Most goals against Premier League 'big six': All-time list of top scorers in EPL era including Rooney, Salah

Brad Cox

Most goals against Premier League 'big six': All-time list of top scorers in EPL era including Rooney, Salah image

Goals and assists are the go-to stats when it comes to fans comparing their favourite star to another team's best player.

The term G/A is used online, and sometimes even debated in person, to highlight how well a player has performed in a specific season. The 'G' represents goals, while the 'A' signifies assists. Combining both provides a player's G/A tally — a measure of their decisive attacking contributions.

When defending your favourite player's status as the top talent in a league, a lower G/A ratio might prompt you to take a closer look at whether they have excelled in scoring against the formidable 'big six'. After all, finding the net — or creating chances for those who do — against the very best opposition is a real marker of both a player's quality and their ability to thrive under pressure.

The Sporting News explains who the big six are, why scoring against them matters, and who has the most goals against that elite group.

MORE: Premier League top scorers 2023/24

Who are the Premier League 'big six'?

Firstly, an explainer.

The term "big six" refers to six prominent football clubs in England: Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, and Tottenham Hotspur.

These clubs have consistently been at the forefront of English football during the Premier League era (so, since 1992), not only for their on-field success but also for their global brand and commercial appeal. For a time, the Premier League had a 'big four' of Man United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea, around the period of 2003 to 2009. However, City's ascension to power backed by the riches of Abu Dhabi, and Spurs' progress in the past decade on and off the field, has given rise to an expanded 'big' group of six.

The concept of the big six is a controversial one as some fans argue that their dominance stifles competition and prevents smaller clubs from breaking into the elite status.

The financial resources and global reach of these clubs give them an advantage, both on and off the pitch, sometimes raising questions about the fairness and competitiveness of the Premier League. Antipathy towards the big six grew in 2021 when they joined an attempted European Super League breakaway competition with other major clubs from Europe, only to back out of the plans amid a huge backlash from fans and stakeholders.

We have seen so-called 'smaller clubs' challenge in the Premier League, most famously Leicester City in 2015/16 when they went on to win the title, but they remain the league's dominant forces. There is, however, the prospect of a 'big seven' on the horizon, with Newcastle United now bankrolled by the astonishing wealth of the Saudi Public Investment Fund.

Most goals against Premier League 'big six'

For football fans, especially those engrossed in England's top flight, judging a player's performance against the so-called big six has become common practice, especially across social media.

The focus stems from the belief that a player's ability to deliver against top-tier teams is a true reflection of their quality.

Goals scored or assists provided in matches against clubs like Man City, Man United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, and Spurs are seen as particularly noteworthy achievements.

Therefore, stats related to performances against the big six hold significant weight in discussions about player form, consistency, and their overall impact on the team.

Below is a list of the leading scorers in league matches against the big six during the Premier League era (so, from 1992/93), as per Statmuse.

All-time list of players with most goals against Premier League 'big six'

  Player Team Matches Goals Av. goals per min
1. Alan Shearer Newcastle United 129 56 0.43
2. Wayne Rooney Manchester United, Everton 135 45 0.33
3. Sergio Aguero Manchester City 75 44 0.59
4. Jamie Vardy Leicester City 98 43 0.44
5. Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink Chelsea, Leeds United 81 41 0.51
6. Mohamed Salah* Liverpool 68 39 0.58
7. Harry Kane* Tottenham Hotspur 81 39 0.48
8. Thierry Henry Arsenal 61 34 0.56
= Dion Dublin Manchester United, Aston Villa 92 34 0.37
10. Robbie Fowler Liverpool 90 33 0.37
11. Andrew Cole Manchester United, Newcastle United, Manchester City 109 32 0.29

*Denotes active player

Premier League 2023/24 TV channels, live streams

Region TV Streaming
Australia Optus Sport
Canada

Fubo Canada

India Star Sports Disney+, Hotstar,
JioTV
UK Sky Sports, TNT Sports NOW TV, Sky Go,
Amazon Prime
USA USA Network,
Telemundo, Universo
Fubo, Peacock

UK: Matches are carried across Sky Sports and TNT Sports streaming and TV platforms, with select matches on Amazon Prime.

USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on Fubo. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.

Canada: Every Premier League game this season is live streamed exclusively via Fubo in Canada.

Australia: Fans in Australia can stream every match live and on demand on Optus Sport.

India: Star Sports network has the rights to show Premier League matches in India. As well as an English broadcast on Star Sports Select, select matches will be available via regional feeds on Star Sports 3 (in Bengali, English, Kannada, Malayalam), Star Sports 1 (Bangla) and Star Sports 1 (Tamil).

Brad Cox

Brad Cox Photo

Brad is a content producer for The Sporting News and has previously worked for the likes of Squawka and The Athletic. His career highlight to date is reporting from the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final in Paris.