Analysis
Five names that could replace Dušan Vlahović at Juventus
Dušan Vlahović could be on his way to Paris Saint-Germain soon, which means Juventus will have a vacant spot up top. Romelu Lukaku seems in pole position to replace the Serbian if he departs, but Max Statman takes a look at five other names that could replace Vlahović.
Folarin Balogun
Juventus have already signed an American player this window, Timothy Weah from Lille, but there’s an even bigger talent from the States out there at the moment. Folarin Balogun had a great season on loan Reims in the French top flight last season. The 22-year-old managed 21 goals and 2 assists in 37 appearances, with only Kylian Mbappé and Alexandre Lacazette managing to score more. What makes this even more impressive is the fact that Reims finished only 11th in Ligue 1.
Via DataMB
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In this graph we see the comparison between Vlahović (blue) and Balogun (pink). The current Juventus striker only surpasses the American in the aerial area and received passes. Judging from the data, Balogun seems like a more active kind of striker than Vlahović.
Balogun has returned to Arsenal from loan, but it seems like he’ll soon leave the Gunners again. The 22-year-old is valued at €30M by Transfermarkt and has a contract until June 2025.
Jonathan David
When moving a little up north in France, we’ll find another striker with a perhaps quite similar profile to Balogun. Jonathan David of Lille is a dream option of many Juventini, which is not suprising when seeing his numbers. The Canadian has been managing excellent numbers at Lille for years and is definetly ready for the next step. In that regard, he is probably more ready than Balogun, who has a little less experience on the big stage. David has played in the Champions League and World Cup, which probably makes him more expensive as well. Transfermarkt values the 23-year-old €60M and he too has a contract until the summer of 2025.
Via DataMB
When you compare David (yellow) with Vlahović, you see a familiar pattern. Just like Balogun, David is better in most aspects, except for the aerial department and non-penalty expected goals. Note: Vlahović is definetly not the best penalty taker in the world and has missed a few. Again, David seems to be a striker more active and involved, and not just a pure goalscorer.
Rasmus Højlund
It’s been too long since we spoke about Italy, so we head back to the peninsula. Bergamo, to be exact. Rasmus Højlund only joined Atalanta last summer from Sturm Graz, but he has already confirmed himself as one of the biggest talents in Serie A. Højlund is quick, technical, and has excellent hold-up play, however, he is still quite raw. Many teams are after him, so a deal would be far from easy to make. The 20-year-old Dane needed some time to get used to Italy, but when he found his feet, the goals came. He scored 9 goals and assited 2 in his debut season.
Via DataMB
Højlund is the youngest of the five names we’re suggesting, but arguably has the highest ceiling. In the graph we can see that, like Balogun, Højlund (purple) only gets beaten by Vlahović in aerials and passes received. A personal feeling, however, is that Højlund fits the description of a tradiotnal number 9 a little bit better than David, for example. Perhaps he would be a more one on one replacement of Vlahović.
Transfermarkt values the Danish sensation at €45M, who has a contract until the summer of 2027. It seems safe to say Juventus would have to splash the cash for Højlund, which makes a deal unlikely.
Gianluca Scamacca
The name of Gianluca Scamacca must ring some bells for Serie A lovers. The 24-year-old has a rich history in the Italian top flight, playing for both Genoa and Sassuolo. At the latter, he really developed himself well. During his last season in Serie A, he netted 16 goals in 36 games for the Neroverdi. These excellent numbers made him a target for many clubs last summer, including some interest from Juventus, but West Ham would go on to secure the services of the Italian. His first season for the Hammers is reminiscent of Vlahović second season at Juventus. Injuries and disappointing performances marked Scamacca’s first year abroad.
Scamacca featured 27 times for West Ham in both the Premier League and Conference League, finding the net only 8 times. Scamacca had to accept the role of second fiddle for parts of the season, even though he had a price tag of €36M. However, Scamacca has shown what he’s got in the past, and remains one of the better Italian strikers out there. He’s technical and has rocket right foot.
Via DataMB / Note: Vlahović has more than double the amount of minutes than Scamacca managed.
Like noted before, the seasons of Vlahović and Scamacca (orange) share similar trajectories. The graph confirms this. Scamacca, with his 1.95M height, is the only one in the list to beat Vlahović in the air. However, the Serbian has more expected goals and assists than the Italian.
Scamacca could be an easier deal for the Bianconeri, since he is only valued at €22M by Transfermarkt after that disappointing season abroad. He has a contract until 2027, but if the Hammers would want to lose him, Juventus could offer a solution. Scamacca has talked about how he’d like to return to Roma, where he played in the youth, but we know what the words of football players mean these days. Spoiler: not a lot.
Gift Orban
What would a list like this be without one big suprise no one saw coming? Juventini certainly haven’t experienced enough shock yet these days, so here’s a crazy suggestion: Gent’s Gift Orban. In his first season at Gent, the 20-year-old Nigerian managed 20 goals in 22 appearances in both the Belgian and Conference League. Gift joined Gent from Stabæk, a Norwegian team, for only €3.3M in January. He has blown away many people in Belgium and his rise hasn’t gone unnoticed. Lille seem to be very interested in securing the signature of Orban, so teams have to swoop in quickly if they want to have a chance.
Via DataMB
Of course, Orban (green) plays in the Belgium league, which is obviously weaker than Serie A, where Vlahović makes his minutes. However, judging also from the graph, Orban has massive talent and potential. The Nigerian striker beats Vlahović on all aspects, except the aerial area. Transfermarkt has valued Orban at €20M and he has a contract until 2027. He’s definetly the wildcard option amongst the other’s on the list, but without question has a massive future ahead of him.
