Who are England’s top all-time goalscorers?
Kelly Smith is the women’s highest scorer with 46 goals, but who is the men’s?
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Your support makes all the difference.England men’s players have scored an astonishing amount of goals with the stars in this piece scoring 901 between them
The national side may not have won a major trophy since the 1966 World Cup but the latest England side have displayed real promise for fans. They reached their first major final since the famous World Cup at Euro 2020 and only lost out on penalties to Italy. Manager Gareth Southgate, who scored two international goals in his time as a player, has assembled an impressive team who most recently defeated Andorra 4-0 in a World Cup qualifier.
There are some stars who play in the squad now in the top 20 scorer list with some even cracking the top ten.
In the women’s game the top scorer is Kelly Smith, who claimed 46 goals in 117 caps. Her achievement means she is England’s fourth highest scorer of all time across the men and women’s teams.
But who has scored the most goals for England’s men? And who has made the top 20 list? Here are England men’s top scorers of all time.
=20th: Bobby Smith, 15 caps / 13 goals, Martin Chivers, 24 caps / 13 goals and Paul Mariner, 35 caps / 13 goals
=19th: Tinsley Lindley, 13 caps / 14 goals and Paul Scholes, 66 caps / 14 goals
=18th: Tommy Taylor, 19 caps / 16 goals, Danny Welbeck, 42 caps / 16 goals, Tony Woodcock, 42 caps / 16 goals
=17th: David Beckham, 115 caps / 17 goals
=16th: Dixie Dean, 16 caps / 18 goals, Roger Hunt, 34 caps / 18 goals, Johnny Haynes, 56 caps / 18 goals and Raheem Sterling, 69 caps / 18 goals
=15th: Jermain Defoe, 57 caps / 20 goals and Martin Peters, 67 caps/ 20 goals
14th: Mick Channon, 46 caps / 21 goals, Kevin Keegan, 63 caps / 21 goals and Steven Gerrard, 114 caps / 21 goals
=13th: Tommy Lawton, 23 caps / 22 goals and Peter Crouch, 42 caps / 22 goals
12th: Stan Mortensen, 25 caps / 23 goals
11th: Geoff Hurst, 49 caps / 24 goals
10th: Bryan Robson, 90 caps / 26 goals
Manchester United legend Bryan Robson was a fast paced midfielder who could read play well and timed his runs to perfection. During his England career, some of which he was captain, he was regarded as the team’s best player by manager Bobby Robson.
9th: David Platt, 62 caps / 27 goals
David Platt played for many clubs in his career but his longest stint was with Aston Villa. He became one of England’s most consistent stars throughout his international career, which was seven years long, and starred in Euro ‘96. He retired from the international game not long after their semi-final defeat.
8th: Steve Bloomer, 23 caps / 28 goals
Steve Bloomer made his debut in 1895 and scored twice in England’s 9-0 win over Ireland. The star continued his scoring ways as he clocked a goal in each of his first 10 international matches. He retired from international football in 1907 with the most caps and goals for his country.
=7th: Vivian Woodward, 23 caps / 29 goals, Frank Lampard 106 caps / 29 goals
Vivian Woodward, who played for Chelsea and Clacton Town, had a spectacular and short lived England career. He made his debut in 1903 and scored twice in the side’s 4-0 win over Ireland. He also captained Great Britain at the 1908 and 1912 Olympics, winning gold each time. His injuries inflicted after serving in the First World War meant he had to retire from football.
Frank Lampard is one of the most capped men’s England internationals of all time and a Chelsea legend. His goal tally would have been higher if the infamous ghost goal against Germany in the 2010 World Cup was given.
=6th: Nat Lofthouse, 33 caps / 30 goals, Alan Shearer 63 caps / 30 goals, Tom Finney 76 caps / 30 goals
Nat Lofthouse had an eight-year England career but many would argue he deserved an earlier call-up after making his debut at 25. He made his final appearance for the side at the age of 33 in 1958.
Alan Shearer was an icon in English football, heralded as a hero at club Newcastle United. His international career spanned eight years and he was also one of the starts of the Euro ‘96 campaign which ended in semi-final heartbreak at the hands of Germany.
Tom Finney had to wait to prove himself as an England player as just as he turned professional the Second World War began. He made his name known in wartime tournaments and just 28 days after making his Football League debut for Preston he was called into the international team. His debut was his “proudest day as a footballer”.
=5th: Michael Owen, 89 caps / 40 goals, Harry Kane, 63 caps / 40 goals
Liverpool, Manchester United and Newcastle striker Michael Owen had an impressive 10-year international career. He became the team’s senior striker under Sven-Göran Eriksson after Alan Shearer retired. He made his final England appearance under Fabio Capello in 2008.
While Harry Kane is England’s current star and captain. He is regarded as one of the best strikers in the world and though it may have taken him a while to find his form in the recent Euro 2020 tournament, his penalty against Denmark sent Gareth Southgate’s side to their first major final since 1966. He is joint fifth in this list but he hasn’t hung up his boots yet so there is more to come from the Tottenham player.
4th: Jimmy Greaves, 57 caps / 44 goals
Spurs legend Jimmy Greaves made his debut in 1959 and scored a goal in England’s 4-1 loss to Peru. He went on to play in the group stage of the 1966 World Cup but was injured, being replaced by Geoff Hurst who kept him out of the final team. Greaves wasn’t given a winners medal until 2009 when there was a change to the FIFA rules.
3rd: Gary Lineker, 80 caps / 48 goals
The highlight of Leicester City legend Gary Lineker’s England career came in the 1990 World Cup when he equalised against Germany in the semi-final. Germany went onto win the match on penalties. He continued playing for his national side for two more years before hanging up his England boots.
His legacy continues as he present Match of the Day and is a pundit for the BBC’s coverage of international football.
2nd: Bobby Charlton, 106 caps / 49 goals
Manchester United legend Bobby Charlton is arguably the most iconic England player of all time. He won the 1966 World Cup and added the Ballon d’Or trophy the same year.
He held the most men’s international goal record with England for almost 50 years until Wayne Rooney took the top spot in 2015. It was also Rooney who eclipsed him as United’s top scorer in 2017, Charlton remains the club’s second highest scorer with 249 goals.
1st: Wayne Rooney, 120 caps / 53 goals
The Manchester United striker didn’t win a major trophy with England but he has clocked the most international goals of any England men’s player. His career with England spanned 15 years and his last goal came in 2016 against Iceland.
The star is also the second highest capped player for team with only Peter Shilton having more than him at 125.
Caps and goals accurate as of September 2021.
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