10 Premier League greats you've probably forgotten

#7 Robbie Fowler

Different circumstances could’ve seen Robbie Fowler remembered as the best striker of his generation, the man who led the line for Liverpool and England too. Unfortunately, despite an insane goal record for Liverpool in his early years – practically a goal every other game – the emergence of Michael Owen and then Wayne Rooney, as well as his inability to unseat Alan Shearer as England’s frontman meant that he’s largely overlooked these days.

It’s crazy really – when Fowler exploded onto the scene in the early 1990s, he couldn’t stop scoring. 1993/94 saw him score five goals in a League Cup tie with Fulham, his first EPL hat-trick in just his fifth league game, and 12 goals in his first 13 games; in 1994/95 he hit a hat-trick against Arsenal in just under five minutes, at the time the fastest in league history.

Incredibly, Fowler hit more than 30 goals for three consecutive seasons – 1994/95, 1995/96 and 1996/97. Unfortunately, his 1997/98 season was ruined by a knee injury and when he returned, his place as Liverpool’s top striker had been taken by the younger – and equally prolific – Owen. And while he did win a treble of cups in 2000/01 – the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup – by that point he was Liverpool’s third-choice striker behind Owen and Emile Heskey.

Fowler has been described as one of the most natural finishers in English football history – it’s just a shame that he played at the same time as a handful of strikers who turned out to somehow be even better.