Yakubu Aiyegbeni Proud To Remain Nigeria’s Top Premier League Goalscorer

Former Super Eagles striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni has spoken of his pride in holding the record as Nigeria’s all-time highest goalscorer in the English Premier League, describing the achievement as one of the greatest honours of his career.

Yakubu Aiyegbeni, 42, made his name in the English Premier League while playing for Portsmouth, Middlesbrough, Everton and Blackburn Rovers. During his spell in the league, he scored 95 goals in 252 appearances for the said clubs. He left the league in 2012 for a Chinese club, Guangzhou City.

Aiyegbeni’s consistency in front of goal earned him cult-hero status wherever he played, and his total places him fifth among Africa’s all-time Premier League scorers, behind legends such as Didier Drogba, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané and Emmanuel Adebayor.

“It’s massive when you mention these names like Mo Salah, Sadio Mane, (Emmanuel) Adebayor, Didier Drogba,” Yakubu told Sky Sports. “Being on that list is unbelievable, scoring goals in one of the world’s best leagues.

“Being top five in that list and the highest scoring Nigerian striker is a huge achievement. Records are meant to be broken, but to be up there, to score goals, is an honour.”

The former Maccabi Haifa forward, who began his professional journey as a teenager in Benin City, reflected on how injuries kept him from reaching the 100-goal mark.

“In the Premier League, it’s so difficult to score goals; you see many players who struggle to score goals here because it’s a hard league. You have to get used to it,” he explained.

“So, it’s an honour, it makes me feel proud of myself. I’m very proud of scoring 95 goals in the Premier League, so many scored 100, but I didn’t have the chance to do it because I was injured for eleven months.

“I wish I hadn’t got injured, because it would’ve been five more goals. I’m not greedy. I’m happy, honoured even, very pleased to have reached that milestone in a huge league.

“A boy from Benin scoring 95 goals, I’m grateful.”

Yakubu’s record as Nigeria’s top scorer in the Premier League looks safe for now. Leicester City’s Kelechi Iheanacho, who is second on the list, has managed 42 goals so far, less than half of Yakubu’s tally.