5 high-profile forwards struggling to score this season

Since the Covid-19 break in the 2019-20 season, we've had a relentless stream of footballing action. The 2020-21 season started almost immediately after the 2019-20 campaign came to a close. Football players just weren't able to catch a break as they navigated a congested set of fixtures for both club and country.

The summer of 2021 wasn't kind on them either. Immediately after the 2021-22 season wound up, international continental competitions like Euro 2020, Copa America and the Gold Cup went on floors.

Suffice to say, the last two years have been physically and mentally draining on footballers. While some players have been able to weather the storm and keep kicking on, a few others have slowed down.

Perhaps it's the fatigue or it could just be a bad phase but whatever it is, some of the most elite forwards on the planet haven't lived up to expectations this season.

Without further ado, let's take a look at five high-profile forwards who have struggled to score this season.

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#5 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal)

The way Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's form dropped off in the 2020-21 season after he had had a great 2019-20 campaign caused worry lines all over Mikel Arteta's face.

But the Gabonese international has been a prolific striker for the better part of his career. You can't fault Arsenal fans for hoping he will get back to his best this term. However, the 32-year-old has scored just four goals in 14 Premier League appearances so far this term.

He netted a hat-trick against West Bromwich Albion in the EFL Cup but that was more of a one-off performance against a weaker side. Aubameyang has been guilty of missing a number of sitters already this season.

A section of Arsenal fans are calling for the striker to be dropped as he has turned in subpar performances in recent weeks. He is currently goalless in his last five appearances for Arsenal, all of which have come in the Premier League.

#4 Neymar Jr. (Paris Saint-Germain)

We're used to seeing Neymar Jr. try a lot of audacious stuff with the ball at his feet. He is one of the most technically gifted players of the modern era and is quite simply a joy to watch on the football field.

Not only has the Brazilian international been a wonderful playmaker for PSG over the past several seasons but he has also been quite a prolific goalscorer. Take the 2020-21 season for example. The 29-year-old scored 17 goals and provided 11 assists in 31 appearances across all competitions.

However, a lot of things that he has tried have just not come off this term. Neymar seems to be lacking a little bit of that killer instinct that has made him a standout performer over the past decade or so. He has scored just three goals in 14 appearances across all competitions so far this season.

#3 Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)

Thomas Tuchel transformed Chelsea pretty quickly after taking the reins in late January 2021. Despite winning the Champions League last season, the common consensus was that the Blues could do with a prolific striker. This had a lot to do with the appalling form that Timo Werner showcased in front of goal.

So they spent €115 million to sign Romelu Lukaku from Inter Milan this summer. Lukaku scored 30 goals and provided 10 assists in 44 appearances across all competitions for the Nerazzurri last term.

It also seemed like a great opportunity for Lukaku to return to his former club and make things right after an underwhelming first spell between 2011 and 2014. The Belgian international started off well and scored four goals in his first four appearances for the club.

However, he has not scored a single goal for Chelsea since then. He was out for a month with an injury but Lukaku has not looked clinical in front of goal. The Belgian international looks a farcry from the striker who tore it up for Inter Milan in Serie A last term.

#2 Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain)

Lionel Messi has been one of the most prolific goalscorers in the world for more than a decade now. He is either scoring goals or creating them and we've just gotten so used to seeing Messi affect games on a regular basis that his dip in form has surprised us all.

Messi has scored just a single goal in nine Ligue 1 appearances this term. He has scored three goals in four Champions League games. But he has truly struggled to find the net in the league for Paris Saint-Germain.

He has struck the woodwork quite a lot of times but the fact is that the 34-year-old has simply not been as efficient in front of goal as he has been in recent years. But due to all the quality he obviously possesses, he might only need a couple of good goals to kick into gear and get back to his best.

#1 Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur)

Harry Kane won the Premier League Golden Boot and the Playmaker Award in the 2020-21 season for topping the goalscoring and assist charts. He scored 23 goals and provided 14 assists in 35 Premier League appearances last term.

Kane was tipped to leave Spurs this summer but the club wouldn't let him go. The Englishman then announced that he would be staying with the club but it has definitely looked like his heart might not be at Spurs.

The club have struggled too and have already sacked Nuno Espirito Santos and brought in Antonio Conte within the first few months of the 2021-22 season.

But Kane has been at the center of their struggles. The 28-year-old has scored just one goal in 13 Premier League appearances so far this season. This is extremely underwhelming by Kane's own standards.

He has scored four goals in the UEFA Conference League but that's not a great measure of the goalscoring form of a player who's as good as Kane. Something has gone wrong for Kane at Tottenham Hotspur because he is a world-class striker and it has just not happened for him in front of goal.