Then I guess I don't understand your expectation for our new striker. Banging them in at 20 years of age in a top 4 league? Those guys are out of our price range (and there are only a handful of them).
Not necessarily, but there is a massive difference between banging them in in a top 4 league and average performances in a (just) top 25 league.
Just for comparison. Youssef Chermiti was a regular for a strong team in Portugal at 18 years old. He grew up in a top academy and has a lot of youth caps for Portugal that traditionally produce top talent and competitive youth teams.
March last year Chermiti got his two U21 caps and scored his first goal. He was 19. He started games for Everton as a 19 year old.
Thierno Barry was 22 when he got his first U21 cap in March this year. Barry played grassroots football when he was 19.
Last season it became more and more clear that a player such as Beto can't work in a team. He plays for himself. He doesn't move like strikers are expected to. He doesn't press when he is expected to. He wastes his energy and try to press alone when the rest of the team drops off. And he spends way too much either in offside or on his backside after having thrown himself to the ground.
There were so many times where we tried to be offensive but fell apart because Beto didn't do his job. In modern football you defend and attack as a team. It only takes one player not doing his job and all opponents will play through you with ease. I'm sure he won't mind the comparison, but playing with Beto is a little like playing with CRonaldo. You get the odd goal, but it also limits what you can do as a team when it comes to tactics.
I rate Chermiti higher than Beto. And I'd expect Chermiti to be more than capable to match Barry's numbers from lesser leagues.
theanalyst.com
