The top goal scorers in Manchester United history

Arsenal surely regret giving up on Cole so early in his career. The striker made a splash early in the Premier League era, scoring 34 goals in 40 games during the 1993-94 season (this was back when the Premier League season was 42 games). However, that was with Newcastle United, but Manchester United took notice and brought him in midway through the next campaign. Playing during the Sir Alex Ferguson glory days, Cole was part of five Premier League-winning sides and one Champions League winner. He had 121 goals for United before moving to Blackburn Rovers.

Speaking of that Champions League victory, that came in 1999, when Solskjaer famously scored the winning goal against Bayern Munich. That was but one of the 126 goals he scored during his decade with the club. His status as a star with Manchester United likely helped get him named manager after he served in a caretaker role to improve the vibes after the Jose Mourinho era. Solskjaer did…fine. Or maybe the Erik ten Hag era has just changed the rubric for success just that much.

McClair, a Scottish international, was readily available when United called upon him. Over 11 seasons at Man U he made 471 appearances. On four occasions he played in at least 50 games. Thus, his 127 goals came at a lower goal-per-game level than, say, Solskjaer, but McClair was there, and he did have three seasons where he totaled over 20 goals.

Taylor had a great career and is also a sad case of what could have been. Standing six-feet tall, and playing in the 1950s when that was remarkable, the centre-forward was famed for his ability in the air. Taylor scored 16 goals in 19 games for England, and he potted 131 goals for Manchester United. That was in only 191 appearances. Of course, we’re talking about a United player in the 1950s, and we mentioned what could have been, so you likely know where this is going. Taylor was one of the eight Manchester United players to die in the 1958 Munich air disaster. He was 26.

We evoked ten Hag’s name earlier, and while he may be gone, Ruben Amorim hasn’t been much better, especially when it comes to Rashford. The English international has managed 138 goals in 426 appearances, and at age 27 has a few years of his prime left. That prime may be spent elsewhere, though. Amorim seemed to have it out for Rashford from the day he was appointed, almost as if though he picked a guy to use to make a point. Rashford is playing at Aston Villa on loan, and it would not be surprising if he’s played his last game for United.

The power of goal poaching! We’re poking fun at latter-day Ronaldo, but he’s unequivocally one of the best players in history. He just spent his best seasons with Real Madrid, a stretch during which only Lionel Messi has any claim of being better than him. Ronaldo’s time with Man United came when he was a burgeoning star in the 2000s and the end of his “real” playing career in the 2020s (Saudi Arabia doesn’t count). He returned to United and scored 24 goals in the 2021-22 season, but even those who aren’t into more advanced statistics could realize he was poaching goals and otherwise a net negative for the team. Still, that second era added 27 total goals, getting him to 145 with Man U.

Impressively, Herd totaled over 100 goals with two different major English clubs. First, there was Arsenal. The forward scored 107 times for the Gunners, mostly across five seasons. After that, Herd moved to United where he scored even more. Herd essentially played six seasons with Man United and he scored at least 17 goals in all of those campaigns. In total he managed 145 goals, same as Ronaldo.

Pearson started his career with Manchester United in 1936, served in World War II while English football was on hiatus, and then returned and remained an elite goal scorer. In 343 games he scored 148 goals. Then, Pearson enjoyed the 1950s equivalent of a playing retirement, à la moving to the MLS or the Middle East. He played for a while with Bury, and then Chester, and even played one game for Crewe Alexandra when he was 40.

Like Solskjaer, van Nistelrooy served as caretaker manager for United after being a club icon as a player. This time around, United didn’t make him the manager (though Amorim hasn’t necessarily proven a shrewd hiring) so RVN is now managing Leicester City. The Dutch striker was one of the best goal scorers of the 2000s. He led the Premier League in goals with United once, and three times led the Champions League in goals. Van Nistelrooy only spent five seasons with the club but still managed a whopping 150 goals. Only once was he held under 20 goals in a Premier League season, and that year injuries limited him to six games.

Now, Scholes’ 155 goals came in 718 appearances. That’s a lot of goals, but not a lot of bang for your buck on a per-game basis. However, as any Manchester United (and England) fan of the 1990s and 2000s can tell you, Scholes was a midfielder. Scholes played all over the midfield and was as acclaimed for his passing as his scoring. If we don’t count the fact Scholes played two games with Royton Town in 2018 to play for his son’s club, he played his entire career with Manchester United. He’s a true club legend.

Hughes’ name is familiar even to younger fans because he’s been managing for 25 years at this point. Wales named him the national manager when he was still an active club player. A brief foray to Barcelona and Bayern Munich separated his run with Manchester United. He was with the club when the Premier League came into existence and he potted 15 goals in that inaugural campaign. All in all, Hughes scored 163 goals.

And yet, Hughes has to settle for being the second-best Welsh player in Man United history. Giggs is a legend among legends at the club. If you argued for him to be the greatest player in club history, you wouldn’t get a ton of pushback. Playing on the wing, Giggs was renowned for his passing, dribbling, discipline (no red cards in his domestic career!), and, of course, goal scoring. Yes, the Welsh winger played 963 total games for Manchester United. He scored 168 goals from the wing, and only five players have more goals in club history.

Only five United players have more goals with the club than Giggs, but one guy has just as many. Spence also scored 168 goals for Man United. His name is not as well-known as Giggs, which makes sense given that Spence is the oldest player on this list. He debuted with United in 1919, just after the end of World War I. Now, these were down times for the club, and it was even relegated twice while Spence was there. It’s because of Spence’s skill, though, that they were able to return to the First Division. Dying on New Year’s Eve 1966, Spence lived just long enough to see England win the World Cup.

There’s no question who the best player from Northern Ireland is. Best was the first “rock star” of football. Debuting with United in 1963, Best was flashy on the pitch, as well as off it. He earned many a Beatle comparison (even if he didn’t play for Liverpool) and would have driven social media bananas with his antics. Of course, those antics also likely hampered his career, and certainly led to his death in 2005 at the age of 59. Let’s remember the good stuff, though, like the Ballon d’Or win in 1968 and the 179 goals he scored for Man United.

Sometimes, things just work out for a club, especially a club like Manchester United. Best made his debut for the club in 1963, and Viollet played his last game for the club in 1962. Both scored 179 goals for United, meaning the club went from one great goal scorer to another. Viollet had to carry on his shoulders the fact that he survived the Munich air disaster, but he scored 53 goals over the two seasons following that tragedy. Interestingly, Viollet headed over to America after he retired and kicked around the country managing small clubs. When he died in 1999, he was coaching the Jacksonville Cyclones.

We enter the 200-goal club. The real cream of the crop. Because of his booming shot, Rowley was nicknamed “The Gunner.” Even though he played for Manchester United! Having begun his career in 1937, Rowley lost a few seasons to World War II. After that, though, he routinely scored 20 goals a season in league play en route to 211 total goals.

As you are about to see, the guy in second and Law overlapped for many years at Manchester United. How did anybody beat it in that time? And yet, the club only won two league titles and one European Cup (precursor to the Champions League) during Law’s tenure. He was a machine of a goal scorer in the 1960s, and he won the Ballon d’Or in 1964, but then his knee started to act up and his play got more erratic. Even so, he managed 237 goals in 404 appearances.

Sir Robert Charlton is often credited for helping to lift Manchester United out of the wake of the Munich disaster, an event that Charlton also survived. Whether playing in the midfield, on the wing, or even as a forward, Charlton is considered one of the best players in United history, and English history. He won the Ballon d’Or in 1966, the year he led England to the World Cup (and general consensus is that Charlton was the best player for the team in that tournament). Then, he finished as the runner-up the next two years. Charlton scored 249 goals for Manchester United, and when he died in 2023 he received one of the grandest tributes to a footballing legend we can recall.

Rooney mostly played striker, and while there is more to that position than scoring and we poked fun at goal poaching, ultimately the number-one job at that position is putting the ball into the net. Few have ever done that as well as Rooney. After debuting for his childhood club Everton as a teen, Man United paid a then-record transfer fee for a teenager. Yeah, that gamble paid off. When Rooney retired, he was the top goal scorer in England history. He remains the top goal scorer in Manchester United history. Though, wildly, Rooney never led the Premier League in goals, he scored 253 times for the club.