The 2025/26 Premier League season saw a flurry of high-profile striker signings – but who’s lived up to the hype? We break down and grade every major forward addition from the summer window of 2025.
The summer transfer window was defined by endless striker sagas, as Premier League clubs splashed the cash in pursuit of some of football’s biggest names, and there was barely a moment when Fabrizio Romano wasn’t tweeting about one of them.
Now we’re eight games into the 2025/26 league campaign, we’re starting to recognise those that are settling in with their new clubs well and others that are struggling to live up to the hype.
So, we’re grading every Premier League striker signing that cost over £60 million.
Pedro walked off a Brazilian beach and into the Chelsea first team during their ultimately triumphant Club World Cup campaign, scoring three goals, including one in the final against PSG, to help secure the gaudy trophy.
He then carried that fine form into Chelsea’s opening Premier League fixtures, scoring another two and providing a couple of assists in their first three games. Pedro was starting to look like Enzo Maresca’s new main man.
Since last scoring in the 2-0 win over Fulham, Pedro has gone nine games for club and country without registering. The most notable factor behind that is he’s not really an out-and-out number nine; he’s better playing just behind someone like Liam Delap, who has been injured for the past month or so.
Grade: C+
Just when the big Slovenian looked set to join Newcastle, Man United swooped in and lured him to Old Trafford for a reported fee of £74 million from RB Leipzig. He was also heavily linked with a move to Arsenal, but they went for someone else.
Ruben Amorim took his time to introduce Sesko to United fans, handing him his full debut in their ill-fated Carabao Cup defeat to League Two Grimsby Town following a couple of substitute appearances against Arsenal and Fulham.
Now he’s a bit more of a regular, although he was once again on the bench for the dramatic 2-1 win over Liverpool at Anfield. Two goals from his four Premier League starts are a decent return for a young striker adapting to an entirely new league.
Grade: B
Eddie Howe’s side were a laughing stock for much of the transfer window. Not only was star man Alexander Isak pushing for an exit, but it felt like every player they were trying to sign turned them down in favour of a more established ‘big six’ club.
They finally got their act together in the latter stages of the window, and with Isak all but out the door, Newcastle signed Nick Woltemade from Stuttgart for a club record fee of £69 million, leaving Bayern Munich executive foaming at the mouth.
Woltemade is now the highest scoring striker on this list with five goals from his eight games across all competitions, with four coming in his five Premier League games, including a really cheeky finish in the 2-1 defeat to Brighton. Who needs Isak?
Grade: A
The Swede was signed as the missing piece of Mikel Arteta’s title-winning puzzle. Finally, they have a number nine with a remarkable scoring record that could pull Arsenal up by their bootstraps and end their five-year trophy drought.
It was a pretty steep learning curve for both the club and player in their opening eight Premier League games. Gyokeres looked fantastic in the 5-0 win over Leeds, scoring the exact type of goal he did at Sporting as his first goal for the club.
Like Pedro at Chelsea, he then went a while without a goal, but hit his straps in midweek with a crucial brace in the Champions League.
At times, he’s looked clunky and out of place in a side filled with technically gifted players, and adapting to the pace of the Premier League has looked difficult, but some green shoots are finally appearing.
Grade: B-
The first of Liverpool’s big striker signings was another heavily linked with a move to Newcastle before deciding his future lay elsewhere. Ekitike ended up joining Arne Slot’s side for a reported fee of £79 million from Eintracht Frankfurt.
It quickly started to feel like a match made in heaven, with the Frenchman scoring in his first three consecutive games, but now, following a daft red card in the 2-1 League Cup win over Southampton, he’s getting used to the bench.
As it turns out, Liverpool weren’t satisfied with one big striker signing; the club needed another to get that dopamine fix, leaving Ekitike in the dark about how often and in which position he’ll be playing. He did, however, start and score in the Champions League this week, which is encouraging.
Grade: B
We saved the £125 million British transfer record holder for last. Slot said we’re now allowed to judge his performances ahead of the 2-1 defeat to Man United last weekend, so here we go.
Remarkably, Isak is still waiting for a win in a Premier League game he’s started since joining Liverpool, having lost six consecutive matches for club and country, and being largely ineffective during that time.
His lack of pre-season has undoubtedly affected his ability to get going this season, but since that’s his own fault, it’s hard to have any sympathy. At least he has a goal, scoring the opener in the 2-1 EFL Cup win over Southampton.
Grade: D
