The Premier League is quickly approaching its 30 year anniversary, with English football’s top flight often regarded as the greatest domestic spectacle in world football.
Since the competition’s rebranding in 1992, we’ve seen countless memorable moments and six clubs swap titles between them, whilst last season saw the most goals ever scored in a single campaign with 1072 shared amongst the 20 clubs.
Goals remain undoubtedly the lifeblood of the sport, and we’ve decided to look back at some of the milestone efforts from years gone by, here are six of the Premier League’s landmark goals…
1st PL goal – Brian Deane (Sheffield United v Manchester United – 15 August 1992)
Despite scoring over 200 career goals during a lengthy career at various clubs, it is perhaps this goal that former Sheffield United forward Brian Deane is best remembered for, heading home after five minutes against Manchester United in August 1992 to light the touchpaper for the newly formed Premier League.
It would come from a direct approach for a Blades side who had struggled to retain their top-flight status in the previous two seasons, Deane getting across his marker to head home Carl Bradshaw’s long throw-in.
Deane would also score the second from the penalty spot as Sheffield United secured a 2-1 victory at Bramall Lane, finishing the season with 15 league goals as the Yorkshire side finished 14th in the division’s inaugural season.
5,000th – Chris Sutton (Leicester City v Blackburn Rovers – 7 December 1996)
It would take just over four years for Premier League sides to rack up 5,000 top-flight strikes, the landmark 5,000th coming from a forward who was a regular source of goals throughout the mid-nineties.
Sutton had fired Blackburn to the Premier League title alongside Alan Shearer in 1995, but following the latter’s departure to boyhood club Newcastle would become the club’s attacking focal point, scoring 11 league goals during the 1996/97 season including this landmark goal.
Sutton would find the net in a 1-1 draw with Leicester at the same time as Aston Villa’s Andy Townsend scored against Southampton, though the latter is credited with scoring the league’s 4999th goal and the former with the milestone 5000th.
10,000th – Les Ferdinand (Tottenham Hotspur v Fulham – 15 December 2001)
Another nineties number nine, Ferdinand would continue his goalscoring exploits into the second decade of the Premier League era at Spurs, scoring the division’s 10,000th goal in a 4-0 victory over Fulham at White Hart Lane.
The former England international would open the scoring from a Darren Anderton cross during a comprehensive victory over their capital rivals, before further goals from Anderton, Simon Davies and Serhiy Rebrov completed the rout.
15,000th – Moritz Volz (Chelsea v Fulham – 30 December 2006)
Perhaps the unlikeliest of goalscorers on this list, Volz would score just two league goals during a five-year spell at Fulham, though the full-back would write himself into the history books by netting the Premier League’s 15,000th goal in a west London derby with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
The German would find himself in unusual territory to open the scoring for the visitors, ghosting into the penalty area before lashing home to put Fulham in front. Volz’s goal would prove the most memorable moment of a contest that would finish 2-2, somewhat predictably leading to the headlines of ‘15,000 Volz’.
20,000th – Marc Albrighton (Aston Villa v Arsenal – 21 December 2011)
Long before Marc Albrighton would become a Premier League title winner at Leicester City, the winger had come through the academy ranks at Aston Villa and was beginning to establish himself as a regular in the first-team at Villa Park.
The then 22-year-old would create Premier League history during the 2011/12 season, scoring the league’s 20,000th goal with an equaliser against Arsenal, capitalising on a defensive mistake to level for a Villa side struggling near the foot of the division.
Albrighton’s milestone moment would prove to be in vain, however, substitute Yossi Benayoun heading home a late winner to seal three points for the visiting Gunners.
25,000th – Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Swansea City v Manchester United – 6 November 2016)
Zlatan’s claims that he conquered English football during his brief spell at Manchester United may be somewhat outlandish, though the Swede would leave an impression on the Premier League and write his name into the history books with the division’s 25,000th goal.
Ibrahimovic would score twice during a visit to South Wales in what was a prolific debut season at Old Trafford, scoring United’s second and third goals of the afternoon during a comfortable 3-1 victory.
He would finish with 28 goals in all competitions as the League Cup and Europa League were secured under Jose Mourinho, before a serious knee injury effectively ended his Premier League career.
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