“I’m 31-years-old, Barcelona have to think about the future.”
Earlier this month, Luis Suarez publicly acknowledged his mortality and promoted his employers to consider potential successors.
The Uruguayan is on course for another 30-goal season, but signs of decline are evident.
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Replacing Suarez will be a mighty ask — 161 goals in 214 games makes him one of the most prolific Barcelona forwards of all time.
Without further ado, onto the nominees…
Anyone who tortured themselves by sitting through ‘La Decision’ will appreciate just how tedious the Antoine Griezmann to Barcelona saga has been.
The Frenchman has long been linked with a move to the Nou Camp but pledged his allegiance to Atletico Madrid in the aforementioned ‘film’.
His contract doesn’t expire until 2023 but that’s not to say Barcelona wouldn’t fork up the money if Griezmann’s loyalty were to waver.
Stylistically, it seems like a good fit but perhaps the ship has sailed.
There’s no point lying, we’ve hardly seen any of Krzysztof Piatek in action.
We only became aware of his existence this season when flew out of the blocks in Serie A with Genoa.
The 23-year-old Polish forward is currently outscoring Cristiano Ronaldo, Ciro Immobile, Dries Mertens and everyone else in Italy’s top flight.
We included him in this list because Barcelona are reportedly scouting him.
His finishing looks decent in highlights, but we’d need to see more of him before giving a thorough assessment.
Mauro Icardi is possibly the best poacher in world football.
The Argentinian was on Barca’s books for three years, honing his predatory movement and clinical finishing under the guidance of La Masia’s finest coaches.
The 25-year-old’s goal record is impressive (116 goals in 194 games for Inter) but he’s the antithesis of the typical Barca player.
Primarily focused on sniffing out golden chances, he rarely contributes to build-up play and often goes missing for long periods of the game.
Icardi would probably score bucket-loads in the red and blue stripes, but is that enough?
Timo Werner is a favourite of the transfer rumour peddlers.
The Germany international is destined to leave RB Leipzig at some point with several top clubs rumoured to be interested.
Capable of playing out left as a wide forward, the 22-year-old differs from Icardi in that he likes to feel the ball at his feet regularly.
Barca fans may fear that his finishing is not quite up to scratch.
He can also be quite frustrating to watch, as he gets flagged for offside more than you’d like.
You get a sense that Barcelona would like a ‘modern’ centre-forward.
Gabriel Jesus is a classical goalscorer one minute and a raumdeuter the next.
His instinct movement in the box means he scores a lot of tap-ins, something you’d expect of a Barcelona No9.
Still just 21-years-old, Jesus continues to develop under Pep Guardiola — who better to mould a striker fit for the Nou Camp than the man who once had the keys?
Harry Kane fancies himself as a creative No10 but he’s at his best when he’s on the end of attacks.
Rarely deterred by a missed chance, the 2018 World Cup Golden Boot winner would surely relish being the target of Barcelona’s many chance-creators.
If Barca want a proven goalscorer with a record similar to Suarez’s in recent times, they won’t find much better than Kane.
Juventus’ golden boy operates deeper than most forwards.
Dybala has the talent, attributes and work ethic to improve even further.
And what better platform than the Nou Camp?
Some would question whether the Argentinian could ever rack up Suarez numbers, his creative nature means he’s often playmaking when he could be on the shoulder of the last defender.
For some reason though, he just feels like a Barcelona player.
Take your pick.
NEXT: 7 players who could eventually replace Fernandinho in Man City’s midfield