Celtic Top Goal Scorers: The Five Greatest of All Time

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The Celtic Star

·7 October 2025

Celtic Top Goal Scorers: The Five Greatest of All Time

These Celtic Legends Didn’t Just Score—They Made History. Often Imitated but Never Duplicated…

There’s something different about scoring a goal in a Celtic shirt. It’s not just about stats or silverware, it’s about lifting a city, shaking a stadium, and becoming part of something bigger. When we talk about Celtic’s top goal scorers, we’re not just rattling off numbers. We’re telling stories about legends who carried the badge as if it were stitched into their skin.

And if you’re looking for any type of betting or following the fire of the Scottish Premiership, check out the action over at BetUS, and you’ll find all the odds that matter. Let’s take a look at five guys who didn’t just find the net—they defined their eras.

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1. Jimmy McGrory – 522 Goals

Classic McGrory diving header photo against Aberdeen from the Celtic Wiki

Yeah, you read that right, 522 goals during his Celtic career that spanned 445 appearances. Jimmy McGrory wasn’t just prolific; he was ridiculous. From 1922 to 1937, he continually scored goals as if it were second nature. Crosses, corners, and chaos in the box where he always seemed to be there, head first or boot flying. No one in Celtic, or British football, for that matter, has ever topped him. And most likely, no one ever will.

2. Bobby Lennox – 301 Goals

Bobby Lennox scores in Kiev. Photo: The Celtic Wiki

Fast, quiet, and a deadly finisher – that’s how Bobby Lennox is remembered. Lennox didn’t always steal the headlines, but he was a wonderfully consistent Celtic star. A Lisbon Lion and one of Jock Stein’s trusted warriors, Lennox scored over 300 goals for the club, flying down the wing and burying chances without fuss. The Buzzbomb perhaps wasn’t as flashy as his great friend Jimmy Johnstone, but he was consistent and was always lethal in front of goal And if you’re counting medals, trophies, and moments that mattered, Lennox had plenty.

3. Henrik Larsson – 242 Goals

21/05/03 UEFA CUP FINAL CELTIC v FC PORTO (2-2) (2-3 aet) Henrik Larsson (left) scores for Celtic. Photo IMAGO

Henrik Larsson is ingrained in many people’s heads. The dreadlocks. That wonderful chip against Rangers. That crucial goal against Boavista, his wonderful double in Seville. To the Celtic support, Henrilk was just The King. He was the King of Kings. If you grew up watching Celtic in the late ’90s or early 2000s, Henrik Larsson wasn’t just a striker—he was the ultimate talisman. Between 1997 and 2004, he gave defenders nightmares and Celtic fans so many wonderful moments. 242 goals in 315 games sounds unreal, but he made it look easy. He’s the reason some fell in love with football in the first place and after seven years at Celtic he did the same thing at Barcelona before becoming a Manchester United star too.

4. Stevie Chalmers – 231 Goals

Stevie Chalmers scores the winning goal for Celtic in the 1967 European Cup Final. Celtic 2 Inter Milan 1. Lisbon 25 May 1967.

One swing of the boot. Everlasting glory. Stevie Chalmers scored that goal—the one that won Celtic the 1967 European Cup and made the Lisbon Lions immortal. That moment alone would have earned him legend status, but he didn’t stop there. He banged in 230 more, always grafting and always dependable. The grit of a kid who nearly died from tuberculosis wrapped in green and white immortality. A brilliant Celtic golascoer and a wonderful Celtic man.

5. Patsy Gallacher – 192 Goals

Patsy Gallacher, Celtic legend, photos The Celtic Wiki

The pre-war magician with stories that sound made up, but aren’t. Patsy Gallacher was pure chaos in boots. Playing in the early 1900s, he didn’t just score goals—he defied physics. He once somersaulted into the net with the ball during a Scottish Cup Final. He was the kind of player who’d go viral every week if he played today—genius with a dash of madness.

Others Who Deserve a Shout

Not easy leaving names off this list. Leigh Griffiths gave fans thunderbolts and drama. John Hartson and Chris Sutton bullied defenders and linked up like old-school brawlers. Plenty of others hit that 100-goal mark, but only a few became real Celtic legends like the guys above.

More Than Numbers, Always

Supporters ofter ask questions like ‘who’s the best ever Celtic player’ or ‘who scored 100 goals?’. However, the truth is that greatness isn’t just about numbers. It’s how they made the supporters feel.

Jimmy McGrory made the impossible normal. Henrik Larsson made grown men weep. Stevie Chalmers gave a club its proudest moment. These aren’t just all-time leading scorers—they’re a massive part of what makes Celtic FC history so electric. Billy McNeill once described Celtic as the fairytale club and that was because of players like Patsy Gallacher and Bobby Lennox.

Why These Names Still Echo

Patsy Gallacher, Celtic legend. Image by Celtic Curio

Time moves, players come and go, but the real ones stick. These five goalscoring legends are in the chants, the murals, the tears, and the memories of Celtic supporters the world over. “And they gave us James McGrory and Paul McStay…”. You can’t tell the story of Scottish football legends without them.

4 January 1928: The Great Jimmy McGrory scores eight goals against Dunfermline to create a record which stands to this day

So whether you’re watching a Glasgow Derby or placing a cheeky bet at BetUS, just remember: every Celtic striker today is following in the footsteps of legends. And their wonderful achievements are still part of the match-day experience at Celtic Park, at away venues, at the national stadium and on European travels because they form such a significant party of the fairytale that is the Celtic Story.