'Kids no longer want to be No.9 because of Salah, Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo' - Shearer feels superstars to blame for lack of true strikers in English football

It’s a lament heard across pubs and punditry panels alike: where have all the true No.9s gone? English football, once a breeding ground for powerful target men and clinical finishers, seems to be suffering from a striker shortage. On a recent episode of The Rest is Football podcast, hosted by Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and Micah Richards lamented this very issue, pointing to a noticeable lack of firepower in the Premier League, particularly when compared to the golden eras of the past.

The evidence is hard to ignore. Arsenal, despite their impressive run this season, often lack a cutting edge in front of goal. Their recent draw against Manchester United highlighted this, with Shearer himself pointing out the lack of a true predator in the box.

Manchester United, a team synonymous with iconic strikers, currently lack that focal point in attack. The absence of a consistent goal-scorer is a far cry from the days when the likes of Rooney, Cole, Yorke, and Sheringham terrorised defences.

The trio suggested that a tactical shift in football, coupled with the influence of global superstars, has led to a change in aspiration for young, aspiring footballers. The prevalence of 4-3-3 formations, with its emphasis on fluid front threes, has meant that wide forwards, rather than out-and-out strikers, are often the most potent attacking weapons.

"We were talking on the group chat about what's happened to No.9s? There's so few of them. I think because of the slight change tactically in football, whereas when we played that there were always two targets, two men up top, wasn't it? Sometimes one would play a bit deeper, sometimes the other, but it'd alternate. Often a big guy and a smaller guy, but it was a partnership and everyone wanted to be a No.9, and, so you know, with centre-forwards, as we used to call them more, strikers," Shearer said.

"And whereas now, teams, most teams play with kind of three forwards, don't they? One on either side, but they're not quite wingers, so that the best players tend to be in those wide spots.

"You know, Salah to name but one, even Messi, Ronaldo before he eventually played as a nine, but so I think it's probably a more attractive game to play in many ways, because you're often running at people facing the play. It's not quite as challenging as playing up top

"Maybe the kids now, they want to play in those roles where they can dribble and beat people, but also score lots of goals because you're not stuck on the touchline like in the old 4-4-2 formation, so maybe that's an answer. There are still some, you know, terrific No.9s in world football, but you know, going back 10, well 20 years or so I mean there were a plethora of them."

Manchester City have arguably one of the biggest stars in football as their No.9, with Erling Haaland one of the classical centre forwards that Shearer is seeing less these days. Elsewhere, Newcastle have Alexander Isak up top, while the likes of Robert Lewandowski at Barcelona, Harry Kane at Bayern Munich and Viktor Gyokeres are some of the other more traditional strikers making waves in world football still.