The 10 players with the most left-footed goals since 2000: Messi 1st, Ronaldo 9th… | OneFootball

Lionel Messi is unsurprisingly the most lethal left-footed goalscorer of the 21st century, but which other left-footed greats of the game make the top 10?

Iconic players from Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Liverpool and Atletico Madrid feature in this list, along with one or two surprise names, and one goalscorer who isn’t even left-footed.

Here are the 10 players with the most left-footed goals (at club level) since 2000.

10. Arjen Robben – 146 goals

Robben features here. Obviously.

Is there a more ‘easier said than done’ thing in football history than “don’t show Robben inside”?

We estimate precisely 140 of these goals were scored by him cutting onto his left and rifling it into the top corner.

9. Cristiano Ronaldo – 147 goals

You should be well-versed in Ronaldo’s name appearing in any list of 21st century goalscorers, but here’s one that actually took us by surprise.

The only right-footed player of these 10, Ronaldo has scored almost 150 club goals with his weaker foot. That’s ridiculous.

Roughly 18% of the 41-year-old’s total 813 club career goals have been scored with his left. Not bad going.

8. Romelu Lukaku – 151 goals

There’s a weird sense that Lukaku has flattered to deceive in his career, but when you look at what he has achieved we’re left questioning whether that’s quite fair.

The youngest foreign player to join the Premier League’s 100 club, Belgium’s all-time top goalscorer, and a Scudetto winner with both Inter and Napoli. Not so bad, is it?

Not to mention his place here. Only seven players have scored more left-footed goals this century. But of a niche stat, but he’ll take it.

7. Angel Di Maria – 156 goals

Talking of niche stats, all 56 of Di Maria’s Ligue 1 goals for PSG were scored with his left foot. One hundred per cent.

And he’s scored a nice round hundred left-footed goals in other competitions in his club career.

Satisfying stuff all round.

6. Lukas Podolski – 168 goals

“The way it ended today was like a film,” Podolski said after scoring the match-winner for Germany, against England, on the final appearance of his international career.

“We win 1-0 and I score the thing.

“I know I have a left foot that was probably gifted to me by God, or someone up there, and I can always rely on it. I am proud of these last 13 years.”

Poldi also said “When the ball is on my left foot I score 99 per cent of the time” after scoring in the Champions League for Arsenal back in 2014.

Can’t knock the confidence.

5. Erling Haaland – 193 goals

The best left-footed footballers tend to be mercurial playmakers (David Silva) or tricky wingers/wide forwards (Robben, Di Maria, Mohamed Salah) or some combination of both (the freak that tops this list).

Think of the best out-and-out No.9s in football history and very few of them were lefties. Gerd Muller, Gabriel Batistuta, Robert Lewandowski… all of them brutally effective on their right.

Haaland is that rare exception, and he might already have a claim to be the greatest left-footed centre-forward in football history.

No.1 might be beyond him, but at the rate he’s going Haaland should comfortably have the #2 spot on this list sewn up long before he turns 30.

4. Antoine Griezmann – 198 goals

The best-ever footballer that never won a league title? Proper, top-flight ones; we’re not counting Real Sociedad’s 2009-10 Segunda Division victory.

Griezmann boasts remarkable longevity. He’s twice made the Ballon d’Or podium and won the World Cup. Almost into the top 10 of La Liga’s all-time top goalscorers.

But for all his goals (almost 300; two-thirds of which via his left foot), his club career has been strangely lacking in silverware. One Copa del Rey with Barca. One Europa League with Atleti. A couple of super cups.

3. Mohamed Salah – 232 goals

No discussion about the game’s best left-footers would be complete without Liverpool’s Egyptian King. And the numbers bear him out.

Fourth in the Premier League’s all-time goalscorers list, Salah is also comfortably ahead of everyone else when it comes to left-footed goals. He’s miles clear of the likes of Robbie Fowler, Robin van Persie, Ryan Giggs and Riyad Mahrez – while even Haaland has plenty of ground to make up on that front.

2. Hulk – 263 goals

It was Belgium legend Enzo Scifo and his wonderstrike against Uruguay at Italia ’90 that inspired Alan Partridge’s immortal “he must have a foot like a traction engine” commentary line.

We can’t think of a more suitable player to reappropriate that with than Hulk’s left foot. Either that or Adriano’s.

The Brazilian forward has always been something of a cult figure, skirting the mainstream of the European elite, but it turns out he’s been insanely prolific throughout his career.

1. Lionel Messi – 647 goals

Who could’ve seen this one coming?

You always knew that Messi was going to comfortably top this list, but it’s a regular reminder of quite how obscene his goalscoring numbers are. He’s scored more left-footed goals than the players at #2 and #3 here combined.

Six hundred and forty-seven(!) of his total 787 club career goals have been scored with his favoured foot. That’s 82%.