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#3 Robin van Persie
Dutch striker Robin van Persie may not have won as many trophies across his career as other legends – a single Premier League title in 2012/13 and a lone FA cup in 2004/05 stands as his only triumphs during 11 seasons in the Premier League – but arguably, he made the biggest impact of any single player on a side in the history of the competition when he moved from Arsenal to Manchester United in the summer of 2012.
Van Persie played in all 38 of United’s games in 2012/13 as they marched to their most recent Premier League title – the final one under the stewardship of the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson – and scored 26 goals, enough to win him the Golden Boot.
But it wasn’t just his goals that made an impact – it was his performances and the fact that so many times, he helped United to points they wouldn’t have got without him; the results of 14 games were changed beyond a reasonable doubt by his contribution.
While his first season at United was definitely RVP’s highest watermark, he was also brilliant for Arsenal for the majority of his 8 seasons there, and he signed off his time at the Emirates by delivering a phenomenal 30 goals in 38 Premier League games. His overall record at the Gunners? 132 goals in 278 games. And after leaving United in 2014/15, he had two productive stints at Fenerbahce and Feyenoord too.
Throw in his strong record on the international stage for the Netherlands – 50 goals in 102 games including the best goal of the 2014 World Cup, his flying header against Spain – and despite a lack of trophies to his name, van Persie must be considered one of the best strikers of his generation – and he’ll definitely be missed now he’s retired.
