The Top 10 Greatest Great Goalscorers

…in Premiership history.

The idea is simple; name the 10 greatest scorers of great goals. So not great goalscorers (though some are definitely that) or people who happened to score a great goal (though they definitely did that), but players who regularly scored great goals.

However it is not as easy as it sounds and some notable names did not make it into the list so if you disagree, please say so. But this is a Top 10 and sacrifices have to be made so without further ado, here they are.

Actually, just a little more ado… technically, this is a top 9. Much like the “debate” about who the best batsman of all time is in cricket is about who is number 2 to Donald Bradman, there should be no doubt as to who is number one in this list. Still, it’s always nice to reaffirm brilliance.

Ado over, here we go…

10. Matthew Taylor

Former Luton Town and now Portsmouth leftback is not a prolific scorer as his position would suggest, but you rarely see him scrambling the ball over the goal line. A regular entrant in Goal of the Month competitions, it is seldom a good idea as a defender to push him onto his left foot.

Here he is against Everton scoring from approximately the other side of the channel:
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.9. Anthony Yeboah
Ghana’s Yeboah played 62 times for Leeds scoring an impressive 33 goals many of which as a result of thrashing the ball so hard that no sane goalkeeper would try to save it – assuming he could get out of the way in time. His cannon of a right foot once struck a shot measuring 96mph.

Sadly, Yeboah left Leeds after a predictable conflict of personalities with George Graham. He remains to this day the only player ever to have won successive Goal of the Month competitions.

Here is Tony scoring the 1995/6 Goal of the Season against the team formerly known as “Wimbledon”:
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.8. Gianfranco Zola
A.k.a. Gorgon Zola, this minuscule, brilliant Italian delighted Chelsea fans for 229 appearances with his flair, touch and free kicks. The last of which were taught to him while at Napoli by Diego Maradona.

The man always played with a grin on his face and was inducted in to the English Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

Here he is scoring a goal against Norwich. If you have never seen this goal before you might miss the subtlety of it first time round. I am fairly sure that even Maradona didn’t teach him this:
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.7. David Ginola
Loved by Newcastle and Tottenham fans alike, Ginola was the ultimate conundrum; sporadic genius in attack, absolutely nothing whatsoever in defence. Given Tottenham’s lack of any sort of left back (i.e. Clive Wilson), it was amazing that he was ever allowed on the pitch. But the Tottenham fans love their flare players more than anything else and Ginola was a true hero in a time where they had little else to cheer.

Here he is against Charlton in the FA Cup. If you are a Tottenham fan, you already know what you are about to see:
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.6. Paolo di Canio
Strong advocate of fascist dictatorships and fan of Benito Mussolini (yes, the dead dictator, Nazi ally Mussolini), di Canio and controversy were not exactly passing strangers in the night. No reason to believe this should be why he settled in so well at West Ham and certainly the fans and players adored him. At least the black ones did until they realised he was a fascist.

Anyway, he could also score great goals such as the 1999/2000 Goal of the Season against the team formerly known as “Wimbledon”. Again:
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.5. Trevor Sinclair
If there was one player this list was made for – apart from the person at number one – it would be Trevor Sinclair. A winger who could play on both flanks, you never really sensed he was quite in the top bracket of players. He did however play in a World Cup (and far from disgraced himself) and while he wasn’t a prolific goalscorer, you can be sure that at least once a season you would hear the radio summariser say “and make sure to watch Match of the Day tonight for a simply magnificent Trevor Sinclair goal”.

Here is the 1996/7 Goal of the Season; one that ranks as a standard effort for Trevor:
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.4. Dennis Bergkamp
Nicknamed the “Iceman”, I don’t think anyone realised just how good he was until Bruce Rioch took him to Arsenal. Arguably the most influential signing in their history he was also one of the first genuine world class players to come to the Premiership for something other than a final pay day. His touch, vision and creativity at setting up other players (such as Ian Wright, Nicholas Anelka and Thierry Henry) as well as himself made him a joy to watch. If you were an Arsenal fan.

Here he is scoring the 2001/2 Goal of the Season against Newcastle with a move that I’ve only seen Romario try:
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.3. Thierry Henry
It is a great loss that he no longer adorns the Premiership. A player of near relativistic pace and a feather touch, he combines speed of body and mind with a creative eye for goal that only the best handful of players in any given era have. What is more, he seems like a genuinely nice guy and if his wife is strong enough, their offspring might play for England.

It is not the intention that the most prolific goalscorers should make this list and you could say that if you score enough goals that some are bound to be brilliant. But there are so many brilliant Henry goals that he simply has to be included even though he is so much more than a scorer of great goals.

I suppose his 2002/3 Goal of the Season should be show however I do not believe it was his best coming as it did against a poor Tottenham side. Instead, witness this… absurdity against Manchester United. Fare thee well, Thierry:

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.2. Eric Cantona
The ultimate talisman and a Frenchman almost literally dripping with flair. Like Number 7 David Ginola, he was largely shunned by the national team to their detriment and the Premiership’s gain.
Still referred to in half of Manchester and much of London as “The King” he almost defined the New Premiership product as one of excitement, flair and thrills set against the fading memory of the uncouth, brash and physical First Division.

Along with Sir Alex Ferguson he was a major catalyst behind the installation of Manchester United as the predominant force in English football and at his best, he was the master of the timely and unexpected.

A genuinely showman the delight in watching Cantona was knowing that those most rare of moments – the ones where what happens on the field takes such a break from your expectation – could happen at any time.Here he is scoring against Sunderland after a poor run of form. His regal celebration befitting the man:
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.And there we are; the Top 9 as promised because as I said we all know who’s coming next. Indeed I don’t even feel the need to give his name. An attacking midfielder who regularly scored over 20 goals a season he turned down moves to AC Milan, Chelsea and Tottenham (the day before it was to be announced).

He never fulfilled his incredible talent for England in an era when other nations might have built a team round him. He drifted in and out of games for his club but no matter how quiet, he was always prone to making the loudest of noises by the end.

He was equally footed – something rare even today – and utterly lethal with a dead ball. Indeed from the penalty spot he scored an astonishing 48 out of 49 in his career (take a bow Mark Crossley).

Even towards the end of his career he still had the capacity to amaze and score when the game had seemed over although nothing matched his 1993/4 season when he scored 30 goals for a struggling team.

But perhaps most amazing – and endearing – of all was that every single one of his 540 appearances (and 209 goals) were for Southampton.

A true one-club man and undoubtedly Southampton’s greatest ever player. The man who possesses surely the greatest highlight reel in all of footballing history whose ability made you truly believe that the impossible was about to happen.

I give you, the Greatest Scorer of Great Goals,

1. “le God”