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Gone are the days when it was one single striker who used to produce the goods upfront. Three is the new one these days, as attacking triumvirates can be spotted almost everywhere in Europe.
These three players are the battering rams for their respective sides, knocking in goals like there's no tomorrow. This attacking troika kick their teams into gear, and shoulder almost whole of the striking burden.
Here, we calibrate the top 10 such attacking tridents of Europe, who've accrued the most goals among themselves in the leagues at this stage of the 2017/18 season.
#10 Ciro Immobile, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Luis Alberto (S.S.C Lazio) - 26 goals
Perennial journeyman Ciro Immobile seems to have finally found his attacking boots in Rome as the Lazio striker is one of the biggest surprises of the season. He's bagged 16 goals in the league so far, accounting for 10 points of his side's 37 after 18 games while also assisting another seven. The Italian is perhaps, the primary reason for Le Auquile's fifth position in the table right now.
From flopping at both Borussia Dortmund and Sevilla to scoring more than Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Immobile really has come a distance this campaign.
Serbian international Milinkovic-Savic is witnessing a purple patch in front of goal, netting five times in the league that marks his best return for Lazio since joining in 2015. The central midfielder is more than just about the goals though, as his defensive contributions have been just as vital whilst also helping instigate attacks with his through-balls.
Spain's Luis Alberto, for all his talent, has appeared in the red of La Roja only once - as a substitute in the 5-0 demolition of Costa Rica - but his recent form with Lazio should garner him some more.
The Barcelona graduate took some time to get going, but has kicked into gear this term with five goals to his credit. His attacking contributions are seeing the light of the day as Alberto has also been involved in six more goals as a provider, corroborating his stance among the team.
#9 Mauro Icardi, Ivan Perisic, Marcelo Brozovic (Inter Milan) - 27 goals
Inter Milan have shown a lot of promise this season, going the first 15 games unbeaten in the league. Majority of the credit goes to the Argentinian dynamite Mauro Icardi, who just keeps scoring left, right and centre. This season, he's bagged an incredible 17 goals in 21 appearances, the driving factor behind the Nerazzurri positive start to the Serie A 2017/18.
Midfield metronome Ivan Perisic is enjoying his most prolific season with Inter to date, statistically. The Croat has 7 goals to his name in 19 league appearances, whilst also laying another six assists to become an indispensable figure in Inter's starting line-up.
Perisic's an immensely talented midfielder who is keeping the creative juices flowing for Inter this term, finally kicking into gear after two underwhelming seasons. Marcelo Brozovic, another Croatian on the fore, may have bagged only three goals despite his advanced role in the side, but remains an influential figure in making key passes and constantly distributing the ball to keep the attack flowing. Moreover, he's started just seven times this campaign.
#8 Paulo Dybala, Gonzalo Higuain, Mario Mandzukic (Juventus) - 27 goals
Juventus may not have seen the pinnacle of Italian football this season, but they certainly are on the coat-tails of leaders Napoli after a resurgent run in the recent weeks. Instrumental to the same is the fiery frontline of Dybala, Higuain and Mandzukic.
Dybala continues to reaffirm his status as the future of Argentina with a string of amazeballs that has seen him net 14 times in the league, including two trebles. His fellow Argentinian, Higuain, endured a tough start to the campaign but has picked himself up in the latter stages. The former Napoli hitman has 9 goals to his name, followed by Mandzukic with four.
His acrobatic overhead kick in the Champions League final is still vivid in the memory, but the Croat wouldn't give two hoots about it as he's now busy helping his side to more history.
The Bianconeris will steal a march over Napoli eventually as the writing's already on the wall, but its imperative for them to have their amazing trinity firing on all cylinders like this.
#7 Jonas, Eduardo Salvio, Haris Seferovic (S.L Benfica) - 28 goals
The Eagles are currently trailing third in the Portuguese league but hadn't it been for their attacking suspects, the reading would've been more grim for Rui Vitoria.
Brazilian outcast Jonas shows no signs of stopping. Even at 34, the goals continue to keep coming and Jonas has 18 of them so far, one of the most prolific in Europe this season. He's been the focal point of Benfica's lethal attacking unite that has notched up 37 goals in only 15 games, which means he accounts for almost 50% of their end-product.
Eduardo Salvio, another player with no significant international mark, continues to make a name in club football circuit. With 6 goals in the league, the Argentina international has proved to be very effective in the attack, forging a great strike force with Jonas.
Another figure in the forward department waiting on the wings is Haris Seferovic, who's started only nine games, but has yet laid claim to four goals to highlight his influence inside the box. The Swiss international was hailed by Portuguese legend Nuno Gomes, as a "valuable player for the team."
#6 Vincent Aboubakar, Moussa Marega, Yacine Brahimi (FC Porto) - 28 goals
It has been a season of redemption for Vincent Aboubakar. The Cameroonian is finally delivering on the promise he's flashed at Besiktas and Lorient and now looks like a fully able striker ready to take the world by storm. Aboubakar has struck 12 times in the league so far, one of the major reasons for Porto's iron-grip on the top of the Primeira league table.
Joining him in the attacking jamboree is Moussa Marega, who's announced himself to the stage with a fine run of form. Having plied his trade in the subaltern leagues of France, the Mali international is cooking on the front burner at Porto. His 12-goal haul has seen him greatly endear to the Porto fans, and becoming a sort of surprise package of the season.
Completing the only all-African three-prong attack is Yacine Brahimi, the Algerian international who has recorded a relatively better scoring rate this season. He has 4 goals to his name in 13 appearances but shines brighter when it comes to providing as Brahimi has assisted 5 goals in all in the league.
#5 Harry Kane, Son Heung-Min, Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur) - 31 goals
Tottenham Hotspur star Harry Kane just knows no bounds. The England international's stock continues to proliferate at an astronomical rate as he is right now, the leading scorer in this season's Premier League with an astonishing 18 goals in 20 games, including two hat-tricks in last two games.
He's ably backed by the Korean wizard Son, who's also enjoying a very productive season this term. The former Bayer Leverkusen midfielder has bagged 6 goals in the league so far, six needing just eight more to better his tally from last season whilst assisting another three.
In the third spot is Dele Alli. Having netted 18 times last season, the 21-year old has bagged only 5 goals thus far but is finding his footing again as it's evident in Tottenham's recent outings.
#4 Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Paulinho (FC Barcelona) - 31 goals
The departure of Neymar seems to have papered effectively with the arrival of Paulinho, the Premier League flop who's making a mark in La Liga following the €40 million move from Guangzhou Evergrande last summer.
Injuries threatened to derail his season, but the Brazilian has recovered well in time to hit back at his critics with an encouraging run in the league. Ahead of him are the invincible duo of Messi and Suarez, who continue to produce the goods as ever.
The no.10 had one of the best starts to a season when he bagged two hat-tricks in the opening four games and currently leads the La Liga scoring charts with 15 goals in what has been another fruitful campaign for La Pulga. His partner-in-crime though, endured a stuttering start to the season after netting only twice in the first 11 games.
Since then, he's gone on to bag 8 in the next 9 outings, as together they keep the hopes of reclaiming La Liga crown, kicking.
#3 Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool) - 33 goals
Liverpool continue to exercise the 'heavy-metal' football inculcated by their passionate gaffer Jurgen Klopp, as the side have struck 50 times already this campaign, 33 of which have come from Salah, Firmino and Coutinho.
The Brazilian duo remain as magnificent as ever, not just with their scoring numbers, but also in the quality of the goal dispatched. Coutinho has successfully shrugged off the early season injury to race to a seven-goal haul, whereas Firmino has mustered nine. However, there's just no matching the indomitable spirit of Salah that has helped him canter to 17 goals, already turning out to be the signing of the season.
The Egyptian has taken to the rough and tumble of Premier League like a fish to water and has been scoring goals ever since he made his switch to Liverpool. His terrific run holds him in a stern stead to claim the Premier League Golden Boot, in debut season itself.
How gloriously would Liverpool's season end, depends a lot on them.
#2 Raheem Sterling, Sergio Aguero, Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City) - 35 goals
Pep Guardiola's band of swashbucklers are racing ever closer to the Premier League title with an unbelievably rich vein of form. City have already scored an outrageous sum of 64 goals in just 21 games, and the prime suspects behind the mind-boggling stats is this fearsome trident.
Whilst Gabriel Jesus has consolidated his position in the attacking department by consigning Aguero to bench more often, it isn't enough to cow down the Argentinian who's regardless managed to score more goals (13) than him (8). But, the one player who has really taken the league by storm this season is Raheem Sterling, who's rise from a laughing stock to perhaps the best young talent in the division is remarkable.
All the struggles of his early days in Manchester are now a thing of history as the 23-year old is in the form of his life, scoring 14 times so far to trail only Harry Kane and Mohamed Salah in the race for the Golden Boot.
Although De Bruyne and David Silva too deserve a mention, these are the three most prolific players in the squad right now.
#1 Edinson Cavani, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe (PSG) - 38 goals
Paris Saint-Germain made a resounding statement of intent last summer by the headline-grabbing moves of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe from Barcelona and AS Monaco. So it isn't surprising to see them firing at all cylinders this season. The attacking troika of Cavani, Neymar and Mbappe have forged a formidable partnership that's reminiscent to that of the 'MSN' of Barcelona.
Together, the PSG stars have accumulated a staggering 38 goals in the Ligue 1 this season, the driving factor behind Les Parisians' blistering start to the campaign.
Whilst the departure of Zlatan has allowed Cavani to flourish in the strike role, grabbing 19 goals so far, Neymar has slotted seamlessly into Unai Emery's set-up and repaying the astronomic fees splurged in his pursuit. Mbappe, on the other hand, has only grown in stature since his heroics with Monaco last season, refurbishing his status as one of the best young talents in Europe right now.
Together, the 'MCN' are the most prolific trio in Europe; a mighty force to be reckoned with.
