While soccer has 11 players on the pitch, goalscorers typically make the headlines. The players on this list have wowed us repeatedly with their goal-scoring ability over the years, with plenty more memorable moments in store.
As we look to hash out one of the more enticing debates in soccer, we try to rank the five best active goalscorers in the sport.
1. Erling Haaland – Manchester City
There’s zero question about who tops this list in 2023. Haaland is a goal-scoring machine atop arguably the best side in soccer. In his first season in the Premier League, he smashed the single-season goals record with 36 across 35 appearances. When sportsbooks are regularly dishing out minus-money prices on you to score a goal in any given match, you know you are among the elite goalscorers ever to play the game.
2. Lionel Messi – Inter Miami
As Messi continues to ascend into GOAT status, he remains one of the top goalscorers in soccer at age 36. He has decimated defenses across the United States with Inter Miami thus far and has shown minimal signs of stopping any time soon. His clinical finishing with both feet on top of his dribbling and awareness still make him one of the most dangerous attackers in the world in 2023.
3. Kylian Mbappe – Paris Saint-Germain
Mbappe is a goal-scoring wonder. His performance at last winter’s World Cup Final is one of the best the sport has ever seen, and he continues to dazzle in France for PSG weekly. At just 24 years old, he remains on pace to smash European goal-scoring records after bagging at least 27 goals in four of the past five seasons. With five in the first three matches of the Ligue 1 season, he’s a heavy favorite to win another Golden Boot in France.
4. Harry Kane – Bayern Munich
Kane’s move to Bayern Munich sent shockwaves through both the Premier League and Bundesliga, providing the man up top the German giants have desired since the departure of Robert Lewandowski. He dominated the top flight of English soccer for the better part of the past decade, taking home a pair of Premier League Golden Boots and scoring at least 17 goals across nine consecutive seasons, leaving him with the second-most goals in Premier League history, only trailing Newcastle legend Alan Shearer.
5. Callum Wilson – Newcastle United
This may come as a shock to many, but Wilson is a bonafide elite scorer in the top league in the world. Despite rotating up top with teammate Alexander Isak, the Englishman averaged an unprecedented 0.86 goals per 90 minutes in 2022-23, trailing only the aforementioned Haaland in the Premier League among qualified players. He’s already back at it again this season, with two goals in just 100 minutes of play across four appearances. If you need a goal, chances are Wilson’s finding you one within the next hour or two of playing time for the Magpies.
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