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Despite how complicated and complex tactics and strategies may get, a game of football is ultimately won by the team that scores the most number of goals. There's no antithesis to the argument that scoring goals is the most important thing in a game of football.
Naturally, the spotlight often lands on those players who score plenty of goals for their sides. But players who orchestrate play and create chances for their teammates are just as important to any side. An assist is credited to the player who plays the final pass before the strike that puts the ball in the net.
Many of today's footballing superstars are prolific goalscorers. But when the responsibility of a player is to operate in the final third, there is every chance that a player will start racking up assists as well. So it's not just playmakers who dominate the assists chart. Prolific goalscorers do too.
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Without further ado, let's take a look at five superstars who get more assists than you think.
#5 Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool does not attack in a very conventional manner. While their centre-forward Roberto Firmino acts more or less as a false 9, the burden of goalscoring usually falls on Mohamed Salah or Sadio Mane.
Salah has proven to be an incredible goalscorer. He has scored 130 goals in 209 appearances across all competitions for Liverpool since joining in 2017. However, the playmaking aspect of his game is still underrated.
Salah has also racked up 49 assists in his time with the Merseysiders. The 2020-21 season was not his best in terms of assists but he still managed to register six. That's in addition to the 31 goals he scored in 51 appearances across all competitions.
He has started the 2021-22 season on a bright note as well, scoring five goals and picking up two assists in six appearances across all competitions so far.
#4 Jamie Vardy (Leicester City)
Jamie Vardy has truly written his name into Premier League folklore by now. The Englishman's blistering pace and confidence in front of goal are often lauded in the press. But the 34-year-old does not get the credit he deserves for the sheer number of assists he racks up.
In the 2020-21 season, Jamie Vardy registered nine assists. All of those nine assists came from 34 appearances in the Premier League. Vardy also scored 15 goals in the league. So in total, he had 24 goal contributions in 34 Premier League games. But fans are of the opinion that Vardy had a rather underwhelming season last time out.
While that may be true by his own standards, Vardy has always had a bit of a playmaker's instinct in him. In 359 appearances across all competitions for Leicester City, Vardy has scored 150 goals and provided 62 assists.
#3 Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Karim Benzema has played in all positions across that frontline for Real Madrid. He has never had any trouble adapting to new roles to accommodate bigger stars during his time with Los Blancos. Benzema was able to do that because of his superior technical ability.
But now that he has been restored to the striker's position, Benzema is not only scoring goals but he is also bringing his playmaking excellence to the fore. The Frenchman registered nine assists in the 2020-21 season. Like Vardy, all of his assists from last term came in the league.
Benzema had a great 2020-21 season at an individual level, scoring 30 goals in 46 appearances across all competitions. He has got off to a great start in the 2021-22 season and has scored six goals and provided five assists in just six appearances across all competitions.
#2 Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)
The burly Belgian striker has grown in reputation as a prolific goalscorer since leaving Manchester United to join Inter Milan in 2019. Lukaku led from the front as Inter Milan won the Serie A title after 11 long years. He was their top scorer with 30 goals in 46 appearances across all competitions.
However, scoring goals is not the only thing that Lukaku is good at. His hold-up play has improved greatly over the past few years and the technical side of his game has upgraded as well.
Lukaku picked up 10 assists across all competitions last term and all of those came in the league. The 28-year-old is now at Chelsea and has enjoyed a great start to life at Stamford Bridge, scoring four goals in his first five appearances for the club.
#1 Memphis Depay (Barcelona)
From being a Manchester United reject to being the main man at Barcelona, Memphis Depay's career trajectory is quite astounding. The Dutchman was simply not good enough during his time at Old Trafford but he was ready to work hard to change that.
He blossomed into one of the most exciting forwards in Europe during his time with Olympique Lyon. Depay can play anywhere across the frontline but his eye for a goal saw him being deployed as a centre-forward. The 27-year-old is excellent with the ball at his feet and has a natural flair for the game as well.
Depay was phenomenal for Lyon in the 2020-21 season. He scored 22 goals and provided 12 assists in 40 appearances across all competitions. Like Lukaku, Benzema and Vardy, all of his 12 assists came in the league.
It was this level of productivity that earned him a move to Barcelona where he is now their best choice in attack.
