The membership of the Premier League’s 100 club is growing as time goes by. There are now 30 men who have reached the incredible total of a century of Premier League goals, and that number is likely to keep on rising as the goals fly in each week.
There are a few players who are extremely close to hitting that all-important target, and entering into the elite list of footballers to have notched 100 top-flight strikes. Let’s take a closer look at three men who help their teams dominate the Premier League odds each week and who will be hoping to enter the 100 club this season.
Sadio Mané
With 98 Premier League goals to his name at the time of writing, Sadio Mané is the likeliest player to enter the Premier League’s 100 club sooner rather than later. Having recently bagged his 100th goal for Liverpool, he is just two away from the magic number of Premier League strikes, having also notched quite a few for Southampton when he first arrived on English shores.
There are few players who possess Mané’s skillset. He is blessed with tremendous balance, and can turn on a sixpence, which makes him a nightmare for defenders to deal with.
It’s fair to say that last season was not his best in a Liverpool shirt, but having already bagged three so far this campaign, things are looking up for the Senegal international, and that 100th Premier League goal is within touching distance.
Raheem Sterling
Having seemingly established himself as one of Manchester City’s most important players, Raheem Sterling endured a dip in form towards the tail-end of last season. Manager Pep Guardiola seems to have lost a bit of faith in the England star, and Sterling has only started two games in the Premier League this season.
However, you can’t deny that Sterling has a knack for finding the back of the net, and he has racked up 97 Premier League goals during his spells at City and Liverpool.
The 26-year-old has an innate positional sense in terms of getting on the end of City’s slick passing moves, and many of his goals have been tap-ins as a result of Guardiola’s side carving teams apart at will. Given Sterling’s quality, you’d expect him to be back amongst the goals in no time, heading towards that all-important 100th.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Much has been made of Cristiano Ronaldo’s sensational return to Manchester United, and amongst the many interesting factors surrounding the move is the fact that Ronaldo has a chance to join the Premier League’s 100 club. Including the three goals he has already notched for Ole Gunnar Solskjær this season, Ronaldo now stands at a total of 87 Premier League goals, needing just 13 more to put his name in lights among the competition’s goalscoring elite.
There were doubts in some quarters as to whether Ronaldo would have a real impact at Manchester United, but his early contributions suggest that despite reaching the age of 36, the Portuguese legend still has plenty more to give before hanging up his boots.
