Harry Kane’s transcended Wayne Rooney with his 209th goal as he fired his side to a 1-0 victory against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
It was a record-breaking evening for the Tottenham Hotspur striker, as not only did the 29-year-old eclipse the Manchester United and Everton legend’s record of 208 goals to become the Premier League’s second-highest record goal scorer, but Kane also attained another landmark when he trumped Duncan Ferguson to become the first player to score 10 headed goals in a Premier League campaign.
Here’s how the England skipper’s goal tally fares, in comparison to the top-10 goal scorers in Premier League history.
Kane’s focus will now shift to displacing former England and Newcastle United striker, Alan Shearer, who sits atop the Premier League history books by his lonesome with a tally of 260 goals, which he chalked up in 441 games, giving the all-time Premier League top scorer a goal per game ratio of 0.58.
Kane moved into second having obtained the record in 317 appearances and superseded Rooney, who scored 208 goals in 491 appearances. A staggering differential of 174 games.
Kane’s goal-per-game ratio of 0.65 is substantially greater than that of Rooney’s 0.42. Moreover, the Tottenham Hotspur captain’s goal-per-game ratio is considerably greater than every other Premier League scorer in the graphic above, barring former Manchester City striker, Sergio Aguero and former Arsenal striker, Thierry Henry. Aguero ranks fifth while the Arsenal legend sits seventh on the all-time list. Both strikers, edged Kane by a 0.01- and 0.02-point differential, with their goal-per-game ratio, 0.66 and 0.67 respectively.
Five-time Premier League champion, Sergio Aguero, had an injury-riddled career in the competition, but still managed to remain a prolific goal scorer, as he scored 184 goals in 275 games during his 10-year tenure in the league. Thierry Henry, similarly, was renowned for his goal-scoring prowess as he notched 175 goals in 258 appearances, in a comparatively shorter period that ranged from 1999-2007.
Andrew Cole, sits in fourth with 187 goals in 414 appearances, giving him a goal-per-game ratio of 0.45.
As expected, the top 10 record holders are predominantly strikers, with the only exception being former Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard who cemented his legacy as a goal-scoring midfielder. The four-time Premier League champion, ranks sixth in the record books, having scored 177 goals in 609 appearances, which leaves him with the lowest goal-per-game ratio at 0.29.
Lampard is followed by Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler, who notched 163 goals in 379 appearances, leaving him with a goal-per-game ratio of 0.43. Behind Fowler lies, Premier League veteran Jermain Defoe who recorded 162 goals in 496 appearances. Former Balon d’Or winner Michael Owen, closes out the top ten list, having scored 150 goals in 326 appearances.
Since the Premier League’s advent occurred in 1993, all the players on the list have scored in the 21st century. However, Kane remains the only active player on the list and has an opportunity to increase his tally and rewrite the history books.
This notable accomplishment by Kane, however, goes beyond this one fixture that enabled him to transform English football. In fact, his path to the summit commenced when he made his debut as a 19-year-old teenage sensation, in a cameo in a 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United at St. James’ Park in August of 2012.
In the time since the England international’s debut, no player that has played in the competition has surpassed the 165-goal barrier, with Sergio Aguero coming closest in second, with 161 goals. To attest to this, the graph below displays the players with the most goals in the league since Kane’s debut in 2012.
It’s worth noting that although Kane made his advent in the competition in August of 2012, his first full season with the club came during the 2014/2015 campaign, in which he scored 21 goals, giving Aguero a full two seasons’ head start, whereby he attained 35 of his 161 goals in 64 appearances.
The Argentinian is followed by Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah who sits third having scored 139 goals in 229 appearances for the Red. Right behind the Egyptian, lies former Premier League champion, Jamie Vardy in fourth with 136 goals in 305 appearances.
Romelu Lukaku comes in fifth, having notched 121 goals in 270 games for Everton, Manchester United and Chelsea. Right on the Belgian’s heels lies Blues winger, Raheem Sterling in sixth, who has amassed himself a sizeable tally with 115 goals in 343 appearances for Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea.
Beneath the English international is former Liverpool winger, Sadio Mane, who departed the league last year for German giants Bayern Munich. Mane scored 111 goals in 263 appearances for Southampton and Liverpool.
Kane’s Spurs teammate Heung Min Son sits in eighth with 103 goals in 266 fixtures. Behind the South Korean lies former Chelsea duo, Olivier Giroud and Eden Hazard who round off the list in ninth and tenth respectively. The French International accumulated 90 goals for Arsenal and Chelsea in 255 matches, while his Belgian teammate scored 85 goals in 245 appearances to round off the list.
Data gathered from Premier League’s official website. premierleague.com
