Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Ronaldo: Ranking the best centre-forwards of the 21st century
A nod of thanks to the assassins who didn’t make it: Ballon d’Or winner Andriy Shevchenko was close, Christian Vieri’s highlights and world record transfer fee came in the last century. See also Hernan Crespo and Gabriel Batistuta. Mario Jardel scored goals at an unimaginable rate until he attacked Bolton.
Penalty poachers Luca Toni and Mario Gomez have had productive seasons interspersed with unproductive runs. Diego Forlan can claim to be the only player not representing Barcelona or Real Madrid to win La Liga’s Pichichi Award twice this century. Ciro Immobile, four-time top scorer in Serie A, could make a valuable move.
Miroslav Klose He is of similar quality and enters the top 10 thanks to being the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer – with 16 goals in four competitions this century, one point ahead of Brazil’s Ronaldo, as well as Germany’s record marksman.
Another Bayern hero Robert LewandowskiIt is in longevity. The Polish striker has scored more than 30 goals in all but three of the last 14 seasons, but his impact goes beyond finishing – he also has 141 assists.
Blackburn Rovers’ defeat was Borussia Dortmund’s gain; Lewandowski led Jurgen Klopp’s side to back-to-back Bundesliga titles, followed by eight on the spin, the Champions League with Bayern, then two more titles in Spain with Barcelona.
Harry Kane He effectively replaced the Munich striker and although he appeared at times to have single-handedly lifted Tottenham Hotspur and England to within a fingertip, he was provoked by accusations that without trophies he could never be considered a generational talent.
Now 32, Kane has a Bundesliga title to go along with a feast of personal achievements, Golden Boots and goalscoring records; The fastest man of this century to reach 100 goals (in 104 games) for a club in the top five leagues.
The Three Lions’ captain recently reached 500 career goals; It’s a staggering achievement, and one that may seem like a pipe dream to fans of Leyton Orient, Millwall, Norwich and Leicester, where Kane honed his early talents on loan.
Combined with his elite defensive and playmaking skills, Kane redefines the centre-forward role.
