Charlton Athletic’s strong business in the summer transfer window has gone unnoticed at times, but Nathan Jones’ team appears to be on track to stay in the Championship in their first season back since 2019/20.
Amari’i Bell, Reece Burke, and Joe Rankin-Costello have boosted the backline, while Blackpool’s Sonny Carey and Rob Apter have joined an already Championship-standard midfield that includes Greg Docherty and Luke Berry.
However, while Apter has the ability to provide in attacking areas, the only out-and-out striker to arrive at The Valley this summer is Tanto Olaofe, and while the 25-year-old possesses plenty of strength and pace, he is unproven at Championship level and scored only eight goals in League One last season.
As a result, FLW’s Charlton fan analyst, Sam White, believes that another goalscorer should be recruited before the end of the transfer window to help Matty Godden.
Charlton fan pundit exposes transfer wishlist for the last month of the window
When asked by Football League World if any positions needed to be improved, White was very clear in his transfer demands. “It definitely has to be a striker,” stated the player.
“I believe the business we’ve done thus far has been very good. We went under the radar, tried to be clever, and I believe we did very well. “All we need is a striker and goals.”
Former Coventry City striker Matty Godden is the only striker at The Valley with Championship experience, and while Tyrese Campbell, Miles Leaburn, and Tanto Olaofe could easily adjust to the new league, White believes a new signing will alleviate the pressure.
“Godden is proven in the Championship, but I don’t think he’ll score more than 10 or 15 goals,” he said afterwards.
“You need others to chip in, and it will put a lot of pressure on Campbell and Leaburn, so we’d like to sign someone who can also contribute 10 to 15 goals, if not more.”
“That would be my wishlist because, as we saw last season, the defence is quite solid, and the midfield can do a good job on its day, but when you’re reliant on shutting out teams, you need someone to score the winning goal.
“I don’t think we can fully rely on an older Matty Godden and an inexperienced at Championship level, Miles Leaburn [for that].”
Goalscorers should be the priority for Charlton before the end of the transfer window
Matty Godden will be 34 before the start of the new season, and his previous two seasons in the second tier before joining Charlton last summer saw him score 14 goals in 75 games.
| Matty Godden in the Championship, per Transfermarkt | ||
| Season | Appearances | Goals |
| 2020/21 | 23 | 6 |
| 2021/22 | 24 | 12 |
| 2022/23 | 30 | 8 |
| 2023/24 | 35 | 6 |
While he rediscovered his goalscoring form in League One last season, scoring 22 in all competitions, relying only on the former Coventry City player to score consistently in the Championship could be risky.
Last season, Charlton surrendered 43 goals, ranking fifth in League One. While the competition will become stiffer, and the Addicks are expected to concede more, Nathan Jones has assured that his backline will remain difficult to penetrate next season.
Similarly, their strikers will find it more difficult to score against stronger defenses next season. Last year, their 67 goals were enough to place them in the top 10 of League One’s goalscoring records, but their return to the Championship will necessitate a stronger frontline than last season.
That is not to say that Nathan Jones does not have a plethora of exciting young stars in the attacking areas – Apter, Campbell, and Leaburn are all solid first-team options aged 22 or younger, and Daniel Kanu and Kaheim Dixon are promising 20-year-olds ready to make the step up to the regular squad at The Valley.
But, as a newly promoted team, you have to make sacrifices to stay in the division, and acquiring a reliable goalscorer should be a priority for the Addicks before the summer transfer window closes on September 1st.
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