n football, goals pay the bills. They decide matches and win points, keep managers in jobs and fans happy.
That’s why there has always been a premium on players who excel in putting the ball in the net; when Manchester United boss José Mourinho bemoaned Manchester City‘s ability to “spend striker money on full-backs”, he was exposing the game’s bias towards goal-getters, and their rightful position as football’s most valuable assets.
As the transfer market spirals further down a path of dizzying inflation, with fees increasing exponentially on what feels like a weekly basis, the money men at top clubs will be even more determined to get as much bang for their buck as possible.
When assessing potential targets, in any position, efficiency is king; with time a precious commodity and space on the pitch decreasing through the proliferation of highly effective pressing tactics, the ability to do things quickly and accurately becomes invaluable.
Never more so when it comes to the art of dispatching goal-scoring chances. In the Premier League, there are now six teams with genuine title aspirations at the start of every season, two of whom will be forced to miss out on a the golden goose of Champions League qualification. Single digits in the “goals for” column can make all the difference.
Written by Ryan Baldi, Football Whispers