Few things are as exciting in sports as watching the ball hit the back of the net in a game of football. Goals win games, and the thrill of watching a star striker wheel away celebrating scoring for his team is almost unrivaled. Since the English Premier League launched in August 1992, dozens of elite-level forwards and strikers have graced English football’s top flight. These superstar players have an almost unnatural ability to put the ball in the back of the net, making them cult heroes with their team’s supporters and pantomime villains for opposition fans.

Thirty-four players have scored at least 100 goals during their careers. Eleven have scored at least 150, but only three have managed to rack up 200 or more goals. With four of the Premier League’s all-time leading scorers now retired, one plying his trade in Germany, and Erling Haalnd signing a nine-year contract with Manchester City, many football fans question whether the Norwegian can become the Premier League’s leading marksman. He has some way to go before he catches these five goal-scoring legends.

Alan Shearer – 260 Goals in 441 Appearances

Alan Shearer is the Premier League’s record goal-scorer, scoring 260 goals in 441 appearances. The Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United, and England striker is widely considered the best English traditional number nine in living memory. Shearer’s keen eye for goals made him a hot favorite with the best mobile soccer betting apps to win the coveted Golden Boot Award each season, a feat he managed three times.

Shearer burst onto the scene for Blackburn Rovers during the 1992/93 campaign, scoring 16 goals in 21 games as a fresh-faced 23-year-old. Shearer scored 96 goals in 107 appearances during the next three seasons, including a career-best 34 in 42 in 1994/95.

The legendary frontman even found the back of the net 10 times in 32 games as a 36-year-old during his final season in 2006/06. Shearer averaged 0.59 goals per match and created 64 assists for his teammates.

Harry Kane – 213 Goals in 320 Appearances

Harry Kane is the only active player in the top five of the Premier League’s scoring charts. However, Kane currently plays for Bayern Munich in Germany, meaning he will not add to his tally of 213 goals and 46 assists across 320 games unless he returns to England.

All of Kane’s goals were scored for Tottenham Hotspur before his move to Bayern Munich. Although Kane won the Golden Boot three times, he never lifted a trophy for his beloved Spurs. Kane scored at least 30 goals in a single season twice, achieving those impressive numbers in 2017/18 and again in 2022/23. The current England captain holds the Premier League goal record in a calendar year (39) in 2017.

Wayne Rooney – 208 Goals in 491 Appearances

Wayne Rooney is often overlooked when football fans discuss top Premier League strikers, despite scoring 208 goals in 491 and providing 103 assists. And let’s not forget that Rooney is Manchester United’s record scorer in all competitions.

Rooney enjoyed a 17-year Premier League career, first with his beloved Everton and then Manchester United, before ending his career on Merseyside with The Toffees in 2017/18. Although Rooney only scored more than 20 goals in a single season three times, he still found the back of the net with alarming regularity. The 27 goals he scored during the 2011/12 and 2012/13 seasons were career highs.

The fact that Rooney also played as a number ten, a false nine, and in midfield during his glistening career makes his goal tally even more impressive.

Andy Cole – 187 Goals in 414 Appearances

Andy Cole got his Premier League career off to an incredible start, scoring 34 goals in 40 games for a newly promoted Newcastle United side in 1993/94. After scoring nine goals in 18 games during the first half of the following season, Cole transferred to Manchester United in a seemingly bargain £7 million deal.

At Manchester United, Cole struck up a deadly strike partnership with Dwight Yorke, which helped United win five Premier League titles during his time at Old Trafford. Although Cole failed to reproduce his early career form during his twilight years, he still managed to hang up his boots, scoring 187 Premier League goals and making 73 assists in 414 games.

Sergio Aguero – 184 Goals in 275 Appearances

Sergio Aguero holds legend status at Manchester City, not least for his dramatic stoppage-time goal against Queens Park Rangers, which handed City a 3-2 victory and the 2011/12 title. The Argentinian appeared in 275 Premier League games for City, scored 184 goals, and provided 47 assists. He won the Golden Boot in 2014/15 after scoring 26 goals in 33 games, his best-ever haul. Aguero scored at least 20 goals in six of his ten seasons at the Etihad Stadium.

Aguero left Manchester City for FC Barcelona in May 2021 but retired from professional football seven months later due to a heart condition.

Where Does Haaland Rank Among The All-Time Premier League Greats?

Although Mohamed Salah is likely the next Premier League player to score 200 goals in this star-studded competition—his total is 184 goals in 294 games—Erling Haaland is the one everyone believes will eventually catch Shearer. Haaland hasn’t yet made 100 Premier League appearances (94), yet he already has 84 goals. Haaland is 53rd in the all-time rankings.

Haaland averages 0.89 goals per game, which is a stupendous return. He scored 36 goals in 35 games during his debut season, then 27 goals in 31 games the following year. The talismanic striker has 21 goals in 28 games this season, although he will likely miss the finale through injury.

Having recently signed a nine-year contract with City, Haaland has every chance of catching Shearer. If Haaland continues scoring goals at his current rate, he will surpass 260 goals by the time he has played only 292 games, which should happen within the next six seasons. Watch this space.