next season's projected earnings. The top Premier League clubs are valued at about five times their turnover, which reflects the league's mega media-rights deals, as well as their huge stadiums, global fanbases and access to European football. For Wrexham's touted price tag to make sense, you would need to apply a revenue multiple that only the most popular American franchises, in the biggest leagues, can command. Advertisement But Wrexham is not Los Angeles, and the Championship is not the National Football League. Hence the arguments on LinkedIn. Of those, the most interesting has been between Alexander Jarvis, the founder of Abu Dhabi-based Blackbridge Sports LLC, and former Charlton manager and Southampton vice-chairman Les Reed. Jarvis, who recently advised an American group on their purchase of a small stake in Portugal's Benfica, among other deals, has written two posts about the Wrexham valuation, calling it 'a total clown show', 'football's most outrageous over-valuation', and 'a gamble on celebrity and hype that completely ignores the hard realities of running a football club in the Championship'. Plenty of people have replied to him saying they agree, including William Storey, who is best known for a collapsed sponsorship deal with F1 team Haas and several failed bids for football teams. He might not be the best referee, then. Reed, who has been Wrexham's 'football strategy consultant' since 2021, hit back with a post that pointed out Jarvis & Co 'have never actually experienced running a club, let alone a club in the Championship', before noting that Southampton's former owners, the Liebherr family, eventually sold their shares in the club for close to 10 times their initial investment, which is impressive but not quite the point Jarvis was making about multiples of turnover. Reed continued by raising the examples of Bournemouth, Brentford and Brighton, three clubs who have invested heavily to become 'sustainable' Premier League clubs, and asked 'why would serious investors not want a stake' in Wrexham's 'journey' towards the same destination. So, who is right? The guy trying to earn his crust by advising on football takeovers, or the chap who works for Wrexham? Well, according to this column's panel of secret football finance experts, it depends on whether Wrexham should be valued as a regular football club or if they have transcended that status and are now a global entertainment brand. If it is the former, they are worth about £100m, which is the valuation the Allyns came in at. If it is the latter, well, why not? Advertisement However, even that more conservative valuation is highly vulnerable to what is known in business as 'key person risk'. If Rob and Ryan are struck by lightning, get bored, fall out, get sick or lose a court case, will Wrexham look so transcendent? It is a good debate and there is only one way to settle it: the price someone actually pays for a stake in the club. While very few clubs are as exposed to key person risk as Wrexham, all are vulnerable to any weakening in demand for the right to broadcast or stream their matches. If you had to pick one reason valuations have kept rising in the big leagues on both sides of the Atlantic, it is that live sport has been a must-have for TV executives. This means their sports counterparts have only needed two rival broadcasters in any market to create an auction. So, this month's news that New York-based media giant Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) is splitting into two separate companies has prompted an outpouring of speculation about what it might mean for sport. So far, there is no real consensus. For those who have missed this story, WBD was formed in 2022 by an expensive merger between two multinational media conglomerates, WarnerMedia and Discovery. But the company's bosses have now decided to put all the cool, still-growing stuff in one company, Streaming & Studios, so it is not held back by the profitable-but-in-decline TV channels. The latter are being boxed up in a company called Global Networks and, just in case you did not work out which one of these two entities is the sexy one, it will be run by WBD's head beancounter, while the chief executive is getting the company that makes Batman, Harry Potter and Game of Thrones. And just to underline that message, all of WBD's merger-related debt is being passed to the dowdier daughter. Advertisement If there is any agreement on what this means for the sports industry, it is that any impact will be felt first in the United States, where WBD's streaming platform Max has struggled to find its place in a congested market, despite having a decent range of sports to offer. Does this mean that sport is no longer a must-have for any self-respecting media offering, or has WBD just packaged it badly? The main sports brand is TNT Sports, which is joining the gang in managed decline at Global Networks. It has been part of the Max bundle but has recently lost its NBA rights after a 40-year connection with the league. It still has some baseball, college basketball, ice hockey and motorsport, but it does not have any NFL, so it is more of a nice-to-have than a must-have for most American sports fans. The picture in the UK is a little different, as TNT Sports does have what most British armchair sports fans consider to be essential viewing, namely a package of Premier League rights and near-exclusive rights to UEFA's club competitions. TNT Sports acquired the football when it formed a 50/50 joint venture with BT Sports in 2022, which united BT's menu of football, rugby and assorted North American pastimes with Eurosport's smorgasbord of cycling, tennis and the snowy stuff we watch once every four years in the Winter Olympics. And then, just to confuse you even further, WBD's streaming offer in the UK and Europe has been Discovery+, although it has started to turn that off and replace it with Max. Oh, and BT has also been trying, unsuccessfully, to sell its 50 per cent of TNT Sports, which really means that WBD has declined to pay BT's price for the rest of the business. To make some sense of all this, this column asked four media analysts for their takes on the WBD split. Dan Harraghy of Ampere Analysis does not see any impact for WBD's UK operations until HBO Max launches in early 2026. For him, the real lesson of this tale is the tension 'between the high value placed on sports rights by linear TV players' and the negative outlook for traditional broadcasting, which would explain why so many leagues have stopped seeing growth in the value of their rights. Even the mighty Premier League has had to throw in more content, spread out over the weekend, to get the same amount of money from its domestic partners. Advertisement Independent analyst Paolo Pescatore thinks the split will highlight something he has been saying for a while: TNT Sports is 'an entity in slow, painful decline'. He thinks the joint venture was 'poorly executed', with subscriber numbers falling and losses rising, which is why nobody has bought that 50 per cent stake in the business. Pescatore also believes the rising cost of watching sport, coupled with confusion over where to watch it, has driven the rise in digital piracy. Sports rights consultant Pierre Maes said he cannot see signs of any positive strategy for building an attractive streaming product in the UK and Europe, and dismisses the WBD split as a 'desperate move to calm down the stock market'. But the BBC's former head of sports rights, David Murray, is a bit more optimistic. 'My initial view is that it's probably a good thing for sport,' he said. 'I never got their strategy of wanting to bundle the likes of HBO with TNT Sport. So, in theory, the Discovery+ proposition can be a lot more focused, which should keep the price lower and allow it to cut through more than it would have done as part of a broader bundle.' Lower prices and more focus on providing a great sports product should be a benefit to consumers and sports rights-holders, as digital piracy is probably the number one threat to professional sport as we know it. Speaking of good times gone bad, we cannot have an edition of this column without a new cautionary tale about multi-club ownership (MCO). This one concerns Irish club Drogheda United, who have just lost their appeal against a UEFA decision to prevent them taking part in next season's Conference League, a prize they thought they had earned with their FAI Cup victory last November, because their American owners Trivela also have a stake in Danish side Silkeborg, who qualified for the same competition. Under UEFA rules, two teams with common ownership cannot play in the same competition and any clash is avoided by removing the team that finished lowest in its league. In this case, UEFA looked at Drogheda United's ninth-place finish in 2024 versus Silkeborg's seventh-place finish this year. Trivela took its case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, claiming that neither the Football Association of Ireland nor UEFA told the Alabama-based group that European football's governing body had moved forward the date for owners of MCO groups to create enough separation between their teams so they can potentially compete against each other. Advertisement Until this year, owners had until the start of June to dilute their shareholdings in one club or put all of their shares in a blind trust, but UEFA shifted that deadline to the start of March. Drogheda United, of course, are not the only side to miss this memo, as FA Cup winners Crystal Palace are still waiting to find out if they will be allowed to take their place in the Europa League alongside their co-owner John Textor's French side Lyon. The two cases are not identical, as there is no dispute that Drogheda and Silkeborg are controlled by the same owner, whereas Textor has never had that much sway at Palace, but Trivela's travails demonstrate that UEFA is getting increasingly strict with MCO groups. 'We are totally gutted by this outcome for the club, its players, its staff and its supporters,' Trivela co-founder Ben Boycott tells The Athletic. 'To all of them, I'm deeply sorry that we're going through this. We genuinely felt we had a compelling case before CAS, a point somewhat reinforced in the observation that this appears to have been a split (2-1) decision among the arbitrators.' Trivela has committed to filling the €500,000 (£425,000) hole in Drogheda United's budget left by the removal of European football, but is still processing what Boycott believes was a 'very harsh decision which ignored a number of mitigating factors and months of good-faith efforts on our part to come to a solution with UEFA'. It has been a tough few weeks for Trivela as their English outfit, Walsall, were 12 points clear at the top of League Two with 11 games to go, only to lose form and end up in the play-offs, where they rallied to beat Chesterfield in the semi-finals, only to lose 1-0 at Wembley to AFC Wimbledon. More clubs equal more opportunities for disappointment. And let us wrap up this edition of the Business of Football with another column staple: an update on the arrival of English football's independent regulator. We will keep this short and sweet — it really is coming now. For the first time since this process started in 2021, something has happened ahead of schedule. On Tuesday, the Football Governance Bill passed through the committee stage of the legislative process, without requiring the three further days that had been scheduled for debate. Advertisement The next step is the report stage, then the third reading of the bill in the House of Commons, before moving to a final consideration of amendments and royal assent. But with the Conservative Party's Premier League-backed rearguard action running out of puff, the bill's supporters are confident it will become law before the politicians break up for their summer recess on July 22. Which means we can all start moaning about the regulator's shortcomings from next season.

New York Times

an hour ago

• New York Times

The one position your Premier League club needs to sign a player in during this transfer window

We might only just be coming around to the end of the first week of the transfer window, but already fans of clubs — and managers — will be desperate to see business being done. But which position does each Premier League side need to prioritise this window? Where, if necessary, should the bulk of the budget be spent? The Athletic's club experts have weighed in with their thoughts below. A striker is the absolute priority for Mikel Arteta — and that is exactly what it should be. Benjamin Sesko and Viktor Gyokeres are two players they admire in the position, and either of them would immediately add to the quality of Arsenal's starting XI. Arsenal have finished second in the last three Premier League seasons, and the hope is that a goalscoring forward will finally get them over the line and secure their first title win since 2003-04. Advertisement Dan Sheldon Aston Villa are targeting a couple of positions — namely right-back, centre-back and a versatile attacker — but strengthening in the wide areas is needed. Leon Bailey is expected to leave in this window, with Saudi Arabian clubs expressing an interest. This would leave Villa without an archetypal wide player — other players tend to operate centrally in Unai Emery's system. Sources, kept anonymous to protect relationships, say that senior figures acknowledge that having an outlet on the right flank is key to adding dimensions to the attacking approach. Jacob Tanswell With Dean Huijsen departing to Real Madrid so early in the window, Bournemouth should have ample time to replace him in central defence. This position should be a priority, especially in light of increasing uncertainty over Huijsen's defensive partner last season, Illia Zabarnyi and a potential move to Paris Saint-Germain. Even managing to keep Zabarnyi, Bournemouth are short in defence, with Marcos Senesi and James Hill the only other options. Jacob Tanswell Although nothing is official yet, it feels like Bryan Mbeumo is destined to leave Brentford this summer. The 25-year-old has attracted interest from Newcastle United and Spurs but favours a move to Manchester United. The Cameroon international scored 20 times for Brentford last season, and they will need more firepower up front when he leaves. Club-record signing Igor Thiago missed most of the 2024-25 campaign with separate knee injuries but will hopefully be fully fit and make a big impact next season. After Thiago, Yoane Wissa and Kevin Schade, Brentford look light on options. Keane Lewis-Potter prefers to play on the left wing but has been exceptional at full-back. Talented 19-year-old winger Gustavo Nunes might be Mbeumo's long-term replacement on the right wing, but it would be unfair to expect him to step up straight away. Advertisement Brentford need a multi-functional forward who can offer Thomas Frank's replacement different options. Jay Harris Another full-back, preferably comfortable playing on the right or left side. Ferdi Kadioglu fitted the description when he signed last summer, but he has been out since November following toe surgery. Joel Veltman will be 34 next season. Tariq Lamptey, who has signed a new one-year deal, has suffered a lot with injuries. That leaves regular left-back Pervis Estupinan as a specialist in the position. Andy Naylor As with all three promoted sides, Scott Parker's squad needs upgrading in a number of positions if they hope to survive this season and finding a No 9 ahead of the new campaign will be crucial. Burnley's surge to promotion was built on the foundations of an excellent defence, but goals were not always free-flowing. Their attacking numbers improved in the second half of the campaign, but they remain light in the striker department, so a goalscorer has to be a priority. With that being said, goalkeeper James Trafford remains a Burnley player, but that is unlikely to be the case come the end of the window. Replacing him will be high on the priority list too. Andy Jones A right-footed left winger is a major priority and for good reason. Chelsea are short of options there right now. Firstly, they decided against turning Jadon Sancho's season-long loan move from Manchester United into a permanent transfer, and he has left. Secondly, the Football Association have now charged Mykhailo Mudryk, and he could face a lengthy ban. Noni Madueke and Pedro Neto can play on the left flank, while 19-year-old Tyrique George was promoted from the under-21s to the senior squad this season. But Chelsea's pursuit of Jamie Gittens — they have agreed personal terms with the player but are yet to finalise a fee with Borussia Dortmund — shows a desire to add another wide man to the ranks. Advertisement Simon Johnson Palace's most pressing need is for another centre-back, especially if Marc Guehi departs this summer. Chris Richards has come in and impressed after Trevoh Chalobah returned to Chelsea in January, and Maxence Lacroix has been excellent, but behind them there is a lack of depth. Nathaniel Clyne is an adequate option in an emergency and Jefferson Lerma has proven more than capable of dropping back from centre-midfield, but with Chadi Riad missing almost the entirety of last season through injury, Palace would benefit from adding a centre-back of starting quality to their squad. They could also do with adding another left and right wing-back as cover for Tyrick Mitchell and Daniel Munoz, but both have proven extremely reliable and available. Matt Woosnam Position? Try positions. With so many players out of contract this summer, many of whom are not being retained, Everton will need to strengthen across the board this summer. Things can change quickly in football, but they look particularly light on the right wing, with loanees Jack Harrison and Jesper Lindstrom having returned to their parent clubs, and Iliman Ndiaye and Dwight McNeil better suited elsewhere. A pacy, goalscoring option there is much needed and would give David Moyes' side a chance of kicking on. Patrick Boyland Injuries, ill-discipline and the departure of Joao Palhinha left Marco Silva short in midfield at times last season. The Fulham head coach's options could diminish further over the coming weeks, with Tom Cairney's contract expiring and doubts around Andreas Pereira's future. Sander Berge and Sasa Lukic put in some strong displays last season, controlling the middle of the park against the Premier League's best sides, but ahead of them, Emile Smith Rowe and Pereira often struggled to break down defences. Advertisement A more creative midfielder could be just what Silva needs to nudge Fulham into European contention next season. Justin Guthrie In a summer after promotion, Leeds have reason to sign players in every position. However, goalkeeper stands out to me as the one, above all others, they need to nail this summer. Illan Meslier has been the club's first-choice keeper since 2020, but the errors have begun to grow more frequent and more egregious over the past three seasons. He was dropped by Daniel Farke with seven matches still to play last term. It's hard to see how the Frenchman recovers from that nadir, while back-up Karl Darlow will not be good enough to start regularly in the top flight. In a campaign when their goal will be severely tested, Leeds need someone reliable to keep the ball out. Beren Cross It's the summer for Liverpool to sign a new centre forward. Time is up for Darwin Nunez, who has had three seasons at the club and failed to prove that he's cut out to lead the line. With Diogo Jota's concerning injury record — and his struggles in front of goal last season — Liverpool need a reliable goal-getter to help defend their title. No doubt the arrival of Florian Wirtz will help strengthen the attacking line, but the German is expected to play as a No 10, so there's still room for improvement. Although Luis Diaz did well when he played in a central position last season, Liverpool need a more recognised middle man in their ranks. Gregg Evans Having brought in a specialist left-back for the first time since 2017 and strengthened the midfield with two new arrivals ahead of the Club World Cup, City still need a new option on the right side of the defence, with Kyle Walker likely to move on this summer. Matheus Nunes made a decent fist of playing there in the final weeks of the season, and Rico Lewis will remain another option despite his usefulness in a functioning midfield. But neither should be regarded as viable long-term options that are capable of holding down the fort week in, week out. Advertisement A move for Newcastle's Tino Livramento continues to be mooted despite, in the same breath, everybody talking about how difficult it will be to prise him away from St James' Park, but that is the kind of player that could quite possibly cap City's summer business. There is an argument that they need a winger with a more polished end product than Jeremy Doku and Savinho, especially as Omar Marmoush has scored all of his goals at the Etihad and nobody can be quite sure how Phil Foden will bounce back. Oscar Bobb generally gets far more assists than goals, too, but with those five players, as well as Rayan Cherki, City certainly have enough numbers for the wide roles, even if goals are not yet assured. Sam Lee Forty-four goals was Manchester United's lowest tally in a single Premier League campaign and together, their two strikers signed over the two previous summers — Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee — contributed just seven to that total. Even after spending a combined £100million on Hojlund and Zirkzee, United are exploring the centre-forward market once again. There has been contact with Eintracht Frankfurt regarding Hugo Ekitike and Amorim would welcome a reunion with Sporting CP's Viktor Gyokeres. Neither will come cheap, though, and funds have so far been prioritised for the No 10 positions, with United hopeful that Bryan Mbeumo follows Matheus Cunha through the door. Both Cunha and Mbeumo have experience of playing up top, and could theoretically serve as the focal point of a reconfigured front line, but United's summer's business will feel incomplete if it concludes without the arrival of an out-and-out No 9. Mark Critchley A first-XI signing of any form is long overdue, given Newcastle have gone three consecutive windows without making any, but at least one frontline attacker is required. Ideally, that would be an out-and-out right winger to compete with Jacob Murphy, who has just enjoyed the season of his life, and to fill the absence vacated by Miguel Almiron's departure in January. Brentford's Bryan Mbeumo was the top target, but Nottingham Forest's Anthony Elanga and Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo have long been admired. Advertisement However, with Callum Wilson's future uncertain and an exit appearing possible for the striker, a versatile forward may take precedence: someone who is adept at playing out wide and through the middle. Brighton's Joao Pedro was almost acquired in 2022, and he appears to fit that mould. Chris Waugh It has been obvious for some time that Forest need more choice in attack. The impending arrival of Igor Jesus, a Brazil international, from Botafogo will provide direct competition for Chris Wood, who will be 34 later this year and cannot be expected to play every week. But there is still room for another forward now that Forest also have to factor in Europa Conference League games. That is why Yoane Wissa of Brentford remains a target, among others. Yes, Forest also have Taiwo Awoniyi, but last season was a miserable one for the Nigerian and upgrades are needed. Danny Taylor Trying to choose where Sunderland should prioritise this summer is a bit like selecting your favourite child: it depends what day of the week it is and picking just one leads to unacceptable neglect elsewhere. Regis Le Bris' young squad was underestimated a year ago too, but Premier League survival is a different kettle of fish (more like a tankful of piranhas) to challenging for Championship promotion. If pushed, improving the core of the side looks most key to Sunderland's chances. Jobe Bellingham's inevitable departure has opened a hole in a midfield which already needed reinforcing, even as Enzo Le Fee's loan deal turned permanent on promotion. An experienced head in there, one capable of both supporting counter-attacks and helping Dan Neil in his deeper role, looks essential — and probably expensive. Behind Neil, Sunderland currently have no centre-backs with any Premier League experience (Leo Hjelde's two starts at left-back for Leeds United in 2022 are as much as they can muster). That's hardly unique for this team but rectifying it is imperative; Le Bris' side were well organised last season but will need to upgrade their ability to withstand long spells of pressure this year. Advertisement Chris Weatherspoon Tottenham's defence conceded 65 goals last season, but that was partially because first-choice centre-backs Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero both struggled with injury. New head coach Thomas Frank should instantly tighten things up at the back. They have a lot of different options out wide, including Brennan Johnson, Wilson Odobert and Son Heung-min, but they could do with another peak-age player in that position as they look to make an impact in the Champions League. The biggest area for concern is defensive midfield. Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur struggled on and off the pitch last season, and both only have a year left on their contracts. Frank wanted to sign Archie Gray at Brentford, but it will be a huge task for the 19-year-old to start every game as the No 6. Frank needs to quickly decide whether to upgrade on Bissouma and Bentancur or not. Jay Harris There are three things guaranteed in life: death, taxes and West Ham needing to sign a striker. Head coach Graham Potter has a shortage of attacking options. Michail Antonio looks set to depart when his contract expires at the end of June, Evan Ferguson has returned to Brighton & Hove Albion following his uninspiring loan spell, and Niclas Fullkrug has an uncertain future, despite joining for £27million from Borussia Dortmund last summer. Striker is once again a priority position. Roshane Thomas After selling Matheus Cunha to Manchester United early in the summer window, Wolves have made a start in filling the void by agreeing a deal for the talented Fer Lopez from Celta Vigo, but he is only 21 and is not regarded as an immediate like-for-like replacement. It is unlikely that they will be able to replace their talismanic Brazil international with one player. They will need a number of players to improve the team in attacking areas, and that will mean adding more players to operate as one of Vitor Pereira's dual No 10s, preferably at least one who is already tried and tested over a longer period of time than Lopez. Steve Madeley (Top photos: Getty Images)

Chicago Tribune

4 hours ago

• Chicago Tribune

Club World Cup crowds have fluctuated wildly, from swathes of empty seats to ‘hostile' atmospheres

MIAMI — As kickoff approached it was clear — the fans weren't coming. The Club World Cup, soccer's shiny, new competition, has been billed as the event to breathe new life into the world's most popular sport. It began a week ago in the United States, where stadiums of monumental capacity and steep tickets prices awaited the rowdy crowds seen at grounds across the world. But rows and rows of empty seats inside Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, Fla., on Tuesday told another story. 'It's like playing football during lockdown,' observed one fan on social media. For days, world governing body FIFA didn't register the attendance for the game between Mamelodi Sundowns and Ulsan on its official website. It took until Friday for a figure of 3,412 to be acknowledged on the site, but by rough count, there were fewer than 1,000 fans in the stands as the game got underway. At the other end of the spectrum, more than 80,000 watched Champions League winner Paris Saint-Germain versus Atletico Madrid at the massive Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. The opening week for the monthlong tournament across the U.S. has seen some wildly fluctuating attendances. The Mamelodi Sundowns-Ulsan game stands out as the low point so far for FIFA and its president, Gianni Infantino, who is banking on the Club World Cup becoming one of the most popular and valuable competitions in sport. So sparse was the crowd that the word 'ORLANDO' — spelled out in yellow seats on one of the main stands at Inter&Co Stadium — was almost completely unobstructed. Crowd-control stewards stood by the sidelines and monitored vast areas of empty spaces in the 25,500-capacity Florida venue. The home of MLS team Orlando City — among the smallest stadiums chosen to host games for the tournament — was still massively oversized for the match, even with ticket prices falling to $23. A group game between largely unheralded teams from South Africa and South Korea was never likely to be a big seller. And storms, which forced kickoff to be delayed by more than an hour, may have led to no-shows. Still, it was an uncomfortably low turnout and one of three games in the opening week that drew fewer than 10,000 fans. There were also swathes of empty seats for Chelsea's game against Los Angeles FC in Atlanta. It was an afternoon kickoff on a weekday, but one of the Premier League's most popular teams against an opponent from MLS couldn't manage to fill one-third of the 71,000-capacity stadium, with 22,000 fans showing up. 'I think the environment was a bit strange. You know, the stadium was almost empty,' Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca said, and even with Lionel Messi in town for the second game in Atlanta — Inter Miami's win against Porto — the crowd was far from capacity at 31,783. Uncertainty over ticket sales had been a point of debate in the build up to the tournament, with prices falling dramatically before the opening game between Miami and Al Ahly last Saturday. An impressive crowd of nearly 61,000 watched that game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., though it is not known how many paid anywhere near the $349 that tickets were being quoted at in December. As of Tuesday, FIFA said 1.5 million tickets had been sold and more than 340,000 fans had attended the first eight games. Infantino proudly proclaimed the Club World Cup was growing into 'the undisputed pinnacle of global club football.' Numbers in Miami have been good — nothing lower than 55,000 and topping out at a near-capacity 63,587 for Bayern Munich versus Boca Juniors. Bayern forward Harry Kane described the atmosphere inside a stadium dominated by Boca fans as 'hostile.' Crowds have still come to Miami in a week when the Florida Panthers were playing in the Stanley Cup Final. Boca and Real Madrid fans queued up for hours in sweltering heat after arriving early for games. The biggest crowd of the opening week was 80,619 for PSG-Atletico Madrid in LA. For context, that is just short of the 84,163 who watched the English FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium and well above the 64,327 attendance for the Champions League final — European club soccer's biggest game. While there was not a sellout game in the opening week, 10 of the first 24 matches have seen crowds in excess of 40,000, for an average of around 36,000. The average for the Champions League last season was just under 46,000, according to soccer data website Transfermarkt, but like-for-like comparisons are difficult, given this is a totally new format bringing club teams from around the world to the U.S. At the 2022 men's World Cup in Qatar there was an average attendance of just under 50,000 for the opening week. Of the 20 games played over that period, the highest attendance was 88,103 and all but two of those games had crowds in excess of 40,000. Focus on the Club World Cup has been intense for more than one reason. There is still uncertainty over how much of an appetite there is among fans for another elite soccer tournament, and it was unknown how many would be prepared to follow their team to the U.S. According to FIFA, the biggest take up of tickets from abroad was from Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. Perhaps more significant is what this tournament says about the men's World Cup, which is largely being staged in the U.S. next year. The Club World Cup could be seen as a gauge of how America's interest in soccer has grown since last hosting the planet's biggest sporting event in 1994. In that sense, it's not just about statistics, but optics as well. Which is why FIFA will hope to avoid a repeat of the scenes at Mamelodi Sundowns versus Ulsan.