The summer transfer window was a centre-forward merry-go-round. Two months into the 2025-26 Premier League season, we assess how the big-money strikers are getting on and give them each a speculative grade.
If there was one type of player that defined the summer transfer window for the Premier League, it was the centre-forward.
Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle – so, four of last season’s top five – invested heavily in their options at centre-forward, while Manchester United did as well.
Some considerable fees were spent, big names moved to the Premier League, and several climbed a few rungs of the top-flight ladder.
With the October international break upon us and the 2025-26 season about two months old, it seems a decent opportunity to check in on how some of those involved in the centre-forward merry-go-round are faring at their new clubs.
A few, such as Liam Delap, Yoane Wissa, Randal Kolo Muani and others have been ignored for issues pertaining to injuries or simply a complete lack of football, but we’ve hopefully identified those whose arrivals captured the most attention in the summer.
Nick WoltemadeNewcastle
Despite enjoying a breakout season in the Bundesliga last term, Nick Woltemade arrived in the Premier League as something of an unknown quantity to Newcastle fans.
He was given a thankless task: replacing Alexander Isak, who’d developed into one of the world’s best and most-rounded centre-forwards at Newcastle before joining Liverpool.
But Woltemade has quickly shown promising signs in his adaptation to the Premier League.
He’s arguably been helped by being such a different player to Isak. No one is comparing the two directly because they’re nothing alike, therefore allowing Newcastle fans to judge him on his own merits. And they like what they see.
It’s not just what he offers in the opposition’s box. Woltemade has impressed with his intricate link-up play, hold-up qualities, and ability to bring others into the fold, all of which aid Newcastle in build-up.
Only three nominal centre-forwards – all have tallied more minutes – in the Premier League this term have attempted more lay-offs (defined as a player laying the ball into the path of a teammate’s run) than him (11). And among the same group, Woltemade ranks joint sixth for involvements in unique shot-ending sequences (4).
Those numbers may not sound groundbreaking, but they help give an idea of how he operates and what he offers to Newcastle generally.
There is, of course, the more headline numbers for a centre-forward. The big one is four goals in seven appearances across all competitions, including three in four Premier League outings.
Admittedly, he knew little about his ‘effort’ against Union Saint-Gilloise in the Champions League as he deflected Sandro Tonali’s shot in, and then his most recent was a penalty (albeit one of the best you’re likely to see). But the other two will have given Newcastle fans a lot of encouragement.
After all, Woltemade’s ability in the air – despite his size – was largely downplayed ahead of his arrival, mostly because his biggest strengths lie elsewhere. But he opened his account with a towering header against Wolves, and then he nudged Gabriel Magalhães out of the way before nodding home in the defeat to Arsenal.
His silky footwork and handling of tussles with centre-backs have suggested he’s primed to thrive in the Premier League; Woltemade’s enjoyed a very promising start.
Grade: A
Hugo EkitikéLiverpool
Before the prospect of Isak arriving at Liverpool appeared realistic, the Reds welcomed another centre-forward, and he made a strong first impression.
Hugo Ekitiké had been linked with a host of clubs prior to Liverpool bringing him to Anfield, and he wasted little time in making the case that they needn’t go for Isak as well.
He scored a goal in each of his first three appearances in all competitions, catching the eye with his dynamic style of play and technical quality.
He then netted what was ultimately the decisive goal in the Merseyside derby and a late winner against Southampton in the League Cup.
Of course, Ekitiké’s celebration for the latter led to a second yellow and a sending off, which probably didn’t help his standing considering Isak – whom he replaced at half-time – was back in contention and fighting to earn a regular spot in the team.
That daft red card aside, though, the Frenchman has done well.
Only three forwards can better his three non-penalty Premier League goals and he ranks 10th for non-penalty expected goals (1.9).
He climbs up to seventh when looking at non-pen xG on a per-90 basis (0.45), which is also comfortably the most of any Liverpool player.
There’s more to him than just being a goal threat, though. His ability on the ball makes him a creative weapon and can help turn nothing situations into promising ones, with Ekitiké’s 62.5% dribble success rate the third best among all Premier League players to attempt at least 10 this term.
In a way, it’s a shame Isak’s return to fitness has reduced Ekitiké’s minutes somewhat, but he’s the kind of explosive talent who can be impactful out of nowhere.
The early signs suggest he’s going to be a real asset for Liverpool.
Grade: B+
João PedroChelsea
Considering he made his debut for Chelsea at the Club World Cup three months ago, it feels like João Pedro has been at the club for a while now. But this is his first full season at Stamford Bridge, so we think he qualifies for inclusion here.
On the face of it, his start to 2025-26 has been pretty effective. He’s scored twice and set up three goals, with his five Premier League goal involvements bettered by only Erling Haaland (10) and Antoine Semenyo (9).
But there’s been a degree of fortune about his three assists, as his seven chances created in total have only been worth 0.25 expected assists (xA).
While his output in this respect might flatter him somewhat, that’s not to say he hasn’t still impressed in other ways.
He produced a mature and lively display in defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League, for instance, with his ease in possession helpful in Chelsea’s attempts to hold on to the ball in their hosts’ half.
Although he’s often been seen as something of a hybrid forward, in the summer he said he considers himself predominantly a number 9.
Even with Liam Delap hardly featuring due to injury, João Pedro has still been used across the Chelsea attack as opposed to in a single role, and that’s likely impacted his output.
He’s averaging just 1.5 shots per 90 this season, and although that can be supplemented by 0.9 open-play chances created per 90, he’s not been one of the division’s most productive forwards when it comes to shot-creating actions.
A lack of consistency in a specific position can’t be ignored when running the rule over his start to the season, and while it does appear he’s benefitted from a little luck with his goal involvements, it’d be a fair rebuttal to point out he warrants praise for being in those dangerous positions in the first place – and his cross to tee up Pedro Neto against West Ham was inch-perfect.
With three goals at the Club World Cup to take into consideration as well, his grade gets a handy little bump into very respectable territory.
Grade: B-
Benjamin SeskoManchester United
As expensive and highly rated as he was when Manchester United signed Benjamin Sesko, there was always a feeling he’d need time. In some respects, he’s still quite raw, and not everyone succeeds in making the step up from the Bundesliga to the Premier League.
So, any United fans hoping for an immediate avalanche of goals to cleanse the memory of Rasmus Højlund’s toiling have probably been disappointed, with the Slovenian managing just two in eight appearances across all competitions.
But that cannot be laid at his feet alone.
United are, of course, an excessively up-and-down team who perennially seem just one result away from the next crisis. Sesko has come into an attack that’s still very new, while the whole team are still getting used to him and each other.
At times, he’s looked isolated and lacking service, almost crying out for a few more deliveries into the box to potentially feed off. After all, supposedly one of the main reasons for signing him in the first place was his aerial ability, and yet nine teams have played more open-play crosses than United (87) this term.
There have definitely been signs of encouragement in his general play, though. His footwork in tight spaces is tidy and helps him retain possession in situations other centre-forwards might lose the ball; linked to that, he’s shown he can bring teammates into play, hold the ball up effectively, and be used as a target man for flick-ons.
It was his flick-on for Bryan Mbeumo that led to Robert Sánchez being sent off in the win over Chelsea, while Sesko’s five chances created is bettered by only two nominal centre-forwards this term.
Additional positivity can be gleaned from his past two outings being quite comfortably his best, suggesting he’s finding a groove.
United may have lost to Brentford, but Sesko recorded six attempts – even when you consider three of those were in a three-second burst leading to his goal, four moments of danger in a game was a positive step. Højlund only managed four or more shots in a single game three times in two years at United, for example.
Then, Sesko netted again in the 2-0 win over Sunderland. He may have been quieter in front of goal in that game, managing only a single shot, but he created two chances and was frequently involved in the build-up by dropping into space. In fact, his 40 touches was the most he’s had in a game for United, and 15 more than in any other Premier League outing.
Spectacular? No, but those hints of progress and improvement are at least satisfactory.
Grade: C
Viktor GyökeresArsenal
During the early knockings of the summer, it seemed the tussle for Viktor Gyökeres was going to be the definitive saga of the transfer window. Then Arsenal made a decisive move and secured the Swede’s return to England quite swiftly.
Across his spells at Coventry City and then Sporting CP, Gyökeres cultivated a reputation for being a clinical – and frequent – finisher, a powerful runner and a powerhouse. It was easy to see why some might have felt he was the perfect centre-forward.
It’s fair to say that we haven’t seen that at Arsenal just yet, though.
That’s not to say it isn’t coming, nor should that be misconstrued as criticism. But his Arsenal career has got off to a relatively muted start considering his goalscoring exploits last season earned him the Gerd Müller Trophy at last month’s Ballon d’Or ceremony.
Nevertheless, his 15 total shots is respectable when compared with most other Premier League players – after all, Erling Haaland (29) is the only one with more than 17. Similarly, Gyökeres’ 14 non-penalty attempts have been worth 2.2 xG, which puts him in a respectable eighth place.
There’s also clear evidence of the work rate he brings. His 169 instances of applying high pressure in the final third is the most of any centre-forward in the league this term. In fact, he’s one of only two forwards to top 128. Furthermore, he’s top among strikers for sprints (148) and off-ball runs while sprinting (79), and he’s fourth in the same group for highest top speed (34.4 km/h).
It’s worth noting as well that he’s shown a willingness to engage in physical battles. Even if he doesn’t win them, that attitude is important and has helped spawn the theory that Gyökeres’ presence aids Arsenal simply because he can occupy multiple defenders, potentially providing more space for teammates.
Sure, the top-line numbers when it comes to two non-penalty goals in seven Premier League matches might not be what Arsenal fans had hoped from Gyökeres, but he’s working hard and the Gunners are top of the table.
It could be worse.
Grade: C
Alexander IsakLiverpool
When assessing Alexander Isak’s introduction at Liverpool, it’s obviously impossible to ignore that he didn’t have the smoothest end at Newcastle, which went hand in hand with the lack of a proper pre-season.
As such, the Sweden international’s first five weeks or so at Liverpool haven’t exactly been explosive.
But that was probably to be expected, and the positive thing for Liverpool fans is he appears to be getting sharper by the week.
He opened his account with an instinctive finish in the League Cup win over Southampton and has enjoyed greater prominence since then.
Against Crystal Palace at the end of last month, he nearly scored a first Premier League goal of the season in brilliant fashion after a one-two and mazy run in the area was followed by an off-balance shot that went just wide. He went close with a header, too, while he probably should have nodded in from a wicked Mohamed Salah cross against Chelsea at the weekend.
He did at least end that game with an assist – quite how much he knew about it is debatable, though.
Given Isak has only played more than 45 minutes three times this season, it would be a little unfair to read too much into his start at this point. Nevertheless, considering he cost roughly £150 million, there’ll be an expectation of him getting up to speed quickly after this international break.
When you’re as good and costly as him, patience isn’t necessarily something that can be counted on for long.
Grade: C-
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