Alan Shearer vs Thierry Henry: Who was the better Premier League striker?

Alan Shearer vs Thierry Henry: Who was the better Premier League striker?

Alan Shearer and Thierry Henry celebrate birthdays this week, so we look back at their illustrious Premier League careers and ask - who was the better striker?

Shearer turns 49 on Tuesday, while Henry will be 42 on Saturday, but their goalscoring prowess both still live long in the memory. And with good reason too.

Shearer retired in 2006 as the Premier League's record scorer having netted 260 goals in 441 matches for Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United.

Meanwhile, Henry played his last game for Arsenal in 2012 - while on loan from the New York Red Bulls - finishing his career at the north London club with an incredible 175 goals in just 258 games.

4:55 Watch a selection of the best Premier League goals scored by Arsenal's record goalscorer, Thierry Henry Watch a selection of the best Premier League goals scored by Arsenal's record goalscorer, Thierry Henry

That leaves the Frenchman fifth in the all-time list of Premier League goalscorers and interestingly, when it comes to the two players' minutes-per-goal record, it is Henry who comes out on top with a goal on average every 122 minutes compared to Shearer's 147 minutes.

The Englishman, though, scored three more hat-tricks (11) than his rival during his 14-year Premier League career, while he also comes out on top when it comes to 30-plus goal seasons, with Shearer managing that on three occasions to Henry's one.

2:51 Alan Shearer remains the Premier League's all-time leading goalscorer - watch a selection of his best goals here Alan Shearer remains the Premier League's all-time leading goalscorer - watch a selection of his best goals here

Which of the two forwards, however, would you pick if you could only select one?

Well, watch the two videos looking back at both players' brilliant careers and then vote below to tell us who was the better marksman...

Shearer vs Henry Shearer Henry Games Played 441 258 Minutes Played 38183 21313 Goals 260 175 Mins/Goal 147 122 Assists 64 74 Hat-tricks 11 8 30+ Goal Seasons 3 1 20+ Goal Seasons 7 5

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