The list is unlimited when it comes to who the greatest foreign player to ever play in the Premier League is. A few names that come to mind are Sergio Aguero, Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Eric Cantona.
The Premier League score list includes players from 100 different international FIFA-affiliated countries as of February 2022.
There have been 113 foreign FIFA-affiliated nations that have participated in the Premier League since its inception in 1992.
In the 2003–2004 season, Henry served as the team’s talisman and scored an astonishing 175 goals in 258 appearances for the Gunners.
The impact Cristiano Ronaldo had on the English game was also enormous; he went from being a raw but talented 17-year-old to possibly the greatest player in the history of the sport.
Who could forget Cantona, the first foreign superstar to dominate the top flight in more than one way, who United paid Leeds £1.6 million for in 1992?
After he joined Manchester City in 2011 for £38 million after leaving Atletico Madrid, Sergio Aguero had an incredible impact.
Pep Guardiola quipped that Sergio Aguero would “die scoring goals” after the Argentine helped City to destroy Aston Villa 6-1, breaking Henry’s Premier League hat-trick record.
There is little doubt that Aguero could be said to be the best foreign player to ever play in the Premier League.
During his time, he displayed a level of consistency that was astounding. The fact that he performed at the greatest level for so many years showed what a unique talent he was before his heart condition forced him to retire.
The rankings indicated earlier currently place Aguero (184) ahead of Thierry Henry (175), Robin van Persie (144), Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (127), and Robbie Keane (127), among others (126).
Top Scoring Premier League Foreign Players
| # | Player | Nation | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sergio Aguero | ARG | 249 | 184 |
| 2 | Thierry Henry | FRA | 258 | 175 |
| 3 | Robin van Persie | NED | 280 | 144 |
| 4 | Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | NED | 288 | 129 |
| 5 | Nicolas Anelka | FRA | 364 | 125 |
| 6 | Robbie Keane | IRE | 349 | 125 |
| 7 | Dwight Yorke | TRI | 375 | 123 |
| 8 | Mohamed Salah | EGY | 196 | 122 |
| 9 | Romelu Lukaku | BEL | 278 | 121 |
| 10 | Sadio Mane | SEN | 183 | 111 |
Nothing less than what Aguero merits, especially after recovering from a number of setbacks at the Etihad due to injury.
To surpass Alan Shearer as the most prolific goalscorer in Premier League history, the Argentine settled his sights on winning everything there was to win in terms of accolades at City, save the coveted Champions League trophy.
Unfortunately, Aguero was not able to surpass the Newcastle icon before his contract at City expired in the summer of 2021.
Sergio Aguero
Argentine striker Sergio Leonel Agüero del Castillo, commonly known as Kun Agüero, was a former professional football player. He was born on June 2, 1988.
During his ten-year stint with Manchester City, he was regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation and one of the greatest players in Premier League history.
With 12 hat tricks in the Premier League, he is the league’s all-time leading scorer for the team.
In 2011, Agüero made a rumoured £35 million transfer to Premier League team Manchester City.
He won five league championships throughout his ten years with the team, most memorably in the final league game of his rookie season when he scored a last-second winner to give the team its first league crown in 44 years.
Agüero joined FC Barcelona from City on a free transfer in the summer of 2021 but didn’t last for more than three months before he developed a heart condition that forced him to retire from the game.
