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The Premier League has provided an attractive platform for non-English players to test themselves in one of the best leagues in the world. As such, some of the finest performers in the history of football have been part of the league.
In fact, some of the top Premier League clubs have richly benefited because of the presence of such fine foreign players. More often than not, the best of foreigners don't take much time to adapt to the league either.
Premier League has seen some fine foreign goal-machines
There has never been a shortage of goals in the Premier League due to the presence of some quality foreign finishers. One such example is that of Ruud van Nistelrooy. The Dutchman was unstoppable when on song and used to score at will.
More recently, the likes of Sergio Aguero and Mohamed Salah come to mind while talking about prolific foreign forwards. Without further ado, let's have a look at the best foreign goalscorers in the history of the Premier League:
#5 Robbie Keane (126 goals)
Having come up through the ranks at Wolverhampton Wanderers, Robbie Keane came on to the scene in 1997. The Irish striker was then wanted by Premier League club Coventry City, for which he signed in the summer of 1999.
After scoring 12 goals for Coventry in a single season, he was immediately signed by Inter Milan the following season. Unfortunately with the sacking of the then Inter manager Marcello Lippi, Keane was deemed surplus to the Italian club's requirements. He was loaned out to Leeds United in December 2000 for the remainder of the season.
Following his impressive performances, the former Wolves striker was able to make his move permanent with the Whites. As Leeds struggled with their debt, they were compelled to sell quite a few players, including Robbie Keane, who signed for Tottenham Hotspur.
Keane played with Spurs for six seasons then, winning the club's Player of the Year award thrice. He primarily played as a striker but was capable of playing almost anywhere along the front line. He was more than impressive at Spurs, which encouraged Liverpool to sign him in the summer of 2008.
Unfortunately, the move did not work out well for the Irishman as he returned to the north London club after spending a year and a half with the Reds. Post that, Keane spent some time with Spurs and went out on loan to Celtic, West Ham United and Aston Villa before returning in November 2018. In his amazing career in the Premier League, the former Liverpool striker scored 126 goals.
#4 Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (127 goals)
Having started his career in the Netherlands, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink spent quite some time in the Portuguese league before moving to the Premier League in 1997. He was signed by Leeds United from Boavista to play under manager George Graham.
Initially, the Dutch forward struggled to adapt in the Premier League but it was not the same the following season. In his second season in England, Hasselbaink scored 18 goals in 36 league appearances, winning his first Premier League Golden Boot. The award was shared by him, Michael Owen and Dwight Yorke that season.
The following season, Hasselbaink was signed by Atletico Madrid, for whom he scored 24 goals in 34 league games. Unfortunately, the Spanish club were relegated in the 1999-2000 season, which saw the Dutchman join Chelsea in 2000. In his very first season with the Blues, he scored 23 goals in the league, winning his career's second Premier League Golden Boot award.
Hasselbaink continued his impressive form with the London club, spending four seasons with them. He then joined Middlesbrough in 2004 and signed for Charlton two seasons later before retiring in 2008. He scored 127 goals in the Premier League, becoming one of the best goalscorers in the history of the competition.
#3 Robin van Persie (144 goals)
The Premier League was blessed to witness the Flying Dutchman play in England. Arguably one of the best strikers of his generation, Robin van Persie started his career in the Eredivisie with Feyenoord.
He joined the Premier League in 2004 when he signed for Arsenal. The then Gunners manager Arsene Wenger wanted to use Van Persie as a striker rather than a winger in the same fashion as he did with Thierry Henry. The French manager was successful in doing that as the Dutch striker proved to be quite lethal in front of goal.
In his 194 appearances for the north London club, Van Persie scored 96 goals in the Premier League. His ambition to win the league title encouraged him to join Manchester United in the summer of 2012. The Red Devils won the title that very season, giving the former Feyenoord forward his first league trophy.
Post Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement as United manager, Van Persie struggled to be amongst goals under David Moyes and Louis van Gaal. He then decided to join Fenerbache in 2015 and then spent a season back at Feyenoord in 2018 before hanging up his boots. In his 280 appearances in the Premier League, Van Persie scored 144 goals.
#2 Thierry Henry (175 goals)
Another Arsenal striker on this list is club legend Thierry Henry. The Frenchman is arguably one of the best strikers ever to play in the history of the Premier League.
Graduating from the AS Monaco academy, Henry started his career playing as a winger. Courtesy of his solid performances with the French club, he joined Juventus in the winter of 1999. The move did not work out as he struggled against the defensive approach adopted by the Serie A teams.
This led Henry to sign for Arsenal in the summer of 1999, reuniting with his former manager Arsene Wenger. What happened thereafter is instilled in the memory of the Gunners' faithful forever. Henry was a delight to watch with his amazing knack for scoring goals.
With Henry, it was more than just goals as well. Thanks to his superb dribbling skills, nimble footwork and fine finishing abilities, the Frenchman scored and created goals at will. The Arsenal superstar won the Premier League title and the FA Cup twice with the Gunners.
Henry surprisingly signed for Barcelona in the summer of 2007 and played for the Catalan club for three seasons. He later returned to Arsenal on loan in the 2011-12 season but the spell was for a very short duration. In his 258 Premier League appearances, the prolific striker netted 175 goals.
#1 Sergio Aguero (184 goals)
Born in Argentina, Sergio Aguero started his career with Independiente in his native country. After joining Atletico Madrid in 2006, the Argentine developed into one of the finest strikers in La Liga. He went on to score 75 goals in his 175 appearances in Spain's top division.
Aguero signed for Manchester City in the summer of 2011 to play under manager Roberto Mancini. The right-footed striker had a stunning time with City winning the Premier League five times, including a last minute winner to clinch the title in the 2011-12 season.
With Aguero leading the line, City fans had a delightful time watching their club. The former Atletico striker is Manchester City's all-time top goalscorer and the fourth-highest goalscorer in the history of the Premier League. He has scored a total of 184 goals in his 275 league appearances, making him the highest foreign goalscorer in the competition.
