Just take Alvaro Morata’s case at Chelsea as an example; the Spaniard’s decline in form at the turn of 2018 coincided with their domestic campaign going completely off the rails. The Blues went from flying third to finishing fifth in the final standings as the former Real Madrid and Juventus star found the net only once in the second half of the campaign.
But while Morata could never find his feet at Chelsea again, these six attacking stars did, in the current season. They have successfully fired at all cylinders so far and it has also put their respective sides on course to achieve a good finish.
Let’s look at the six most improved forwards this season:
#6 Richarlison (Everton)
The Toffees turned a few heads after their £35 million outlay for Richarlison last summer. What could possibly convince them to splurge so much in pursuit of a player who struck only five times in 41 appearances for Watford and deemed one of the worst signings of the season? Well, just halfway through the current term, you have your answer.
With nine league goals - 10 in all competitions - Richarlison is a player reborn. He has found his shooting boots again and appears more confident and menacing in front of goal. The Brazilian alone has accounted for almost 33% of Everton’s goals in the Premier League and has started every game he was available for.
That’s a massive change of fortunes for a player in a span of barely a few months. But the 21-year old’s rich vein of form helped Everton get off to a good start and can help end the campaign on a similar note.
#5 Andre Silva (Sevilla)
The Portuguese was far from his best during his time at AC Milan, where he played largely a bit part role. His best contributions came in the Europa League where he scored eight times in 10 games. But his league return of mere two strikes in 24 appearances - most of which were from the bench - prompted a move to Sevilla last summer.
And it proved to be a masterstroke. Silva has struck eight times in 16 league appearances for the Sevillistas, including a hattrick on his debut against Rayo Vallecano on matchday one and a double against Real Madrid.
An unfortunate twang to his hammy at the start of November seems to have derailed his season, as since returning, he’s only struck twice in 10 games. But his presence inside the area spells massive danger. His lethal finishing was on show again against Levante at the weekend and looks to be on his way back to his scoring best.
#4 Nicolas Pepe (LOSC Lille)
While the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Edinson Cavani and Neymar continue to eclipse Ligue 1 with their blistering attacking exploits, there are others in the league who’re on a good run at the moment and deserve similar recognition. One such player is Nicolas Pepe, who has struck as many times as Cristiano Ronaldo.
With only 13 goals in 36 appearances for Lille last time, the Ivory Coast international has already surpassed that mark with 15 goals in 21 appearances this term, whilst also assisting another seven. That’s a staggering 61% contribution to Lille’s goals in Ligue 1 as he is also the instrumental factor behind the team’s surprise second-position at the moment.
It speaks volumes about a player’s improvement if he’s already registered his career-best figures only half-way through a season. But Pepe has not only improved, but he’s a real deal now. And should he continue in the same vein, a Champions League finish would be a distinct possibility for Les Dogues.
#3 Paco Alcacer (Borussia Dortmund)
The Spanish forward left Barcelona for Borussia Dortmund last summer in search of greener pastures. And not only has he found that in Lucien Favre’s side, but has also thrived in it so much that he’s now the toast of the town in Rhine Valley (and also convinced them to sign him permanently).
Alcacer has scored 12 times in just 537 minutes of football, which is a goal every 45 minutes. Starting mostly from the bench, he has had a terrific impact as a substitute, scoring twice against Bayer Leverkusen, a hat-trick against Augsburg and more importantly, netting the winner against Bayern Munich.
What makes it all the more impressive is that he’s had three different bouts of injury issues interspersed between this amazing run, but there’s simply no stopping Alcacer 2.0.
Borussia Dortmund are currently on course to end Bayern’s long-standing hegemony in the Bundesliga with a first title triumph in seven years, and Alcacer is highly essential to their fortunes.
#2 Luka Jovic (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Alexander Meier became the first Eintracht Frankfurt first player since Anthony Yeboah in 1994, to win the Bundesliga Golden Boot in 2015 when his strike return of 19 goals was unparalleled by anyone in the league.
Four years down the line, Luka Jovic is now following his footsteps to become just the fifth Eagle ever to claim the elusive Teorjägerkanone. With 13 league goals in 17 appearances, he currently leads the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Marco Reus, Paco Alcacer and other attacking stars of the league.
He also has another four assists to his name as Frankfurt’s encouraging first-half of the campaign was largely down to his fearsome streak.
The Serbian international has already scored five more than what he managed in 22 appearances last season, and on current evidence, may surpass the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career, really soon.
Frankfurt also made history by winning all six of their group games in the Europa League. And guess who had a major impact with six strikes…
#1 Duvan Zapata (Atalanta)
Just like Pepe, Atalanta’s new target man Duvan Zapata is scripting a similar fairytale story in Serie A with a hot streak that has caught everyone’s attention.
Having drawn a blank until the 11th game, he’s now scored in each of the last eight! Yes, that’s right, and this blistering run of form has propelled him to 15 goals in the league and level with Cristiano Ronaldo in the Serie A Golden Boot race.
The Colombian’s incredible streak saw him strike twice against Juventus in a 2-2 draw, a hat-trick away at Udinese, a quadruple against Frosinone(!), a winner against Lazio, and was lately on target to score Atalanta’s third goal in a 3-3 thriller versus AS Roma to seal a memorable comeback.
Thanks to him, La Dea are now up to seventh in the table. The 27-year old has already struck four more than what he managed in the whole of 2017/18 and would have some of Europe’s big guns knocking at his door this summer.
0 votes
