The best strike partners in Europe today

Football involves a lot of things but lets face it:goals are what matter most. There is no footballer who hasnt dreamt of scoring goals. Not all such dreams come true and of those who do score, only few do so on a regular basis. A strikerwho scores regularly istreasured by his managerand every manager would be delighted if he had one more of the species to form a strike partnership.The world of football has seen some amazing partnerships played out up front two great forwards who complement each other to devastating effect. Today, however, due to tactical evolution, more andmore managers tend to prefer formations that play a lone striker.And yet that doesnt mean that strike partnerships have disappeared altogether. There still exist some duos who work together to terrorise defences.Here are Europes best strike partners (in no particular order):

#5 Carlos Tevez & Fernando Llorente

After the departure of Alessandro Del Piero and David Trezeguet, Italian giants Juventus struggled to find a good combination in attack, failing to get the best out of the likes of Mirko Vucinic, Alessandro Matri and Fabio Quagliarella.

However, in 2013, coach Antonio Conte struck gold by bringing in Carlos Tevez and Fernando Llorente. This big man – small man partnership has been key to extending the Old Lady's dominance in Italy. Tevez is quick, creative and tricky and can be undoubtedly called a goal machine.

The 6’ 5” Llorente, on the other hand, may not score as much as his partner, but he still is an important component. Juve have come to value his great link up play and also his ability to hold up the ball. Moreover, he has used his height to become a potent aerial threat.

The difference in playing styles of the two forwards has only served to produce goals as the they complement each other. Besides, there may be a linguistic reason too: as Llorente himself reckons, Tevez doesn't speak Italian well and in Llorente, who speaks Spanish, he has found a partner he can understand.

Between them, the two have now scored 63 goals since their arrival, evoking memories of a legendary Juventus strike duo – Omar Sivori and John Charles.

#4 Cyril Thereau & Antonio di Natale

It is past the midway mark in the Serie A, and the table shows that Udinese are where they’ve languished for most of their history. Mid table mediocrity may be a constant feature of the Zebras’ seasons, but even when the team struggles, they’ve also seen some individuals step up and perform outstandingly. Antonio Di Natale is one such man. Over and over again, regardless of his team’s performances, the 37-year old from Naples keeps on scoring.

This season, Di Natale has been joined by Frenchman Cyril Thereau, coming in from Chievo Verona, to spearhead the Udinese attack. It was a bit strange to see two strikers on the wrong side of thirty starts up front, but these two have combined to score 21 of Udinese’s 32 goals this season. Di Natale is easily the more creative of the two and has managed four assists as well as being the focal point of numerous Udinese attacks.

As for Thereau, coach Stramaccioni mainly expects him to help share the responsibility of scoring, something which Di Natale has carried for many years now. At the midway point, Thereau has scored 7 times, the same as he scored for Chievo through the whole of last season.

#3 Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting & Klaas-Jan Huntelaar - Schalke 04

Next up is an entry from Germany, where Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar have formed a reliable source of firepower for FC Schalke 04. Dutchman Huntelaar had already established himself as a fan favourite in Gelsenkirchen before Choupo-Moting arrived on the scene last summer.

Initially, the Cameroonian marksman was used as a winger by coach Jens Keller. It was a position where he struggled to make a proper impact. By October, bad results had forced out Keller and he was replaced by ex-Chelsea manager Roberto di Matteo. It didn’t take long for Di Matteo to move Choupo-Moting up front to play alongside Huntelaar. It would prove to be a masterstroke.

The two strikers have contributed 20 goals to the team’s cause so far, propelling the team from 11th place at the time of Di Matteo’s arrival to 5th, just one point away from the Champions League spot. They are also in the Champions League knockout round. For the fans, it has been a delight to see the duo matching each other: for instance, Choupo-Moting scored a hattrick at Stuttgart a week after Huntelaar did the same against Mainz.

It’s not all about scoring though, the two have managed seven assists between them too. Di Matteo has clearly managed to get the best out of his frontmen.

#2 Alexander Meier & Haris Seferovic - Eintracht Frankfurt

The Bundesliga is also the source of the next partnership on this list. Eintracht Frankfurt are currently in 9th place in the league – nothing to be very proud of, but surprisingly they are also second in number of goals scored. Credit for 20 of the 34 goals go to two men – Alexander Meier and Haris Seferovic.

They have many differences: Meier is a 32-year old longtime star of the club while Seferovic is only 22 and a brand new signing. In Meier’s words: “I do normal things and maybe score normal goals, whereas Haris does other things...He also posts things like mad on social media [...] he’s certainly different to me.”

All those differences haven’t mattered at all on the pitch though, as Meier and Seferovic have combined brilliantly to put goals on the board for Eintracht. Meier is currently top scorer of the Bundesliga with 13 goals, ahead of stars such as Arjen Robben and Robert Lewandowski, whereas Seferovic is just three goals short of bettering his career best for any season.

We may have to wait until the end of the season to properly gauge the impact this German-Swiss partnership has had, but as of now the two are taking everything in their stride while scoring goals for fun.

#1 Alexandre Lacazette & Nabil Fekir - Lyon

This may be a rather controversial pick for a strike partnership. That’s because one half of it is actually a midfielder.

Lyon’s Nabil Fekir may have started out as an attacking midfielder, but this season has seen the 21-year old often move further up the field and join compatriot Alexandre Lacazette. And what a move it has been. The two have taken Lyon to the summit of French football, with an astonishing 32 goals and 10 assists between them already. These figures have reportedly led the likes of Arsenal and Manchester City to plan transfer bids for the wonder duo.

Fekir is only in his second season with Lyon, having graduated from the youth team in 2013. After having limited opportunities and scoring only one goal in his first year, he has exploded onto the scene this season with mature displays that belie his age. As for Lacazette, he has been in the senior squad for a longer period. This season, however, has seen him step up a couple of levels.

Top-scorer of Ligue 1 with 20 goals in 21 matches, Lacazette has already broken a host of personal records. With the creative genius of Fekir right behind him, who knows what lies in store next?