'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
England is the host nation of arguably the most electrifying football league in the world, the Premier League. The league is held in very high regard for its extremely competitive nature and dramatic turnarounds.
Due to stiff competition and the presence of affluent clubs, the Premier League has lured numerous top quality players from across Europe. Inevitably, some of the greatest players of all time have made their mark in English football.
Premier League fans, as well as pundits on television, often find themselves engaged in heated debates about the best player to have played in the league. And all these discussions would have never taken place had there been a set parameter to differentiate players.
So who is the best player to have played in the Premier League - the one who has scored the most goals, the one who has won the most winners' medals, someone who played in a particular competitive era, or someone who influenced his team the most? Interestingly, the answers to these questions keep changing.
Sergio Aguero's recent heroics against Arsenal have reignited the question about his place amongst the greatest Premier League players of all time.
The Argentine penned down his first contract with Manchester City in the summer of 2011 and has since been one of the most prominent figures in the club's ascent to the top. During his time at Manchester, the striker has done more than enough to deserve being mentioned among the all-time Premier League greats.
With 157 goals in 227 league appearances, Aguero is the 8th highest all-time scorer in EPL. He has an outrageous goal-scoring rate of 0.69 which even outshines Thierry Henry's record of 0.68 goals per game.
The South-American goal-machine has won the match-ball on 10 occasions and boasts of scoring 40 goals against the top six. Only Alan Shearer has scored more hat-tricks than the Man City star. And we can't discount the fact that the Argentine is playing in an era when 6 teams contest for the top 4 every season.
(Categories: Rank; Name; Goals; Games; Goals per game)
1 Alan Shearer 260 441 0.59
2 Wayne Rooney 208 491 0.42
3 Andy Cole 187 414 0.45
4 Frank Lampard 177 609 0.29
5 Thierry Henry 175 258 0.68
6 Robbie Fowler 163 379 0.43
7 Jermain Defoe 162 496 0.33
8 Sergio Aguero 157 227 0.69
Moreover, Aguero's qualities as a leader are significant too. Although not as vocal as some other players like Roy Keane and Steven Gerrard, Aguero has taken authority of big moments on a number of occasions - the last-minute goal against QPR being one of them.
He has guided his team to 3 league-winning campaigns, and might easily do it again in the future.
However, in spite of his monumental impact in English football, Aguero has been included in the PFA team only once and, astonishingly, was even left out in 2015 despite banking the most goals, which he has also done on a single occasion.
These factors can be used to point out that he has not been as dominant during his reign as some other ex-players were back in their era, giving people an easy excuse to omit him from the list of all-time greats.
In conclusion, after going through all the statistics, it is fair to say that Aguero ticks every box that one should, to be called a Premier League legend. He is undoubtedly one of the deadliest strikers to have graced English football and has earned massive respect from fellow professionals; Lampard, Terry and Shearer have all acknowledged their admiration for him.
If fitness permits, Aguero will continue doing wonders in an already formidable Manchester City side for the next 2-3 seasons. He could well end up conquering heights that bring him right alongside the likes of Ryan Giggs, Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo and others of the same calibre.
