2025 Retrospective: Brazilian strikers who shone in Europe

Five names stood out during the year, and most emerged as surprises.

At the end of the year, as is customary, concrete statistics are heavily analyzed, and goals are the main one. Thus, in a context where Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazilian national team has yet to find its main finisher, Lance! has selected six strikers who shone in European football in 2025 .

A regular in the national team call-ups, João Pedro took a big leap in 2025. The striker left Brighton and signed with Chelsea in June of this year, making himself available to play in the Club World Cup. In his first competition for the Blues, the Brazilian shone with three decisive goals and was a key player in Chelsea’s title win.

João Pedro celebrates a goal for Chelsea against Fulham in the Premier League

In terms of statistics, João Pedro has scored 16 goals in 47 matches played for the Brazilian National Team, Brighton, and Chelsea . In his first six months, while still playing for the Seagulls, the Brazilian scored six times and experienced some physical instability. However, the second half of 2025 was very positive for the striker, becoming a starter for the Blues and adding 10 more goals to his annual tally. Furthermore, João Pedro provided six assists for his teammates, demonstrating good link-up playmaking ability.

Matheus Cunha is another player who took a necessary leap in 2025. A key player for Wolverhampton for several seasons, the Brazilian forward signed for Manchester United and received the iconic number 10 shirt, worn by legends like Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. However, the £62.5 million (R$470 million at the current exchange rate) fee paid by the Red Devils significantly increases the pressure on Cunha.

Having scored 11 goals in 2025, Matheus Cunha doesn’t boast exuberant numbers, mainly due to the context of his positioning and roles at Wolverhampton, the national team, and Manchester United. While under Carlo Ancelotti, Cunha is indeed a true number 9, this wasn’t the case at either of the English clubs. At Wolves, the Brazilian was closer to a number 10, while at United he plays as a kind of second striker, behind Sesko. Considering the circumstances, the year is even more commendable for Matheus Cunha.

Despite being sidelined for six months due to injury, Igor Thiago justifies his presence on this list thanks to his excellent last six months with Brentford . At 24 years old, the Brazilian striker has taken on a leading role for the Bees following the departures of Mbeumo and Wissa . Despite the pressure, Igor has exceeded expectations and is now the second-highest scorer in the 2025/26 Premier League, behind only Erling Haaland.

Igor Thiago has already scored 11 goals this Premier League season, eight behind Manchester City’s star striker. Interestingly, five of his goals came from penalty kicks. In addition, the Brazilian scored one goal in the English League Cup, totaling 12 goals in 19 games in the last six months.

Igor Paixão is another example of a striker who made a big change mid-year. The Brazilian played for Feyenoord in the first half of the year, a club he defended for three seasons. Igor was sold by the Dutch club to Olympique de Marseille for 35 million euros (approximately R$ 230 million) in June and is beginning to justify the investment.

In 2025, Igor Paixão scored 21 goals in 43 games for Feyenoord and Olympique de Marseille , eight of which were scored while playing for the French club. These numbers are even more significant considering that the Brazilian is not a center forward but rather a winger. Furthermore, Igor contributed nine assists to his teammates during the year, totaling 30 direct goal involvements.

Finally, Clayton Silva is the big surprise on the list. The former Vasco striker was permanently acquired by Rio Ave and managed to maintain his excellent performance in Portugal. After a year on loan from Vasco, the Brazilian cost only 3 million euros (R$ 19.7 million) to the coffers of the club managed by Greek Evangelos Marinakis.

In 2025, Clayton Silva scored a total of 18 goals for Rio Ave in 34 matches played, revealing an average of 0.53 goals per game . What is most impressive, precisely because of the number of goals, is that the Brazilian is among the top scorers in the Portuguese Championship for the second consecutive season. In 2024/25, he was fourth in this category, behind Gyokeres, Pavlidis, and Samu Aghehowa. This season, with Rio Ave occupying 11th position in the league, Clayton remains in fourth place, chasing Luiz Suárez, Pavlidis, and Samu again.