Ronaldo? Drogba? Henry? Shearer? Pfft, Here Are Some Real Goal-Scorers...

With the modern game having dispensed with the notion that the out-and-out goal-scorer is essential to any successful side, it seems only fair to don our rose-tinted bins and hark back to an age when bulging the onion bag was as exalted as a John Carpenter film circa 1982.

Over the years there have been countless players who have made a career based solely on their ability to spring to life in the 18 yard-box: Gary Lineker, Ally McCoist, Ian Rush and Gerd Muller to name but a few. But there are plenty more who are less well-known despite possessing even more impressive records…

Rafael Moreno Aranzadi

Rafael Aranzadi was a one-club man, only ever playing for Basque side Athletic Bilbao. Diminutive in stature (he stood at just over five feet tall), the man they called ‘Pichichi’ was instantly recognisable with his ever-present white headgear as well as his lethal touch in front of goal.

Following his death at the age of just 29, the Spanish paper Marca began awarding the top scorer in the Spanish top flight the Trofeo Pichichi in his honour and a statue of the man was erected outside Bilbao’s San Mames stadium.

Pichichi scored 200 times in 170 games.

Gunnar Nordahl

Despite being the record goal-scorer for one of the most famous clubs in world football, Swedish marksman Nordahl is little-known in the game.

Beginning his career in his native Sweden, Nordahl had already clocked up an impressive 217 goals in 213 games in the Allsvenskanbefore his move to AC Milan in 1949.

In the years that followed, the Swede profited from a productive relationship with his Swedish team-mates Gunnar Gren and Nils Liedholm in a combination the press christened ‘Gre-No-Li’and went on to score 257 goals in 210 games for the Rossoneri.

Indeed, when Nordahl’s fellow Milan alumnus Andrei Shevchenko scored his 100^th goal for the club, the more experienced Milanese were quick to remind the Ukrainian that he had a long way to go before he matched the man they had dubbed ‘Il Canoniere’.

Derek Dooley

After an explosive start which included 64 goals in 63 games, Sheffield legend Derek Dooley’s burgeoning career was tragically ended at the age of just 23 when a horrific injury meant that he lost a leg.

Despite his impeccable goal-scoring record, it was what Dooley achieved after his playing career ended that was most remarkable. The native Yorshireman went on to manage the team he had been so prolific for, Sheffield Wednesday, and in later years moved south to city rivals Sheffield United to take over as Chairman.

Few would have survived this short journey with their reputation intact but Dooley was revered by both sets of fans and at the 1992 Sheffield derby he was given a rousing standing ovation from the entire ground.

Upon Dooley’s passing away last year the Blades announced that, like Pichichi, a statue was to be erected at the club’s stadium, Bramall Lane. Perhaps if Dooley’s career had been allowed to continue just a little longer he could have matched his Spanish counterpart’s strike-rate.

Fernando Peyroteo

Much like Pichichi, Peyroteoscored all his goals in a glittering spell with just one club (Sporting Lisbon) in the Portuguese top flight, becoming the highest scorer in the league’s history.

Born and raised in Angola, Peyroteo moved to Lisbon at the age of 19 in 1937 and became a member of the famous attacking line Os Cinco Violinos (The Five Violins) at Sporting.

Adopted as Portuguese, he scored 15 times in 20 games for the national side but it was in the league where he was most prolific. 331 goals in 187 games was Peyroteo’s return for Sporting including scoring nine times in one match and eight in another.

Josef Bican

A Wunderteam member and compatriot of the mercurial Matthias Sindelar, Josef Bican’s remarkable pace and ability helped to make him one of the greatest goal-scorers of the 20th Century.

Awarded the IFFHS’ ‘Golden Ball’ as the most prolific marksman of the century, Bican managed 40 goals in 33 games during his stints at international level for first Austria and then, following Anschluss, Czechoslovakia.

At club level he scored a phenomenal 627 goals in 366 games including 395 during an eight season spell at Czech side Slavia Prague.

Brian Clough

Of course, Ol’ Big Head is renowned for being one of the best managers the English game has seen due to his successes with both Derby County and Nottingham Forest, as well as his unique and occasionally arrogant persona.

However, Clough was also a prolific goal-scorer in his playing days before, like Dooley, seeing his career cut short by injury. Scoring 251 times in 274 games for North Eastern pair Middlesbrough and Sunderland, it was no wonder Cloughy was so harsh on his forwards during his managerial career as he certainly knew where the goal was.