SP. 10 Greatest finishers in Football History [Ranked]

As former England international Michael Owen once poetically said, ‘whichever team scores more goals usually wins.’ As obvious as that statement is, it’s also true and emphasises the importance of having a potent striker leading the line who can sniff out a chance at any given moment.

A good finisher encompasses all of what is needed to be a number nine. They are deadly from anywhere between the 18-yard-box, both in the air and with their feet. They can convert high xG chances as well as opportunities that may not be in their favour. The question remains though, who is the very best at this very specific skill?

With that in mind, here are 10 of the greatest finishers to ever grace the beautiful game, with the ranking factors below.

Ranking Factors

• Goals scored (club and country)
• Goals per game ratio
• Conversion rate
• Era in which players featured

10 Thierry Henry

Career Goals: 411

Starting things off with one of the most legendary names in the Premier League era. Thierry Henry was a goal machine, particularly in his prime at Arsenal, which is made all the more impressive as the Frenchman enjoyed operating inside the left-hand channel.

The former Barcelona and Monaco star is the Gunners’ all-time record goalscorer, with 228 of his 411 total career goals coming for the north London club. He also sits second for his national team, albeit with Kylian Mbappe lurking not far behind.

Henry finished his career with a goals per game (GPG) ratio of 0.45, which at first glance appears a little low to be on this list. However, a conversion rate of 19% and the array of goals that the forward was able to score means he is deserving of 10th spot.

9 Luis Suarez

Career Goals: 556

From one Premier League legend to another, Luis Suarez is a more textbook number nine than the man he sits ahead of, and it shows with the number of goals that he has scored. The Uruguayan is still going strong at Inter Miami, so there is potential for him to take his numbers to another level by the time he calls it quits.

Suarez benefited from playing in an incredible Barcelona team, but don’t forget that he almost single-handedly drove Liverpool to their first Premier League title in 2014 with an incredible individual performance that season. As of August 2024, the 2016 Golden Shoe award winner has a GPG ratio of 0.60 at a conversion rate of 17%. Should he continue to dominate the MLS, this could still go up in the latter stages of his playing days.

8 Romario

Career Goals: 287

Brazilian forward and former World Cup winner Romario stands out on this list, purely because he scored far fewer goals in his career than many others that appear. However, finishing with 287 goals in 375 games is a record that many people would dream of and shows how lethal the 1994 FIFA World Player of the Year was in front of goal.

While some of his international career was spent playing as the number two behind the likes of Ronaldo Nazario, Romario still sits fourth in Brazil’s scoring list, while also finding himself sixth in PSV’s ranking, where he managed 128 strikes in just 148 games. He finished his career with a GPG of 0.76 and the highest conversion rate thus far, at 20%.

7 Robert Lewandowski

Career Goals: 653

Poland’s greatest ever footballer has aged like a fine wine over the course of his illustrious career, and with that he has become more and more potent in front of goal. Robert Lewandowski was not always tipped for greatness. In fact, he was once incredibly labeled as an ineffective striker. That tag certainly didn’t last long as he would go on to become one of the most dangerous number nines in European football.

Whether it be for Borussia Dortmund, where he first made his name alongside the likes of Marco Reus and Mario Gotze, at Bayern Munich where he would win multiple Bundesliga titles and the Champions League, or more recently, at Barcelona, where he is enjoying a goal-filled career swansong, this man just knows where the back of the net is.

653 goals in 925 games is an incredible feat in modern-day football. It is a travesty that ‘LewanGOALski,’ as Thomas Muller calls him, never got his hands on the Ballon d’Or he truly deserved in 2020.

6 Eusebio

Career Goals: 619

If you take one look at Eusebio’s incredible goal record, it would be easy to make an argument that sixth place is far too low for a player who scored only 17 goals less than the number of games he played in his career. While it is an astounding record, there is good reason for the Portuguese legend not being any higher.

Firstly, finding definitive records of the Benfica icon is not an easy thing to do. Some reports claim he scored over 700 competitive goals, while others suggest he averaged more than a goal a game. The most assured looking results though indicate that he finished with 619 goals in 636 games. The other aspect to consider is that football was not the same in Eusebio’s era as it is in the modern day, so scoring a hat-trick with 20 minutes left of your Benfica debut is a lot less likely now, which has to be taken into account.

That being said, with a conversion rate of 23%, Eusebio remains a great of the game and one of the best to never lift the European Cup.

5 Ferenc Puskas

Career Goals: 729

You know that you are one of the greatest goalscorers in history when you have an award named after you for the greatest goal of the year. That is the case with Hungary turned Spanish international Ferenc Puskas. Yes, despite playing 84 times for the Hungarian national team, the Real Madrid legend also went on to play for Spain after years of plying his trade in the country.

What makes Puskas so unique on this list, is that he wasn’t an out-and-out forward. He spent most of his time as an attacking midfielder, so the fact he notched up as many goals as he did is all the more impressive. As with others on this list, there will be an argument to say that football when Puskas was around is different to what it is now, but that still doesn’t change how exceptional his numbers are.

4 Lionel Messi

Career Goals: 844

The greatest player to play the game? Quite probably. The number of Ballon d’Ors and Ballon d’Or votes for that matter do tend to point towards Lionel Messi’s direction. However, the Argentinian’s game was more than just goalscoring, whereas others made their careers solely based off that fact. As a result, the Barcelona legend drops down the list ever so slightly.

Despite that, Messi is still the second-greatest goalscorer in football history and holds a very respectable goal to game ratio of 0.77. Given the era that the 37-year-old played in and the number of accolades he has to his name, he is well and truly deserving of his place in the top four. A step on the podium though is just out of reach.

3 Cristiano Ronaldo

Career Goals: 892

Just above his longtime rival sits Cristiano Ronaldo. Looking purely based on statistics, fans may debate whether the Portuguese icon should be placed higher than Messi. Even though the veteran is the undisputed greatest goalscorer in football history, some may point towards the fact that the former Manchester United man’s goal to game ratio is slightly lower 0.72, and that his conversion rate is too (21% to 18%).

However, Ronaldo morphed into the absolute best number nine in the latter stages of his career, which helped him for a brief period of time overtake Messi as the most successful player in Ballon d’Or history. His ability to score absolutely any type of goal, from 40 yard screamers to headers with hangtime that basketball players would be proud of, is why he has to just take the cake and nip into third place.

2 Pele

Career Goals: 762

If the goal tally that Pele alleged was the true number that he scored was actually the case, then it would be impossible to have him anywhere other than first. The Brazilian was the unstoppable force in an untouchable team during Canarinho’s period of dominance in the mid twentieth century.

Dominating on both the international scene and in his homeland for Santos, it was goals galore from the moment a teenager Pele burst onto the scene, with the official final total finishing at 762 over his twenty year career. With a conversion rate believed to be around 24%, although admittedly hard to certify due to the inaccuracies in some of the player’s records, it is by the faintest of margins that Pele misses out on top spot.

1 Gerd Muller

Career Goals: 636

A 0.94 goals to game ratio after having played close to 700 appearances in your entire career. That is an astonishing record, regardless of what era of football you play in. As a result, Gerd Muller takes the crown as the greatest ever finisher the beautiful game has ever seen.

The former Ballon d’Or, World Cup and three-time European Cup winner was lethal for both Germany and Bayern Munich during his career and remains the Bundesliga’s all-time top scorer with 365 strikes in 427 appearances. In a period where Germany was filled to the brim with talent, Muller is the most shining star whose records in front of goal may never be topped.

All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt – accurate as of 27/08/2024