With the MLS transfer window closing in about 2 weeks, we should be seeing striker signing rumors soon. This is my striker shortlist.
What type of player could we be targeting?
Looking back at the Giakoumakis and Miranchuk(soon) signings, we can see that these are players who were stuck at their former club. Giak, for example, was a multiple time golden boot winner but was eventually benched by Kyogo Furuhashi at Celtic (for several reasons). Miranchuk was stellar in Russia but once he moved to Atalanta, he couldn’t find consistent minutes. Most of the players I picked are players who are stuck at their club.
What type of striker could we be targeting?
Garth said in a recent MLS article that the new DP #9 will be a well rounded target forward. We can assume that the new striker will: have good hold up play, be fast, be tall (or at least not short), and have good goal scoring numbers
Alright now into the players:
Giovanni Simeone - 29yrs - Napoli
I really like Simeone’s game man. He’s so good in the air and with the ball at his feet.. He makes defenders look silly. He’s very good off the ball, like Giak was. He’s also relatively speedy so he could be serviceable on the counter unlike Giak. Simeone hasn’t been able to find minutes at Napoli after a 22 g/a season with Hellas Verona in 2021/22. I believe Simeone would be a fantastic signing up top for us.
Umar Sadiq - 27yrs - Real Sociedad
Like Simeone, Umar is an incredible goal scorer. He’s incredibly speedy, great at running through the defense. The only issue is that he seems to be like Giak with the ball at his feet. His touch is not the greatest at all, but all of his other features are great. He has had a rocky start with Real Sociedad but his stats in La Liga 2 are spectacular. 24 g/a in 2020/21 and 27 g/a in 21/22. I think this signing would be great but his touch does spook me out.
Odsonne Edouard - 26yrs - Crystal Palace
Ok I had to throw one unrealistic player in here. Edouard would almost never join us unless we gave him an insane salary and he’s already on 6ms/y. But yeah he’ll probably be leaving Crystal Palace during this window.
Raúl de Tomás - 29yrs - Rayo Vallecano
Raul has been a consistent top goal scorer in La Liga 2, scoring 17 goals and 23 goals in back to back seasons. His last 2 seasons in La Liga haven’t been so good, only 5 goals in those 2 seasons. He is a lot like Simeone in the way he plays. He has incredible flair and goal scoring ability.. And like Simeone, he’s always in the right place at the right time. I think RdT would be a great signing at the right price.
Toni Martinez - 27yrs - FC Porto
Toni reminds me of Petar Musa, a great striker stuck behind great strikers in Portugal. Toni has had:
4g in 526 minutes last year
9g/a in 1,264 minutes in 22/23
5g in 836 minutes in 21/22
7g in 711 minutes in 20/21 during his FC Porto career. I think he could be a great striker if he was given consistent minutes. Like all of the other guys, Toni is an incredible finisher with his feet and with his head. I think Martinez could be very good in MLS if he were to come here.
Marvin Ducksch - 30yrs - Werder Bremen
Marvin has had some incredible recent seasons in the Bundes and 2. Bundes. 12g/10a in 33 Bundes games last year, 12g/8a in 34 games the year before in the Bundes. Marvin is very technical for a 6 '2 forward. Like, he could play as a 10 if he wanted. He almost always has his back towards the goal waiting for runners to pass to. He’s genuinely a more technical Giakoumakis. He takes set pieces for Bremen and he’s very good at them. I think Ducksch rivals Simeone for the best player spot on this list.
Luka Jovic - 26yrs - AC Milan
People will say this is “unrealistic” and it is but i dont care. Jovic coming to MLS could be great for the league. He has had back to back +10g/a seasons in Serie A after stinking it up at Real Madrid. Like all of the players listed, Jovic has a great eye for goal. He’s not very tall but he still has great heading ability. I think Jovic would be a great fit for Atlanta, and it could possibly bring fans back into the stadium.
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