An overview
The Premier League has an amazing history spanning more than thirty years.
The players in the English top division are of such high level that several have had outstanding seasons on their own.
Their talent allowed two distinct names to appear twice on this list.
The Premier League has now existed for more than thirty years, having supplanted the First Division in 1992. Many players have left their mark in the top division of English football, which has been regarded as one of the greatest and most competitive football leagues in the world for more than 30 years.
The Premier League has produced many excellent players in every position, but the strikers in the league constantly give them special attention. Any reputable top flight team that wants to either compete for a championship or qualify for Europe usually has a consistent goal scorer up front.
As one might think, goal contributions—whether in the form of assists or goals—are essential. However, in other seasons, players have risen to a level that very few have attained, delivering pure magic for their team all season long. So, which players have contributed the most goals in a Premier League season?
Ranking Elements
Opta Analyst has completely determined the order of this list. When two players contribute the same number of goals, the player with the most goals has been given the highest ranking.
Ten Premier League Goal Involvements in a Single Season
Rank
Name
Contributions to the Goal
Objectives
Helps
Time of year
1.
Shearer, Alan
47
34
13.
1994–1995
2.
Cole, Andrew
47
34
13.
1993–1994
3.
Salah Mohamed
46*
28*
18*
2024–2025
4.
Haaland, Erling
44
36
8.
2022–2023
5.
Henry Thierry
44
24
20
2002–2003
6.
Suarez Luis
43
31
Twelve
2013–14
7.
Salah Mohamed
42
32
10.
2017–18
8.
Persie, Robin
39
30
9.
2011–12
9.
Didier Drogba
39
29
10.
2009–2010
10.
Henry Thierry
39
25
14
2004–05
10Thierry Henry – 39 Goal Involvements
25 goals, 14 assists – 2004/05
At the Emirates Stadium, Thierry Henry is still regarded as one of Arsenal’s greatest players of all time. Following a disappointing experience at Juventus in Italy, the Frenchman relocated to North London in 1999. Henry switched from being a winger to a striker under Arsene Wenger’s tutelage, where he excelled.
Between 1999 and 2007, Henry helped Arsenal win two Premier League titles as a consistent and dependable goal scorer for the Gunners. The 2004–05 season was one of Henry’s best as a player, despite Arsenal’s failure to win the top division. The forward contributed 39 goals in 38 games.
Henry scored hat-tricks against Norwich City and Portsmouth in back-to-back weeks that season, as Opta points out. He was only the third player to achieve this accomplishment at the time, but he is now one of seven players to have done it in the Premier League.
9Didier Drogba – 39 Goal Involvements
29 goals, 10 assists – 2009/10
Carlo Ancelotti took over as Chelsea’s manager for the first of his two seasons in 2009–10; the Italian took over shortly after leaving his position at AC Milan. Ancelotti led Chelsea to a Premier League and FA Cup double, making his first season at Stamford Bridge a success even though the team was eliminated early from the Champions League.
Throughout the season, the Blues scored more than 100 goals, breaking several records at the time. Legendary striker Didier Drogba, who was in the prime of his career in 2009, was largely responsible for their outstanding attacking numbers.
The Ivorian scored 29 goals and provided 10 assists during the year, totalling 39 goal contributions in just 32 games. Remarkably, he contributed to 14 of those games in his first 11 games this season.
8Robin van Persie – 39 Goal Involvements
30 goals, 9 assists – 2011/12
Arsenal had a dismal 2011–12 season, finishing early in every event in which they participated. They just made it to the fifth round of the FA Cup and the quarterfinals of the League Cup, edging out a third-place league finish. Meanwhile, Arsenal was eliminated in the round of 16 of the Champions League.
Even though his club had a difficult season, Robin van Persie had one of his best seasons as a player in 2011–12. Van Persie continued his stellar season, scoring 30 goals and dishing out nine assists, in the final of the Dutchman’s eight years in North London.
7Mohamed Salah – 42 Goal Involvements
32 goals, 10 assists – 2017/18
Mohamed Salah had his first taste of Premier League football at Chelsea early in his career, where he attempted and failed to make a breakthrough. After spending the previous season on loan in the Italian capital, the Egyptian left for Roma in 2016. Salah really showed off his skills in Serie A.
Salah rejoined Liverpool in England after just one season as a permanent Roma player. With a fantastic rookie season, Salah was able to surpass the expectations that were placed on him. The Egyptian scored 32 goals and provided 10 assists in the Premier League, displaying traits that would emerge in subsequent years under Jurgen Klopp.
According to Opta, Salah came within three goals of Ian Rush’s record-breaking 47 goals for Liverpool in the 1983–84 season with 44 goals in 52 games across all competitions. But it’s important to remember that Rush participated in 13 additional games.
6Luis Suarez – 43 Goal Involvements
31 goals, 12 assists – 2013/14
For many years, winning the Premier League felt like a dream come true for Liverpool until players like the aforementioned Salah. But with guys like Luis Suarez, it seemed much more possible. Suarez gave Liverpool the chance to dream of winning a trophy, even though their 2013–14 season ended tragically.
Under Brendan Rodgers’ leadership, Liverpool fought for the trophy all season long against Manchester City. In his prime, Suarez scored 31 goals, none of which came from the penalty spot. The Uruguayan struck the woodwork nine times during the term, according to Opta.
Suarez’s 43 goal total, along with 12 assists, was a prime example of his skill and a major factor in Barcelona’s decision to sign him.
5Thierry Henry – 44 Goal Involvements
24 Goals, 20 Assists – 2002/03
As of this writing, only one player—Thierry Henry—has ever finished a season with at least 20 goals and 20 assists. The Frenchman, who was named to this list for the second time, achieved this historic total in the 2002–03 season, when Manchester United defeated Arsenal by a mere five points to win the championship.
Ruud van Nistelrooy won the award for most goals scored during that campaign, defeating Henry as well. But it was impossible to overlook his own genius. Henry had a direct hand in more than half of Arsenal’s season-long goal total of 85 goals, which was a division-high.
4Erling Haaland – 44 Goal Involvements
36 Goals, 8 Assists – 2022/23
Manchester City became the second English team in history to win a European treble during the 2022–2023 season. With City dominating the whole season and winning the FA Cup, the Champions League, and their second of four straight Premier League titles, it was Pep Guardiola’s team at its very best.
Erling Haaland, who made his English football debut after joining from Borussia Dortmund, led their line that season. There were concerns about Haaland’s ability to transition to the Premier League, but the Norwegian quickly shown that he had no trouble adjusting.
With 36 goals at the end of his rookie year, Haaland set a Premier League record for most goals in a single season. Haaland directly contributed to over half of City’s 94 league goals that season with eight assists.
3Mohamed Salah – 46 Goal Involvements
28 Goals, 18 Assists – 2024/25
Arne Slot led Liverpool to the Premier League championship with games remaining in his first season as manager. Although this is Liverpool’s second Premier League victory, their first was won at a stadium that was deserted because of the coronavirus outbreak, so the Reds were finally able to enjoy this accomplishment with their supporters.
Like in every season he has played at Anfield so far, Mo Salah was essential to Liverpool’s victory. As of this writing, Salah has scored 28 goals and provided 18 assists in the Premier League, capping an incredible individual season that was made even more delightful by Liverpool’s championship win.
By the conclusion of the season, the Egyptian may surpass the record for the most goal involvements in a single season, but his 38 Premier League games have already seen him contribute more goals than any other player, demonstrating his incredibly excellent play.
2Andy Cole – 47 Goal Involvements
34 Goals, 13 Assists – 1993/94
Andy Cole, a deadly striker, rose through the ranks at Arsenal before leaving for Bristol City in 1992 after not making a name for himself at Highbury. Cole was back on the move after just one season as a permanent Bristol player. Newcastle United had taken notice of Cole’s performance and offered him a Premier League opportunity.
Cole would quickly prove that the Magpies had no need to lament their acquisition, as he would thrive in the Premier League. Cole’s debut season should have made it clear that he would go on to become one of the greatest Premier League goal scorers of all time.
Cole scored an incredible 47 goals for Newcastle during a Premier League season that had 42 games available. He finished as the team’s leading scorer with 34 goals and its top assister with 13.
1Alan Shearer – 47 Goal Involvements
34 Goals, 13 Assists – 1994/95
Naturally, Alan Shearer, the highest-scoring player in Premier League history, shares Cole’s record for the most individual goal involvements in a season. Shearer never achieved the soaring heights of the 1994–95 season, despite spending the majority of his career with his boyhood club, Newcastle United.
Shearer was a vital component of Blackburn Rovers’ successful squad that season, working well up top with Chris Sutton. Shearer finished the season with 34 goals and 13 assists, helping his team win the Premier League, the first and only championship he would ever win as a player.
Shearer only managed three goals and one assist in his final seven appearances of the season. Although this is certainly a remarkable result, considering Shearer’s skill and performance during that year, it doesn’t seem impossible to argue that the striker could have contributed 50 goals if those last games had gone a little differently for him.
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