Norwegian Wolverhampton striker Jørgen Strand Larsen is the subject of a race involving around ten teams, he will quickly become one of the big topics towards the end of the January window.
It was smart of Wolverhampton to keep Strand Larsen this summer, they resisted interest from Newcastle United and signed him to a new contract just a few months after making his move from Celta Vigo permanent. However, things have taken a bad turn for both club and player; Wolves are last in the Premier League, and Strand Larsen has only scored once all season in the Premier League.
Many believe it has loosened up and are looking forward to this spring, in the third round of the FA Cup he scored a hat-trick.
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Nevertheless, the Norwegian international is still of interest to a number of teams. A few days ago that Leeds United had made an inquiry. There should be as many as a dozen teams in the fight for Strand Larsen, who turns 26 in February and should be approaching the peak of his career. Wolves now value him at £40 million.
There is interest from the Bundesliga, while Juventus in Serie A have withdrawn. Either way, he is considered most likely to stay in the Premier League.
So, if he leaves Molineux, where should he go? We have ranked his famous Premier League suitors in order of what would be the best trade for him.
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace are in full swing at the moment, with captain Marc Guéhi leaving for Manchester City, manager Oliver Glasner confirming that he will leave the club at the end of the season, and top scorer Jean-Philippe Mateta has told the club that he also wants to leave.
If Mateta gets his way, Palace will have a vacant spot in attack that Strand Larsen could fill.
In his previous job, Palace’s sporting director, Matt Hobbs, was involved in Strand Larsen’s arrival at Wolves, something he can look to replicate.
It was only last season that Palace won the FA Cup and qualified for Europe, so as long as they find the right replacements for key figures, they can still be an attractive destination. – And they have now opened talks about a deal for Strand Larsen.
Leeds United
Leeds made an enquiry for Strand Larsen recently, sparked by their recent move to a 3-5-2 formation.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin has been in good form since his free transfer from Everton in the summer, but that hasn’t stopped Leeds from exploring what could be a club-record move for Strand Larsen – whose agent happens to have a season ticket at Elland Road.
Having another clean striker alongside Calvert-Lewin could help Leeds continue their climb away from the relegation zone. Crucially, Strand Larsen often played in a striker pair during his time in Spain with Celta.
Nottingham Forest
Forest recently loaned Arnaud Kalimuendo to Eintracht Frankfurt after just six months – and he has already done what he failed to do in England by scoring a league goal. There could now be room for a new striker in the line-up, especially with Chris Wood out injured.
But there has been a high player rotation at the City Ground in recent years, so Strand Larsen has to be careful not to get dragged into it.
Everton
Of the teams currently outside the relegation zone, only Sunderland, Palace and Forest have scored fewer goals this season than Everton.
Thierno Barry has spent time adjusting to Premier League football, while Beto could soon be a candidate to leave the club.
A reliable striker could make a difference for Everton, but there may be question marks over whether Strand Larsen lives up to that description this season.
Fulham
With Rodrigo Muniz expected to be injured for another month, Fulham have been working on their attacking options, mainly focused on Ricardo Pepi from PSV.
But Strand Larsen is another who has registered on their radar, and it could be the kind of transfer coup that could keep Marco Silva happy after the manager came out of the summer transfer window as a frustrated figure.
Fulham tend to operate with a lone striker, for whom Strand Larsen can be a good fit as a goalkeeper.
Tottenham Hotspur
Richarlison’s recent injury, right after Dominic Solanke returned from his own absence, has reinforced the existing need for Tottenham to bolster their attack.
This isn’t limited to the centre-forward position – left winger is a bigger priority – but it’s somewhere they could consider upgrading, with Randal Kolo Muani also struggling with consistency during his loan spell at Paris Saint-Germain, a deal that looks set to not be permanent.
There would be pressure on Strand Larsen to get into Spurs quickly, and it could knock down his confidence if he failed to do so.
Aston Villa
Following the departure of Donyell Malen, Aston Villa have been looking for new competition for Ollie Watkins in attack, with the likes of Tammy Abraham, Mateta and Youssef En-Nesyri under consideration.
Strand Larsen is another option and will represent a different type of profile than Watkins – but one can suspect that the current Villa striker will remain the first choice.
One factor to consider is that geographically, Villa is the closest club to Wolves in the Premier League, so Strand Larsen didn’t have to move to go there.
Newcastle United
Newcastle were the most serious bidders for Strand Larsen this summer, and according to reports, went as high as £55 million with their offers.
In the end, they replaced Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson with Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa, but the price drop for Strand Larsen could be somewhat tempting – especially if Woltemade, who has started his Premier League career well, becomes a number 10 in the future.
However, his best form so far has come as a striker, and Wissa is back in action and among the goals after injury, so Newcastle should not be Strand Larsen’s first choice anymore.
West Ham United
West Ham were one of the first clubs to concretise their interest in Strand Larsen before the January window, but they have since signed two other strikers in the form of Taty Castellanos and Pablo.
While none of these names are guaranteed to give them the goals they need, a decision has been made to keep Wilson in the squad as well.
Therefore, the competition for places in West Ham’s attacking line is increasing – and besides, even if he were to throw himself into that game as well, Strand Larsen would just go out of one relegation battle and into another. However, in a slightly better situation.
