The 12 greatest strikers in Blackburn Rovers history (ranked)
This list contains many well-known names, including players who are currently active, such as Jordan Rhodes and Roque Santa Cruz.
With the attackers at their disposal, Blackburn Rovers will be aiming to fire themselves to victory.
The fact that they no longer have Ben Brereton Diaz at their disposal is a setback, but someone will step in, just as the Chilean did when Adam Armstrong left the club.
Others, such as Sam Gallagher, Tyrhys Dolan, and Ryan Hedges, can also contribute, but it remains to be seen if they can achieve long-term success.
Their future is unknown, but we’re looking back in this feature, with Football League World’s Blackburn Rovers fan analyst Toby Wilding ranking the club’s 12 best ever strikers from 12 to one.
Do you agree with these selections? Would you consider replacing any of the players on this list?
He was a prolific scorer for Blackburn between 2012 and 2016, which isn’t surprising given how excellent he was at Huddersfield Town earlier.
His consistency was possibly the most amazing aspect of his time at Ewood Park, as he rarely had dips and was a fantastic asset to the Lancashire side during his time there.
He is now on loan at Blackpool, where he is nearing the end of his career.
McCarthy plied his trade for Rovers when they were in the top flight and scored 18 league goals during his first season at Ewood Park.
That’s an immense achievement and he’s fully deserving of a place on this list, with his ability to be a threat in front of goal helping to keep Blackburn in the top tier.
Santa Cruz began his career in his own country before moving on to Bayern Munich and then Blackburn Rovers.
He had a fantastic two years at Ewood Park before moving on to Manchester City in a big-money transfer, but the Paraguayan was unable to reproduce what he did in Lancashire owing to injuries and a lack of form.
However, the forward is still playing at the age of 42, which is a significant accomplishment.
Gallacher enjoyed a successful time at Dundee United and Coventry City before his switch to Blackburn in 1993 and this is why isn’t a surprise he did well for Rovers too.
His only likely regret was the fact he wasn’t able to contribute much during their Premier League-winning season.
He didn’t enjoy that much success following his time in Lancashire in terms of his playing career – but he went into broadcasting and has done well in that industry.
Cole is another well-known name on this list, with Chris Sutton and Alan Shearer.
Not only did he play for Rovers, but he also worked for Manchester United and Newcastle during his career, which is an impressive feat.
There were great expectations of him when he arrived at Ewood Park after playing for both of these teams prior to his move, and he didn’t disappoint, scoring 37 goals in 100 competitive appearances and recording an incredible 15 assists.
Sutton, like Gallacher, has had a successful broadcasting career, but he was a valuable member of Blackburn’s Premier League-winning team in 1995, scoring 15 goals and contributing 10 assists.
He only played for England once, but he had enough success at Norwich City, Rovers, and Celtic to compensate.
He formerly played for Chelsea, Birmingham City, and Aston Villa.
Harper spent two seasons at Blackburn and was a huge success at Ewood Park.
He also played for Sheffield Wednesday, Tottenham Hotspur, and Rovers’ archrivals Preston North End, and he returned to Rovers before the war.
The former forward lived through both World Wars before passing died in 1959.
He began his career after the Second World War and was a big success for Grimsby Town and Blackburn Rovers, but he also had a wonderful spell at Birmingham City.
He never played for England’s first team, but he did participate in a B team game against Switzerland in a 5-0 triumph and managed to get on the scoresheet that day in 1950.
