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Manchester United are the most successful side of the Premier League era, having won a record-breaking 13 league titles. Led by the charismatic Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United re-defined English football in the Premier League era.
United’s play under Fergie was defined by their attacking swagger, and they would swarm the opposition with their swift movements down the wings. From Cantona’s panache in the early 90s to the Cole-Yorke axis in the late 90s, followed by the Ronaldo-Rooney duet in the late 00s, United have had some of the best attackers grace their lineups
As an ode to United’s attacking stars, we look at the highest goals plus assists tallies that have been racked up by Manchester United players in a single campaign:
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#5 Wayne Rooney – 2009/10 (29 Goal Contributions – 26 Goals, 3 Assists)
Starting off our list is Manchester United’s all-time leading scorer Wayne Rooney. Rooney was always destined for greatness since he burst onto the scene as a 17-year old at Everton. Therefore, no one was surprised when Sir Alex Ferguson stumped up the cash to bring the teenager to Old Trafford.
Wazza formed a fruitful partnership with fellow youngster Cristiano Ronaldo, often combining with the Portuguese to terrorise opposition defences. After the departure of Ronaldo to Real Madrid in 2009, United needed someone to step up and it was the English striker who duly obliged.
Taking up the burden of goal scoring, the 2009/10 season saw Rooney in the form of his life as he netted 26 times in the Premier League, ending the campaign with 34 goals in all competitions. The England striker netted two hat-tricks in the season, first in a 4-1 away victory over Portsmouth, before going one better as he found the net 4 times against Hull City in the second half of the season.
Despite his glittering scoring record that season, Rooney and Manchester United were beaten to the league title by a single point by Carlo Ancelotti’s Chelsea. In terms of the Golden Boot too, Rooney had to be content with second place, as his 26 strikes were bettered by Didier Drogba’s 29 goals.
Despite the double disappointment, Rooney’s comfort came in the form of personal accolades as he won the PFA Players’ Player of the Year, the PFA Fans’ Player of the Year, as well as the FWA Footballer of the Year awards.
#4 Eric Cantona – 1993/94 (30 Goal Contributions – 18 Goals, 12 Assists)
One of Manchester United’s most iconic players ever, Eric Cantona had an unreal influence on Sir Alex Ferguson’s team in the early 90s. After joining the club midway through the 1992/93 season, the Frenchman helped the Red Devils lift their first League title in 26 years.
The following season saw the Frenchman coming into his own as he finished the season as United’s top scorer in all competitions. ‘King Eric’, as he was fondly called by the Old Trafford faithful, finished the league campaign with 18 goals and 12 assists as United cantered to their second Premier League title in a row by a margin of 8 points.
Cantona finished the season as the league’s 8th top scorer, although his position on the list would have been higher had he not been banned for 5 games due to consecutive red cards against Swindon and Arsenal. He also finished second on the assists chart, with his record only bettered by Newcastle United’s Andy Cole.
His performances were duly recognised by his fellow professionals as he was named the PFA Players’ Player of the Year, along with the distinction of being Manchester United’s player of the season.
#3 Wayne Rooney – 2011/12 (31 Goals Contributions – 27 Goals, 4 Assists)
Being United’s all-time goal scorer, it would only be natural that Wayne Rooney makes this list more than once. After his tremendous performances a couple of years earlier, Rooney once again found his groove in the 2011/12 season.
The Englishman went one better this time as he finished the league campaign with 27 goals to his name. Rooney scored a treble against Arsenal in an epic 8-2 victory. The following week, the English striker plundered another 3 goals in a 5-0 demolition of Bolton Wanderers to become only the 4th player in Premier League history to score consecutive hat-tricks.
The 2011/12 season saw neck and neck competition between the two Manchester clubs as Manchester City ramped up their efforts in a bid to win their maiden Premier League title. The two teams went into the final day level on points, with United away to Sunderland and City hosting Queens Park Rangers.
As Rooney’s goal sealed a 1-0 win for the Red Devils, attentions turned towards the Etihad as City were 2-1 down going into injury time. However, City scored twice the dying minutes of the game as Sergio Aguero’s 94th minute sealed a dramatic Premier League title for the Cityzens.
Once again, Rooney’s great goal-scoring season could not take United past the finish line, and yet again, he finished second in the goal-scoring charts, this time pipped by Robin van Persie, who racked up 30 goals in the league that season.
#2 Robin van Persie – 2012/13 (35 Goal Contributions – 26 Goals, 9 Assists)
After losing the Premier League title to his bitter rivals in the 2011/12 season, Sir Alex Ferguson was in no mood to give up his crown so easily. In what was going to be his final season as a Man Utd manager, Fergie bolstered his ranks by adding the previous season’s Golden Boot winner, Robin van Persie.
He made an instant impact for Fergie’s men as he scored a brilliant hat-trick against Southampton in only his third game to clinch a 3-2 comeback victory.
The Dutchman once again proved his worth as his late free-kick gave United a 3-2 victory over Manchester City at the Etihad in early December. That proved to be the defining moment in the title race as the Red Devils never looked back and romped to the title by a whopping 11 points.
It was only fitting that the Dutch striker sealed the title for United as his hat-trick against Aston Villa clinched United’s 20th league title with four games to spare. Robin van Persie (26 goals) won a second consecutive Golden Boot as he beat stiff competition from Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale.
At the end of his first season with Manchester United, Van Persie won the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year award, as well as BBC’s Goal of the Season award.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo – 2007/08 (37 Goal Contributions – 31 Goals, 6 Assists)
The number one player on our list is Cristiano Ronaldo, who plundered an unbelievable 42 goals in all competitions in the 2007/08 season. His 37 goal contributions in the 2007/08 Premier League season remains the highest by a United player till date, and it will take someone special to beat his record.
The world had always been aware of Ronaldo’s talents, but the 2007/08 season was the one where everything fell into place for him to go on and the become the player we know of today. Ronaldo’s brilliance helped United win their 10th Premier League trophy, as well as their 3rd Champions League title, a feat which they achieved by beating fellow English side Chelsea on penalties.
This Manchester United team was easily one of the world’s greatest club sides ever, and the 2007/08 season saw Ronaldo transform from a tricky winger to a natural goal-scorer.
Ronaldo scored 31 and equalled the Premier League’s highest goal-scoring tally in a 38-game season until it was broken by Mohamed Salah in 2018. The Portuguese superstar went on to win an unprecedented number of individual accolades that season, with the most notable of them being his first Ballon d’Or in 2008.
Alongside the Golden Boot and European Golden Shoe titles, Ronaldo swept home all the domestic awards as well – Premier League Player of the Season, PFA Players’ Player of the Year and the FWA Footballer of the Year.
