Top 10 Best Strikers In Football History

Every team wants the best striker on their arsenal who is prolific in front of goals, throughout the years football fans have been treated with the most amazing talent banging goals like nobody’s business.

In this article, Bet Central looks at the greatest number 9 footballers to player in the sport’s history.

10: George Weah

• Full name: George Manneh Oppong Weah
• Date of birth: 1 October 1966
• Age: 57 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Monrovia, Liberia

The Liberian was one of the strikers who were a marvel to watch in the 1990s, troubling defenders with his fast pace and dribbling skills that made him stand out from the rest and be the best striker of that generation. Playing for teams such as AC Milan, Paris Saint-Germain, and Monaco makes him one of the best players to ever come out of Africa.

9: Michail Antonio

• Full name: Michail Gregory Antonio
• Date of birth: 28 March 1990
• Age: 34 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Wandsworth, London, United Kingdom

Antonio’s physique is one of his strengths as a striker and he uses it to his advantage. The West Ham star have been a force to reckon with in the past season and have contributed 10 goals with 5 assists last season.

8: Miroslav Klose

• Full name: Miroslav Josef Klose
• Date of birth: 9 June 1978
• Age: 45 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Opole, Poland

The German legend went on to build an incredible and well-decorated football career for himself that saw him being an all-time FIFA World Cup leading goal scorer with 16 goals. His predatory instincts in the box were second to none as he was a threat to the opposition.

7: Luis Suarez

• Full name: Luis Alberto Suárez Díaz
• Date of birth: 24 January 1987
• Age: 37 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Salto, Uruguay

Luis Suarez’s dedication and determination on the field is unquestionable, throughout the years he has been labeled as a bad boy. Who can forget what he did to Ghana in the FIFA World Cup quarter-final in South Africa. Suarez is well-known in the world of football and was part of Barcelona’s successful 2015/16 trio alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar. 

6: Robert Lewandowski

• Full name: Robert Lewandowski
• Date of birth: 21 August 1988
• Age: 35 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Warsaw, Poland

The Polish deadly striker has been dominant in football for the past 10 years. He made his mark at Bayern Munich, scoring 238 goals in 253 games. He won the Bundesliga top goal-scorer award seven times and won the Best FIFA Men’s Player award in 2020 and 2021.

5: Alan Shearer

• Full name: Alan Shearer
• Date of birth: 13 August 1970
• Age: 53 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Alan Shearer scored 260 goals in the English Premier League, making him one of be top 10 best number 9 footballers in the history of the League. The English man is one of the first two players inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame in 2021.

4: Zlatan Ibrahimovic

• Full name: Zlatan Ibrahimović
• Date of birth: 3 October 1981
• Age: 42 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Malmö, Sweden

Zlatan will go down as one of the best number 9 strikers in football history, performing on the highest level for teams such as Ajax, AC Milan, Barcelona, Inter Milan, PSG and Manchester United. Ibrahimovic became the oldest player to score in the Serie A against Udinese in March 2023.

3: Thierry Henry

• Full name: Thierry Daniel Henry
• Date of birth: 17 August 1977
• Age: 46 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Les Ulis, France

The list wouldn’t be complete without the French legend, Thierry Henry. Henry has a well-decorated club football career, playing at the highest level for Monaco, Arsenal, Juventus, Barcelona, and New York Red Bulls. With the French national team, he won the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000.

2: Erling Haaland

• Full name: Erling Braut Haaland
• Date of birth: 21 July 2000
• Age: 23 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Leeds, United Kingdom

England fans would have wished that Haaland was playing in the EURO 2024 final when they fell short against Spain considering that he was born in Leeds. Haaland’s speed, strength, positioning, and finishing inside the box make him one of the best strikers of this generation in the world. He scored 52 goals across all comps in his first season at Manchester City.

1: Ronaldo Nazario

• Full name: Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima
• Date of birth: 18 September 1976
• Age: 47 years old (as of 2024)
• Place of birth: Rio de Janeiro, State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

R9 is considered to be the most prolific and complete number 9 of all time. The Brazilian was instrumental and has won multiple accolades with PSV, Inter Milan, Barcelona, Real Madrid, and AC Milan. His most significant impact on football was at the World Cup winning in the 1994 and 2002 championships.

Siphamandla Lindwa

Siphamandla Lindwa is a sports writer and a publisher for Bet Central at Bet.co.za. He obtained a B-Tech in Sports Management from Tshwane University of Technology. When not writing sports content, Sipha scouts talent and networks for his future Sports Management agency.