Top Twenty PL Players of All Time
The Premier League is widely regarded as the best football league in the world – above La Liga, the Bundesliga, Serie A, and Ligue 1. Whatever argument you want to make for the chasing pack, the English league is certainly the most popular and most watched around the world. But who are the best Premier League players of all time? Let’s run through our top twenty!
The PL has provided a home to numerous world-class attackers down the years, from its inception in 1992 right up until the present day. It is time to celebrate the greatest goalscorers in the history of the division – here are the 10 PL all-time top scorers.
When did the Premier League start?
Younger readers may not realise that the Premier League wasn’t always the pinnacle of English football. Back in the early 1990s, the top league was simply called the English First Division. However, the clubs within the league at the time believed that a radical restructuring was needed in order to grow the game. In 1991, they signed a Founder Members Agreement and one year later they all resigned from the Football League. On 27 May 1992, the Premier League was created, backed by a big-money television deal from Sky. Ever since then, football fans all over the world have enjoyed Premier League football from the comfort of their sofas every weekend.
Who are the best Premier League players of all time?
20) Peter Schmeichel
Having a goalkeeper on the list of the top twenty Premier League players of all time may not be the most exciting thing in the world, but we needed to name one. Peter Schmeichel is widely regarded as the best the competition has ever seen, not to mention the fact that he played in the first-ever Premier League season. His five league titles with Man United edge him just above Petr Cech who is unlucky to miss out.
19) Patrick Vieira
One of the most perfect midfielders the Premier League has ever seen. There is a reason he was named in the PFA Team of the Year six times. Only one player has ever bested that number… but more about him later. Known for his infamous battles on the pitch with Roy Keane, Vieira picked up three Premier League trophies during his time at Arsenal. It should also be noted that he is the only man to ever captain a Premier League side to an invincible season. That’s not a bad one for your resume!
18) Sergio Agüero
When your name is so ingrained into the history of the Premier League, you simply have to make the list.
“It’s finished at Sunderland, Manchester United have done all they can. Manchester City are still alive here. Balotelli. AGÜEROOOO! I swear you’ll never see anything like this ever again. So watch it, drink it in!”
It still gives us goosebumps to this day! But let us not pretend that Agüero is famous for one moment and one moment alone. He is the fifth-highest top scorer of all time in the league and has a whopping five Premier League titles to his name.
17) Harry Kane
A name that will divide opinions on this list. Let’s be honest, the only reason he isn’t the all-time Premier League top scorer is that he decided to leave the country. He remains only 47 behind Alan Shearer, which he could have easily achieved in another two seasons with Spurs. Had he come through a different academy, he would also likely have a handful of trophies to his name. Judging Harry Kane on talent alone, he deserves his spot on this list. With the all-time record and one Premier League to his name (like Shearer), he would be in the top five.
16) Eden Hazard
One of the most naturally gifted wingers to ever grace Stamford Bridge. It’s just as well because Hazard was famously a lousy trainer. In Eden’s mind, it was about getting through the week, lacing up his boots, and doing his best work on the pitch… and we love him for that. The Belgian managed 85 goals in 245 games for the Blues, while assisting another 54 and lifting two Premier League trophies. It’s just a shame that big move to Real Madrid didn’t work out.
15) Ashley Cole
Sorry, full-backs. We know you don’t get the credit you deserve. Ashley Cole could easily be higher on the list, but he is definitely the best left-back the league has ever seen… the best full-back even! Ask any winger who has played against the former England international, and they will say exactly the same thing. Cole was impossible to beat at his peak. He also has three Premier League titles to his name with Arsenal and Chelsea, including the Gunners’ invincible season of 2003/04.
14) Dennis Bergkamp
In his 11 seasons with Arsenal, Bergkamp scored 87 goals in 315 matches. He was also a keen assister in that Gunners side, being one of the only players to ever record four assists in a single match. The Not-So-Flying-Dutchman – a nickname earned from his fear of flying – was one of those players you have to have seen live to appreciate his true brilliance. And who could forget that iconic goal against Newcastle? His flick around the corner and finish will be replayed for the rest of Premier League history.
13) John Terry
The highest-rated defender on our list. Mr. Chelsea encompasses all the best traits of the ‘classic English centre-back’. Brave on the ball, strong in the air, passion for the badge, and willing to put his body on the line for a win time and time again. A five-time Premier League winner during his career with Chelsea between 1998 and 2017, Terry remains one of the all-time greats. He even managed 41 Premier League goals from central defence!
12) Roy Keane
Keane will be happy to be above his old enemy Patrick Vieira on the list. These days, Keane is often remembered for his horror red card challenges or funny one-liners on punditry duty, but let us not forget the quality he had on the pitch. Roy Keane was the midfield leader in arguably the best-ever Premier League team. Not only was he remarkably consistent with his quality on the ball, but he was equally talented at stopping the opposition at all costs. Keane won the league a huge seven times with United and remains one of the most decorated players to ever take to the pitch in England.
11) Paul Scholes
Seven Premier League titles for Roy Keane? Paul Scholes raises you 11! The man who could hit a tree from 100 yards, and smash home a volley into the top corner for fun. In truth, there wasn’t a lot that Paul Scholes couldn’t do – apart from avoiding a yellow card. He dictated the pace in the most successful Manchester United team of all time and did so over 19 seasons with the Red Devils. People talk about Rodri winning the Ballon d’Or in 2024, but Scholes was bringing those levels of performance and more 20 years earlier.
10) Frank Lampard
Probably the best goal-scoring midfielder the league has ever seen. Despite playing in central midfield for Chelsea, he managed 177 goals. To put that into perspective, he is the only player in the top ten scorers list who didn’t play as a forward. He finished his Premier League career with just 31 fewer goals than Wayne Rooney! Lampard lifted the trophy three times with the Blues after bursting onto the scene as a teenager at West Ham. At the end of his career, Lampard played one strange season with Man City, but ironically, Chelsea won the league that year.
9) Steven Gerrard
Who was better, Scholes, Lampard or Gerrard?
We simply had to name those three alongside each other. The debate has raged on for decades now – who was better: Scholes, Lampard or Gerrard? We all know that England struggled to fit them into the same formation during the Golden Generation years. Somewhat controversially, we have put Gerrard at the top of the argument, despite having never actually won the Premier League. No one has more than Gerrard’s eight PFA Premier League Team of the Year appearances. He is our highest-ranking player not to have a trophy to his name. But there is simply no ignoring the Liverpool legend. If you could design the perfect midfielder, it would be Stevie G down to a T.
8) Eric Cantona
Eric Cantona only played 143 Premier League games with Man United and another 13 with Leeds United. Yet we still have him in our top ten players of all-time. That says a lot about the sheer impact the Frenchman had on the Red Devils and English football as a whole. Before he arrived in Manchester, United had not won the trophy in 26 years. After he joined, they lifted the Premier League trophy four times in five years. Unfortunately, he is also remembered for kung-fu kicking a member of the crowd away to Crystal Palace, but we’ll let that slide.
7) Mo Salah
The fact that he is already seventh on the list yet is still currently playing says all you need to know about Mo Salah. The Liverpool legend is currently eighth on the all-time scorers list, just behind the likes of Frank Lampard and Thierry Henry. In the 2019/20 season, Salah deservedly got his hands on the Premier League trophy with Liverpool, contributing 19 goals in the league that season. He became part of one of the most iconic trios of all time – alongside Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino – and has broken all kinds of Liverpool records over the years. It just goes to show what winning one Premier League trophy can do to your legacy in the game though.
6) Kevin de Bruyne
One of the greatest midfielders of the past decade, Kevin de Bruyne has climbed his way up the all-time rankings year after year. Only one player has more than De Bruyne’s 113 Premier League assists. No one has assisted more in a single season than De Bruyne’s 20 in 2019/2020. 69 goals in 10 seasons for Man City from midfield. Six Premier League titles to his name. Five appearances in the PFA Team of the Year. De Bruyne is the epitome of Pep-ball and will go down in history as one of, if not the best, Premier League midfielder of all-time.
5) Cristiano Ronaldo
Let’s be honest, the only reason Cristiano Ronaldo isn’t higher up the list is that he played the bulk of his career in Spain with Real Madrid. To put that into context, Ronaldo was only 24 when he left Man United and was 36 by the time he came back. Yet he is still a member of the 100-goal club in England’s topflight, from just 236 appearances. That includes ten iconic free-kicks, and he even assisted another 37 goals. He burst onto the scene as a teenager, left to become a Galactico, and returned to reunite with his beloved Red Devils (even if it did end on a sour note). What more can you say about one of the GOATs?
4) Ryan Giggs
How many assists did Ryan Giggs get in the Premier League?
No one has assisted more than Ryan Giggs’ 162 in the Premier League. Even Kevin de Bruyne is still 50-odd behind! Only two players have more Premier League appearances (Gareth Barry and James Milner). No one has more than his 13 Premier League trophies. No one has scored in more consecutive seasons – 23. Need we go on? The Welshman was not only one of the finest wingers of his generation, but one of the best of all time.
3) Alan Shearer
How many goals did Alan Shearer score in the Premier League?
260 goals. No one has scored more in the Premier League than Alan Shearer. That is enough to earn him a place in the top three players of all time. Of course, it helps that Shearer lifted the trophy with Blackburn Rovers in the 1994/95 season. Just look at the gap between Kane and Shearer on our list. The former has 213 goals and 0 Prem trophies and falls at 17th on our list. The latter has 260 goals and 1 Prem trophy and comes third. The numbers talk! But seriously, go back and look through this man’s goal catalogue!
2) Wayne Rooney
Only Shearer and Kane have scored more in Premier League history than Wayne Rooney. To make that achievement all the more impressive, he also managed to assist 103, which puts him fourth on the all-time assist charts. No player has recorded more combined goals and assists than this man. Now, let’s throw in five Premier League titles and perhaps the most iconic goal in the history of the competition – an overhead kick against his arch-rivals Man City no less. Rooney started out as a world-class marksman but drifted back later in his career and showcased the true extent of his footballing ability as more of a number 10. What a player!
1) Thierry Henry
Is Thierry Henry the best-ever Premier League player?
It comes as little surprise that we, like all other football fans with eyes, have Thierry Henry down as our best-ever Premier League player. Although he only won the league twice with Arsenal, a full 11 fewer than Ryan Giggs at Man United, the Frenchman’s ability is just impossible to ignore. He scored 175 goals in 258 Prem games for the Gunners before enjoying three seasons with Barcelona in La Liga and another five in the MLS with New York Red Bulls. The simple fact is that Thierry Henry could do things others could only dream of, and that remains true to this day. His lighting pace, devastating dribbling, and consistent finishing undoubtedly make him the best the Premier League has ever seen.
Last Updated: 12.12.2024
