AnalysisJune 5, 2026 12:12 am EDT Updated It’s time for the final Transfer Tier for the summer 2026 window — and we are looking at the focal point of a team’s attack.Over the last week, we have taken you inside a recruitment room for the summer window and talked you through the top nine options for goalkeepers, central defenders, full-backs, central midfielders, attacking midfielders and wide forwards.Today, we are looking at centre-forwards.As part of The Athletic’s Transfer Tiers, we’ve assembled a panel of experts to put together a list of players in each position heading into the summer. With the knowledge of those experts, we have pulled together a comprehensive list of the top nine players that will be under consideration in each role going into the window.Want to read more about our methodology? That can be found here.Based on that methodology, our understanding of the centre-forward market can be found below.Tier One, Tier Two and Tier Three can be divided into elite clubs, those from the level just below and the wealthy middle-class, respectively. But it is worth remembering that if the other options move or are unavailable, elite sides could quite easily fit a Tier Three player into their teams.Inclusion here does not mean a player wants to move or that they are necessarily going to be available this summer. However, it is who our experts, which includes sporting and technical directors, coaches, scouts, intermediaries, analysts and, in a few instances, people with important local knowledge, would present in a recruitment meeting going into the window.The expert view“In terms of talent, he belongs at the very best clubs, but I don’t know that I would put him in this category in another year, when there were other players available who were younger. But from the list you sent, he’s the best there is and probably the only gettable forward of his quality.”An agent.It’s now or never, most likely. Osimhen has had a strange career. His time with Wolfsburg and Charleroi has largely been forgotten now, and perhaps the memory of just how good he was during Napoli’s Serie A title win in 2022-23 (when he scored 26 goals in 32 appearances) has also dimmed.That season had everything and was testament to the breadth of Osimhen’s game. He was technical, physical, brave and quick, and the question back then was really about how far into the game’s stratosphere he would go.He ended up leaving for an enormous club, just not the one anyone was expecting. He moved to Galatasaray on loan in 2024 (before joining permanently in 2025) and has been the goalscoring thrust behind back-to-back Turkish Super Lig championships. Forty-one goals from 52 league appearances is a mighty record and does not include some stirring Champions League performances — his domination of Juventus during the first leg of last season’s playoff round first leg was, for instance, a reminder that, whatever the level of Turkish football may currently be, Osimhen is absolutely a star of the game.He grew up idolising Didier Drogba and has spoken many times in the past about the influence the former Chelsea forward had on his game. It’s not hard to see it, either. At his very best — and fittest — Osimhen has the same talismanic quality as Drogba once possessed and even in his late twenties, could credibly lead a Champions League contender.Nobody selected him outside Tier One.InfoAge: 27Current club: GalatasarayThe expert view“It has not been easy for him at PSG, yet he remains an elite-level finisher. Used sparingly by Luis Enrique, the Portugal international has made do influencing games as a potent supersub. Just 25 next month, he is arguably the purest goal scoring talent on the market this summer and makes sense for numerous clubs.”A France-based football journalist.Our local expert is right: it has not been easy, and because of Paris Saint-Germain’s embarrassment of attacking talent, Ramos is really just a supporting actor in their squad. He only started 13 games in Ligue 1 this season and was used exclusively from the bench in the Champions League.The data is not that impressive. He scored a goal every 220 minutes in the league, but while underperforming his xG (six goals from 9.00xG). It’s easy to rationalise that as a result of his intermittent involvement, because he has proven himself a fine finisher in the past, but his appearance in Tier One — based on recent performance, rather than talent — is the clearest sign that the forward market is extremely shallow.There’s not even really a consensus around Ramos; he received votes in all three categories.InfoAge: 24Current club: Paris Saint-GermainThe expert view“I don’t think he’s a starter at this level, but I can see him being a squad player at the top level for a long time. Is that in England? I don’t know. But there’s nobody from your list that I would put above him at the moment.”A former technical director from the Bundesliga.There was some disagreement over whether he is a centre- or wide-forward — he’s probably a bit of both — but our experts are not discouraged by what has so far been a disappointing Manchester City spell, following his move from Eintracht Frankfurt.Throughout his career, Marmoush has typically had difficulty whenever he’s not been regularly selected. In fact, the form at Frankfurt that won him his Premier League move in January 2025 was partially the result of the Bundesliga side selling Randal Kolo Muani late in the summer of 2023.Frankfurt had no time to replace Kolo Muani, leaving Marmoush as their only recognised goalscorer. It was a mistake, the club admit that, but it worked out really well. It gave Marmoush a guaranteed place in the side, and with that security and the resulting confidence, he built the run of form which ultimately convinced City to sign him.The verdict here? The talent evaluation was not necessarily wrong, but the timing might have been.InfoAge: 27Current club: Manchester CityThe expert viewThis is no surprise. Thiago also received votes in Tier One, which is reasonable given the strength of the market and, of course, his performance in his first proper season for Brentford; he missed the majority of 2024-25 with a serious knee injury.His 22 goals in the Premier League came from an xG of 20.56, which speaks well of his finishing. However, eight of those goals were penalties, and many of the others were from transitional situations; a lot of Thiago’s goals look the same.That seems to have caused some hesitancy among our experts. Following up with a couple of respondents who did not select him at all, in any category, they said Thiago would cost a hefty fee, which would mean considering whether his style of forward play would translate to a team commanding possession and regularly facing a deeper defence.It was not a universal position, but it’s an interesting note nonetheless.InfoAge: 24Current club: BrentfordThe expert viewRashford was one of the only players who was voted into all three tiers. That makes sense, according to an unattached sporting director: “He’s hard to place, because his wages and reputation put him at one level; his performances put him at another. When a player has a strange moment in his career, like what happened towards the end at (Manchester) United and then that short loan to Aston Villa, it’s difficult to predict his trajectory.”He’s played well at Barcelona, but has not been outstanding. What does that mean? Then what happens if he has a really good World Cup?”It’s a fair set of points. Another variable is his Manchester United future: Ruben Amorim sanctioned his loan last season, but Michael Carrick has since been installed as his permanent replacement.So, Rashford makes Tier Two, but nobody knows what will happen next.InfoAge: 28Current club: Manchester United (spent last season on loan at Barcelona)The expert viewJackson had a respectable year on loan at Bayern Munich. He did not get the gametime he was hoping for, and the finances and conditions of his move meant that a permanent transfer was never really an option.Nevertheless, he proved a passable deputy for Harry Kane (with eight Bundesliga goals in 1,009 minutes) and blended reasonably well with Bayern’s other attackers, either as a No.9 or in a slightly more withdrawn role.His appearance here was a bit of a surprise. Jackson received plenty of Tier Three votes, but he lands in Tier Two by virtue of his big club experience and the fact that he is clearly available this summer. We asked our experts where they think players will go, not where they would place them; ease of negotiation is important with that in mind, and with Chelsea expected to be a motivated seller, Jackson is a decent candidate.Something else that came up: his reputation in England is false. A few respondents — especially those who work or have worked outside the Premier League — took umbrage with the characterisation of Jackson as a waster of good chances, saying that some of his initial struggles at Chelsea are not really reflective of the player he can be.If he gets a move at this level, time will tell.InfoAge: 24Current club: Chelsea (spent last season on loan at Bayern Munich)The expert viewSince top-scoring at last summer’s Club World Cup, Garcia has consistently been linked with a move away from Real Madrid. Naturally, because the wealth of forward options at the club meant that his chances of a sustained run in the first team were always slender.As it has proven. Garcia started just nine games in La Liga this season, playing fewer than 1,000 minutes in total, and without a major sale, it’s different to see a significant uptick in 2026-27.Given the clubs he has been linked with, all of whom would consider themselves Tier Two at the least, it’s a surprise to find him down this low. He did receive nominations for the Tier above, but among those who placed him here, part of the feedback — a theory, even — was that his potential cost and his relative lack of gametime make him a risk that most Tier Two clubs will not have to take.That sounds a bit like four-dimensional chess, because logically wealthier clubs should be in a better position to take that chance, but that’s not an unreasonable argument.InfoAge: 22Current club: Real MadridThe expert viewNobody who replied placed Asllani higher than Tier Three. A surprise, perhaps, given the Kosovan’s 10 goals and seven assists in the Bundesliga this season, but that was reflective of two issues.One, those we followed up with said the context in which those goal involvements occurred was not conclusive, particularly as this was Asllani’s first season in a top-level league.Second, because he played a range of different roles for Hoffenheim last season — as an attacking midfielder, as well as a line-leading forward — they were not sure yet where his long-term future lies or how the market will view him.When he does find his place, it seems certain that Asllani will become one of the better all-round forwards at that level. Good with both feet and capable of scoring with his head, any analysis of him shows a player who is both instinctive in the box and creative outside of it.InfoAge: 23Current club: HoffenheimThe expert viewFull disclosure: originally, Sporting CP’s Luis Suarez was ahead of Guirassy, but he reached an agreement with Fenerbahce after the results came back. He’s out, and Dortmund’s Guirassy is promoted into his place.He scored 17 Bundesliga goals from 27 starts this season, which is a more than respectable return. What it obscures are the periods during the year when Guirassy did not perform well, when he struggled to influence games and looked detached from his team-mates.He’s a streaky player, form-wise, and that is often mentioned, but this year, there were Dortmund supporters who wanted (former Wolverhampton Wanderers forward) Fabio Silva to start ahead of him. Silva is a good, emerging player, but that’s quite the loss of status for a player who had top-scored in the Champions League the year before.Still, Guirassy is a more rounded player than he is often assumed to be. Skilful and smart, he can work well with the other attackers who orbit around him, and while he’s perceived to be profligate with his chances, the data does not support that accusation.His 17 Bundesliga goals came from 17.56xG. His four Champions League goals were mined from 4.46xG. Generally speaking, he scores when he should score.He received a few Tier Two votes, and depending on the club and situation, that’s not outlandish. He’s still very productive. What his placement reflects, though, is that his chance to move beyond Dortmund’s level has probably been and gone.InfoAge: 30Current club: Borussia Dortmund