Scouting for Hoots - European Strikers

[Bring back Bryan wade!!]

As some of you on here know, I suggested Leo Ulloa as a potential signing a good 12 months before he joined the club so I have been clocking up the air miles again scouting the European leagues for our next 20-25 goal a season striker.

We all know you get more bang for your buck when buying from abroad so I would price these strikers in the 5-10m bracket whereas if they were English they would probably cost 10-15m.

Here are my 3 selections:

1. Arkadiusz Milik

22 year old Polish striker currently playing for Ajax. Has scored 32 goals in 52 games for the Dutch giants as well as an international strike rate of 10 in 24 for Poland. You are buying potential here as opposed to a proven track record but he is very highly regarded in the Netherlands and worth a punt for me.

2. Valere Germain

26 year old French striker who has a strike rate of 1 in 3 in the top flight of French football over the last 4 seasons . Finished 7th in the top goalscorers chart this season. A superior version of Sam Baldock.

3. Islam Slimani

Algerian international striker who finished 2nd in the Portuguese top scorers charts this season. Has an excellent 47 goals in 80 games for Sporting CP and 23 goals in 40 games at international level. Would be the top end of our budget but if I had the choice of him or Ross McCormack it would be Slimani every day of he week.

 

[SeagullofMalaysia]

Milik and Slimani are way too unrealistic (wage demands, big PL interest)

Maybe one of Nils Petersen/Simon Terodde/Julian Schieber/Artjoms Rudnevs for me

Sent from the tearglands of Massive Wednesday fans

 

[itszamora]

So in other words, you were only, by your own inflated self-opinion, six months behind the club, who'd been tracking Ulloa for 18 months and were waiting for him to get a Spanish passport.

I don't think we have a cat's chance in hell of signing first-teamers from Ajax, Monaco or Sporting Lisbon. To stick with your grandiose claims about Ulloa, he wasn't getting in Almeria's team when we signed him - quite different to these guys.

 

[Deano's Invisible Pants]

As some of you on here know, I suggested Leo Ulloa as a potential signing a good 12 months before he joined the club so I have been clocking up the air miles again scouting the European leagues for our next 20-25 goal a season striker.

We all know you get more bang for your buck when buying from abroad so I would price these strikers in the 5-10m bracket whereas if they were English they would probably cost 10-15m.

Here are my 3 selections:

1. Arkadiusz Milik

22 year old Polish striker currently playing for Ajax. Has scored 32 goals in 52 games for the Dutch giants as well as an international strike rate of 10 in 24 for Poland. You are buying potential here as opposed to a proven track record but he is very highly regarded in the Netherlands and worth a punt for me.

2. Valere Germain

26 year old French striker who has a strike rate of 1 in 3 in the top flight of French football over the last 4 seasons . Finished 7th in the top goalscorers chart this season. A superior version of Sam Baldock.

3. Islam Slimani

Algerian international striker who finished 2nd in the Portuguese top scorers charts this season. Has an excellent 47 goals in 80 games for Sporting CP and 23 goals in 40 games at international level. Would be the top end of our budget but if I had the choice of him or Ross McCormack it would be Slimani every day of he week.

Milik looks fairly 'proven' to me. Which is probably why Leicester and a host of other PL clubs want him!

 

[Bring back Bryan wade!!]

Milik and Slimani are way too unrealistic (wage demands, big PL interest)

Maybe one of Nils Petersen/Simon Terodde/Julian Schieber/Artjoms Rudnevs for me

Sent from the tearglands of Massive Wednesday fans

Neither the Dutch or Portuguese leagues are notorious high payers so I don't think the wages would be unrealistic. With regards to competition for signings yes that will always be there but from what I can see there is no 'firm' interest currently for either player and if we are serious about top 2 aspirations for next season with the likes of Newcastle, Norwich etc in the division then these players are the sort of calibre we need to sign.

 

[Bring back Bryan wade!!]

Milik looks fairly 'proven' to me. Which is probably why Leicester and a host of other PL clubs want him!

I was defining proven as several seasons of consistent goal scoring.

 

[Bring back Bryan wade!!]

So in other words, you were only, by your own inflated self-opinion, six months behind the club, who'd been tracking Ulloa for 18 months and were waiting for him to get a Spanish passport.

I don't think we have a cat's chance in hell of signing first-teamers from Ajax, Monaco or Sporting Lisbon. To stick with your grandiose claims about Ulloa, he wasn't getting in Almeria's team when we signed him - quite different to these guys.

Germain has not been playing for Monaco. He was on loan to Nice. With regards to the salaries of the other 2 they would not be greatly different to what our highest earners take home.

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

Neither the Dutch or Portuguese leagues are notorious high payers so I don't think the wages would be unrealistic. With regards to competition for signings yes that will always be there but from what I can see there is no 'firm' interest currently for either player and if we are serious about top 2 aspirations for next season with the likes of Newcastle, Norwich etc in the division then these players are the sort of calibre we need to sign.

Interesting stuff and thanks for posting.

My only reservation re any player from the Dutch league, is that apparently it is quite a poor standard (based on our signings and some others that have come over to prem clubs). I think CMS may have been prolific (I know I'm being harsh).

 

[SeagullofMalaysia]

Neither the Dutch or Portuguese leagues are notorious high payers so I don't think the wages would be unrealistic. With regards to competition for signings yes that will always be there but from what I can see there is no 'firm' interest currently for either player and if we are serious about top 2 aspirations for next season with the likes of Newcastle, Norwich etc in the division then these players are the sort of calibre we need to sign.

I doubt they're willing to swap guaranteed European football with 2nd div footy in England (unless they play for some outfit from Slovakia or other not so well known European leagues)

Sent from the tearglands of Massive Wednesday fans

 

[KZNSeagull]

If Leicester are going to splash the cash on 22m strikers, perhaps we could have the current Leo Ulloa back?

 

[Bring back Bryan wade!!]

If Leicester are going to splash the cash on 22m strikers, perhaps we could have the current Leo Ulloa back?

This is another option and one that would be a great bit of business for the club

 

[SeagullofMalaysia]

Perhaps we can scout players from the French 2nd division? Knocky, Mahrez and Kodjia all came to England from that league, and now look how highly rated they are

Sent from the tearglands of Massive Wednesday fans

 

[We're the Stripes]

That list would still have been pretty hopeful had we gone up. All three very much a level up from the sort of striker we could realistically aim for, for a multitude of reasons.

As mentioned above, are there any other Kodjia types we could potentially unearth from the French/Spanish second tiers?

 

[itszamora]

Germain has not been playing for Monaco. He was on loan to Nice. With regards to the salaries of the other 2 they would not be greatly different to what our highest earners take home.

And having been the 7th top scorer in the league, one imagines he will now have a much better shot of either getting in Monaco's first team or getting a move to another Ligue 1 club.

 

[severnside gull]

Diedhiou at Cletmont is an obvious one to look at.
1.89 metres, age24, top scorer in Ligue 2 with 21 goals. & 4 assists
Could offer good competition for Hemed at a reasonable price

 

[TSB]

Milik and Slimani are way too unrealistic (wage demands, big PL interest)

Maybe one of Nils Petersen/Simon Terodde/Julian Schieber/Artjoms Rudnevs for me

Sent from the tearglands of Massive Wednesday fans

Nils Petersen's been on our (NSC's) radar for a while:

https://nortr3nixy.nimpr.uk/showthread.php?329088-Nils-Petersen&highlight=nils+petersen

 

[Napier's Knee]

Or since we like Almeria strikers what about Enrique Gonzalez Casin
http://player.7msport.com/69941/index.shtml

 

[Lurchy]

Don't think Alfred Finnbogason would be a bad option. 27 year old Icelandic international. Scored 7 in 14 appearances for Augsburg where he's been on loan for the last half of the season and has been a prolific scorers before whilst at Heerenveen. Returning back to parent club Real Sociedad this summer and wouldn't be surprised if he becomes available.

https://youtu.be/QWVjVwT__d4

 

[shaolinpunk]

Milik has been superb for me on Football Manager. He becomes a top level striker within a few seasons.

On that basis, I think he'd be an unbelievable signing but also out of our reach.

 

[Fignon's Ponytail]

A guy called David Rodriguez has had a good season in the Spanish 2nd Division with 17 goals I think...35 in 76 since signing for Alcorcon. Could do a job?! ��