The top 10 goalscoring defenders of all time: Ramos, Koeman, Blanc…

Bayern Munich icon Franz Beckenbauer is arguably the most famous goalscoring defender in the history of football, but he doesn’t quite crack the top 10 for the most career goals notched by defenders.

But the list of football’s all-time greatest defenders features iconic names who represented clubs including Real Madrid, Manchester United, Barcelona, Inter Milan and Rangers.

Here are the top 10 goalscoring defenders in football history.

10. Roberto Carlos – 113 goals

Critics of Roberto Carlos claim he never scored another free-kick after his sensational effort for Brazil against France in 1997.

But the flying full-back made the net bulge on no fewer than 113 occasions over the course of his glittering career.

Many of the World Cup winner’s goals came from dead ball situations, while Carlos also scored some spectacular goals from open play.

9. Paul Breitner – 113 goals

Breitner stepped forward into midfield during the latter stages of his career, but before that he was a left-back for clubs – Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Eintracht Braunschweig – and country.

Winner at both Euro ’72 and the 1974 World Cup, Breitner is one of only four players to score in two separate World Cup finals (alongside Vava, Pele and Zinedine Zidane).

Ten of Breitner’s career goals came for West Germany, with the rest notched at club level.

His most prolific spell came during his midfield days at Bayern, but he still posed a threat to the opposition goal even when utilised in a deeper role.

8. Steve Bruce – 114 goals

Bruce’s most memorable goals were his two headers against Sheffield Wednesday in April 1993, taking Manchester United to the verge of their first league title in 26 years.

Goals weren’t exactly a rarity for the centre-back: Bruce netted 113 of them throughout a career which also included spells at Gillingham, Norwich, Birmingham and Sheffield United.

The 1990-91 season was his most prolific – 19 goals in all competitions. It’s incredible that he never won an England cap.

7. Graham Alexander – 130 goals

Alexander is regarded as one of the best penalty-takers in football history.

The former Burnley, Preston and Rangers defender had an impressive 90% penalty conversion rate, scoring 77 goals from 85 attempted penalties.

Despite earning 40 caps for his national side Scotland, he was never able to score from the penalty spot in international football.

Alexander’s deadliness from 12 yards was also complimented with a steady stream of open play goals too.

6. James Tavernier – 139 goals

Another penalty demon, Tavernier joined Rangers for a fee of just £200,000 back in 2016 and has since become a club legend.

Now the highest-scoring defender in British football history, the full-back was instrumental in Rangers reaching the 2022 Europa League final with his spot-kick prowess.

5. Sergio Ramos – 143 goals

Ramos has made a habit of scoring from the penalty spot for Real Madrid and Spain, but he also has a very lethal header.

One of his most famous strikes came in the 2014 Champions League final, when the defender netted a last-minute equaliser against Atletico Madrid to take the match into extra-time.

Also a notorious sh*thouse, Ramos is unquestionably one of the leading footballers of both his generation and the history of football.

4. Laurent Blanc – 153 goals

Eric Cantona, Roger Milla and Olivier Giroud all played for Montpellier, but Blanc is the club’s all-time leading scorer after netting 84 times in 267 games between 1983 and 1991.

Blanc came through the ranks as an attacking midfielder and scored many goals from the penalty spot.

His Golden Goal winner against Paraguay at the 1998 World Cup was one of the most memorable in the history of the tournament.

3. Fernando Hierro – 163 goals

Hierro’s 127 goals for Real Madrid rank him above many of the club’s former centre-forwards in the club’s all-time scoring standings, with the defender being lethal from both set-pieces and open play.

His best individual season came at Madrid in 1991-92, when the centre-back notched an astonishing 26 goals in 53 appearances.

Hierro also scored 29 goals for Spain, including strikes at three separate World Cups.

READ: Remembering Fernando Hierro at Bolton: A class act even at 37

2. Daniel Passarella – 175 goals

If either Diego Maradona or Lionel Messi is the greatest player Argentina have ever produced, there’s no doubt that Passarella is their best ever defender.

The ex-River Plate and Fiorentina centre-back captained Argentina to 1978 World Cup glory on home soil, while he was also a non-playing member of the 1986-winning squad as well.

Despite being under six foot, Passarella scored plenty of headers and was a demon from the penalty spot too.

1. Ronald Koeman – 253 goals

There are many strikers who would feel justifiably proud of Koeman’s career return of 253 goals in 763 professional outings.

The former Netherlands international was regularly used as a sweeper and thus afforded license to get forward, while he also took penalties and free-kicks for many of his clubs.

Koeman once scored 26 goals in a season for PSV, before finding the net 19 times for Barcelona in both 1989-90 and 1993-94.

His most important effort for Barca came in 1992, when the defender’s extra-time free-kick won the Catalans their first ever European Cup against Sampdoria.

He also scored the goal which effectively ended England’s chances of qualifying for the 1994 World Cup, minutes after escaping a clear red card.

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