Chelsea started their 2024/25 Premier League campaign with a 2-0 loss against last season’s champions, Manchester City, despite creating more big chances, and having a higher xG created.
This has been a familiar problem for Chelsea in recent years, and therefore striker links have been cropping up all summer. Nicolas Jackson is the current number one striker option at Chelsea, and despite having a strong debut campaign, there are still question marks over his clinical finishing.
Jackson made 44 appearances in all competitions for Chelsea last season, scoring 17 goals, providing six assists, and totaling 3,534 minutes played.
Chelsea transfer news
After being asked about his future on Saturday evening, Sporting striker Victor Gyokeres refused to rule out the possibility of leaving the Portuguese team, stating that you “never know” what is going to happen.
The 26-year-old has a well-documented £86m release clause, having only joined Sporting for €24.00m (£20m) from Coventry in July 2023, and has been linked with Chelsea this summer.
Gyokeres made 50 appearances for Sporting in all competitions last season, scoring 43 goals and providing 15 assists, and has started this current campaign in similar form, scoring six goals and providing three assists in the opening four games.
Viktor Gyokeres has scored more goals (6) than 14 of the 18 teams in Liga Portugal this season. ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/oD7x9IsqRt
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) August 25, 2024
Gyokeres vs Osimhen comparison
Gyokeres and Osimhen are both lethal strikers, who are both expected to seal big moves in the coming years, and both would be significant upgrades in the finishing department, to current striking options at Chelsea.
The main difference between these two strikers, is their preference of play, with Gyokeres being more complete, and wanting to run the channels, and contribute in all phases, whilst Osimhen is more of a box dominator type.
| Gyokeres vs Osimhen comparison | ||
|---|---|---|
| Stats (per 90 mins) | Gyokeres | Osimhen |
| Goals | 0.87 | 0.62 |
| Assists | 0.31 | 0.11 |
| xG | 0.69 | 0.65 |
| Progressive Carries | 3.66 | 1.59 |
| Progressive Passes | 1.68 | 0.96 |
| Shots Total | 3.13 | 3.69 |
| Shots on Target | 1.53 | 1.53 |
| Goals/shot | 0.22 | 0.14 |
| G-xG | +0.17 | -0.03 |
| Aerials Won | 1.88 | 1.81 |
| Stats taken from FBref | ||
Gyokeres offers an even more clinical nature than Osimhen, scoring at a crazy rate of 0.22 goals/shot, and outscoring his xG by +0.17. Osimhen, on the other hand, underperformed his xG, producing a brilliant 0.65 per 90, but achieving a -0.03 G-xG metric.
This production by the 26-year-old comes with a lower shot volume than Osimhen, who takes 3.69 shots per 90, compared to Gyokeres, who takes 3.13 shots per 90.
By acquiring the ex-Coventry star, you also don’t lose other assets that Jackson gives you over Osimhen, as the Swedish striker is also a complete forward type, who averages 3.66 progressive carries per 90, 1.68 progressive passes per 90, and 0.31 assists per 90.
The one aspect the Napoli star does have over Gyokeres, is his overall physicality, and ability to bully defenders. This box presence allows Osimhen to pin defenders in the penalty area, hold them off, and create shooting chances for himself.
Aerially, Osimhen is impressive despite having fewer aerials won per 90 than Gyokeres, most of Osimhen’s aerial duels come in the penalty area, where he is marked by multiple players, purely to stop him exercising his dominance in the box.
For the reasons stated above, though, Chelsea must swoop to sign the Sporting star before the end of the window due to his impressively clinical nature in front of goal in comparison to the Nigeria international.
