Wayne Rooney (Everton, Manchester United)
© Reuters
It looked for some time as though Wayne Rooney would break Alan Shearer's Premier League goalscoring record, having burst onto the scene at the age of just 16 and remained among England's elite for well over a decade.
The former England captain's demise in the final years of his Premier League career saw those dreams come to an end, but there is still no doubting his position as one of the greatest players to have ever graced the division.
After making his big-money move to Manchester United in 2004, Rooney hit double figures in 11 successive league seasons, including a 26-goal haul in 2009-10 and 27-goal season two years later.
Rooney ended his Old Trafford career as United's all-time leading goalscorer, and 10 more in the Premier League upon his return to boyhood club Everton took his final tally up to 208 - one of only two men to break the 200-goal barrier.
The now-DC United striker's trophy haul also eclipses anyone else on this list, with five Premier League titles, an FA Cup, three League Cups, a Champions League and a Europa League to his name.
Rooney scooped plenty of individual awards in the process too - the PFA Players' Player of the Year, PFA Young Player of the Year twice, PFA Fans' Player of the Year twice, FWA Footballer of the Year, Premier League Player of the Season and Premier League Goal of the Season award on three separate occasions.
