The trio are the next most likely members of the Premier League 100 club, with a number of players falling just short of reaching the landmark number
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Blood Red: Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah Scores 100th Premier League Goal
When Mo Salah put Liverpool 1-0 up at Leeds United a couple of weekends ago it wasn’t just your standard opening goal.
The Egyptian turned home a Trent Alexander-Arnold cross to give the Reds the lead at Elland Road, and in doing so he became the 30th different player to score 100 goals in the Premier League – 98 of them for Liverpool and two for Chelsea.
Salah has since gone on to score his 101st against Crystal Palace last weekend, and he’ll now be aiming to leapfrog as many members of the Premier League’s 100 club as he possibly can. He’s already overtaken Matt Le Tissier on 100 goals, and will now be eyeing Didier Drogba on 104.
He could have some more company soon though.
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Because after Salah’s landmark moment, the next member of the club will soon become apparent.
There are a few stars jostling for that accolade, and these are some of the still active players in the division who have a century of Premier League strikes in their sights.
Sadio Mane – 98 Premier League goals (21 for Southampton, 77 for Liverpool)
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Last weekend’s opener against Crystal Palace was Mane’s 100th in all competitions for Liverpool, having joined the Reds from Southampton back in 2016.
His Premier League goalscoring journey had started on the south coast a couple of years earlier than that, and he’s developed into one of the division’s more trustworthy performers over his time at Anfield.
He’s two away from the 100 club, and after hitting three goals in his opening five league games of this season, it might not be long before he gets them.
Raheem Sterling – 97 Premier League goals (18 for Liverpool, 79 for Manchester City)
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Not as much of a regular at City these days as he’d like to be, Sterling has nonetheless been a reliable goalscorer for the club ever since joining from Liverpool in 2015.
He had made the breakthrough at Anfield, forcing his way into the first-team picture under Kenny Dalglish and then more regularly Brendan Rodgers, and he’s gone on to prove himself as a modern-day City great as well as a vital member of the England setup.
Cristiano Ronaldo – 87 Premier League goals (all for Manchester United)
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Was reaching a Premier League century on Ronaldo’s mind when he decided to come back to English football this summer? As a man who prides himself on his records, you wouldn’t be surprised.
The Portuguese left for Real Madrid in 2009 when he was on 84 strikes in the Premier League for Manchester United, and he’s already bagged three in just two league appearances since being back.
The 100 seems certain to come this season, and probably soon.
Christian Benteke – 82 Premier League goals (42 for Aston Villa, 9 for Liverpool, 31 for Crystal Palace)
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The Belgian’s scoring rate has steadily dropped off ever since he managed double figures in the division in each of his three seasons at Aston Villa.
He did still score 10 for Crystal Palace last season, but it would be a big surprise if he was to the get the 18 he needs for his 100 in this campaign.
Benteke is contracted at Palace until the end of 2022-23 though, so he can set himself a decent target.
Theo Walcott – 78 Premier League goals (65 for Arsenal, 10 for Everton, 3 for Southampton)
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Getting another 22 Premier League goals is probably going to be beyond the 32-year-old Walcott, who is now back at Southampton where he scored four times in the Championship in his first spell.
While at Arsenal his best goalscoring season in the league came in 2012-13 when he plundered 14 strikes, one of only two seasons in which he’s managed to hit double figures of league goals.
Son Heung-min – 72 Premier League goals (all for Tottenham)
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A hit at Spurs ever since joining from German football in 2015, the South Korean might often have had to play second fiddle to Harry Kane at the club, but his importance has now been well and truly established.
Son passed 100 goals for Spurs in all competitions last season, when his overall record of 22, and 17 in the league, was his best ever at the club.
And some of those who’ve just missed out:
Emmanuel Adebayor – 97 goals, Yakubu, Ruud van Nistelrooy – 95 goals, Dimitar Berbatov – 94 goals, Kevin Phillips, Mark Viduka – 92 goals, James Beattie, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – 91 goals, Olivier Giroud – 90 goals.
