Goalscoring, especially in a division as difficult as the Premier League, is the toughest aspect of the beautiful game. England’s top flight has been blessed with all manner of centre-forwards – from the archetypal poachers to the do-it-all strikers – but not all of them have been able to hit the ground running.
There are, however, some that take to football in England like a duck to water, scoring goals as if they are going out of fashion.
Take Manchester City talisman Erling Haaland as the perfect example. The Norwegian marked the 100 Premier League appearance milestone in the infancy of the 2025/26 season by scoring in a 2-1 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion – but how does his goalscoring record to that of some of the league’s greatest-ever frontmen?
erling haaland
Looking at how many goals every player has scored within their first century of Premier League outings, here are the 12 players who have notched the biggest number of strikes – from their division debut to when they reached the 100-game landmark.
Players With Most Goals After 100 Premier League Games – 12-7
Thierry Henry Arsenal 2003
Now a loveable figure in the punditry sphere, Ian Wright was once a monster in front of goal for the likes of Premier League outfit Arsenal. For the north Londoners, the English hitman failed to score under 10 league goals between 1991 and 1999. In his first 100 Premier League outings, he notched 56 goals.
Harry Kane was ever so close to matching Alan Shearer’s all-time goalscoring record in the English top division post-1992 – but he moved to Bayern Munich before he had the chance of shattering history. Previously a certified goal-getter for Tottenham Hotspur, Kane struck 59 times in his first century of matches.
As languid as strikers came, Thierry Henry defines the Premier League era. Silky yet domineering in the final third, the Frenchman also scored 59 goals in his maiden 100 appearances in the Premier League – which is three fewer than Luis Suarez.
Luis Suarez celebrates scoring for Liverpool.
Commonly admired as one of the best strikers of all time, he scored 62 goals in his first 100 appearances for Liverpool. All in all, for the Reds, the now-38-year-old chalked up 82 strikes – alongside an extra 32 assists – in a total of 133 outings between 2011 and 2014.
While the majority of names on this list are out-and-out strikers, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah – who is as deadly as they come on the right flank – bucks that trend with his tally of 63 goals in his first 100 appearances. Ageing like a fine wine, the 33-year-old enjoyed his career-best return in 2024/25.
12 Players With Most Goals After 100 Premier League Games – 12-7
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Players With Most Goals After 100 Premier League Games – 6-1
Manchester City's Sergio Aguero celebrates
Practically unplayable at the apex of his powers, striker Fernando Torres – widely regarded as one of the best footballers to never win a league title – signed for Liverpool in the summer of 2007 and, across his four-year stay at Anfield, he scored 81 goals in 142 appearances. 63 of those make him number six in this list.
Level with the aforementioned Spaniard is Andy Cole, who is one of the most decorated footballers on this star-studded list. In 1993/94, the marksman hit a 34-goal haul in 40 appearances, and he continued to score at the same alarming rate upon moving to Old Trafford.
Somehow (just somehow!) Manchester City and Argentina legend Sergio Aguero won the Premier League Golden Boot on just one occasion – in 2014/15 – but his start to life at the Etihad Stadium was lightning fast. Within his first century of league appearances, he had struck 64 times.
Ruud van Nistelrooy, thanks to his movement in and around the opposition box, was a finisher of the highest order – and the Dutchman’s fox-in-the-box approach allowed him to score goals at an alarming rate during his 219-game tenure at Manchester United. Altogether, he scored 150 goals for the Red Devils.
New Manchester United signing Ruud van Nisterlooy holds an official club scaf aloft.
Alan Shearer may be best remembered for his goalscoring prowess in the black and white of Newcastle United – but the serial goal-getter netted an eye-catching 79 strikes in his first 100 Premier League appearances between 1992 and 1996, all while on the books of Blackburn Rovers.
And Shearer’s record stood… until very recently. None other than Erling Haaland, Manchester City’s goalscoring machine, managed to usurp the Magpies legend by finding the back of the net against Brighton & Hove Albion to make it 88 from his first 100 outings.
12 Players With Most Goals After 100 Premier League Games – 6-1
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All statistics per Sky Sports and Planet Football - correct as of 01/09/2025