World’s Top Goalscorer of 2007 by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS)

IFFHS’s World’s Top Goalscorer of 2007

“Soccer is a world made of numbers”. A phrase which would make any mathematician proud, with the eternal claim that you can find mathematics anywhere.

And where better to find numbers than Goal Totals: the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS), the famous (and often criticized) organization that chronicles the history of football, has just published its World’s Top Goal Scorer of 2007 ranking.

No, the results are further from probably anything you may expect.

Trésor Mputu MabiIndeed, the criteria for selection are goals scored in full “A” international matches (i.e. with the national team), as well as goals scored in [inter]continental club competitions (i.e. UEFA Champions’ League, Copa Libertadores, and the like). No room for national competitions. As a result, this year’s topscorer turns out to be congolese striker Trésor Mputu Mabi, followed by Paraguayan Salvador Cabanas and (finally a well-known name) Argentine Juan Román Riquelme.

Trésor Mputu, a 22-year old playing for Congolese club TP Mazembe Lubumbashi (sounds Japanese doesn’t it?), achieves his total of 20 goals by grabbing, among others, the topscorer title of the African Champions League and the African CAF Cup (still ongoing)! This, according to IFFHS’s data, elects him World’s Top Goal Scorer of 2007.

In case you’re wondering “Ok, but how good is this guy really?”, Mputu is already in the crosshairs of many European clubs, including Arsenal and Sevilla. He gets the personal thumbs up of Claude Le Roy, ex-manager of Cameroon and Congo, and who is now coaching the Black Stars of Ghana (in other words, someone who’s been around African soccer for quite a while). As a reminder, Le Roy was the one that launched Samuel Eto’o during the 1998 World Cup in France, when the Cameroonian was still only 17 years old.

Juan Román RiquelmeSalvador CabañasRight behind Mputu, we find 27-year old Club América striker Salvador Cabañas (responsible for 14 goals with the Mexican club and 4 goals in the Paraguyana national team) ranked 2nd with 18 goals, and Juan Román Riquelme in 3rd position with 17 (8 goals with Boca Juniors, 9 goals with Argentina). Riquelme would have probably been ranked higher, had he not been excluded from the recent FIFA Club World Cup in Japan (due to his late transfer from Villareal).

Dimitar Berbatov (top) and Cristiano Ronaldo (bottom)Noh Alam Shah (top) and Ricardo Kaká (bottom)To find the first European-based players we have to drop down to 5th spot, right after Noh Alam Shah of Singapore’s Tampines Rovers FC, and his 15 goals. At nº5 we find Ballon d’Or and FIFA World Player of the Year winner Kaká (14 goals, 9 club – 5 internat’l), followed by Tottenham’s Dimitar Berbatov (13 goals, 5-8) and Man Utd’s Cristiano Ronaldo (13 goals, 8-5).

Luca ToniFilippo InzaghiFirst Italian player in the ranking: the ever-eternal Filippo Inzaghi, ranked 11th with 12 goals (10 in the CL, 2 with the Azzurri). Luca Toni is 28th with 10 goals.
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About the IFFHS and FULL RANKING

IFFHSThe IFFHS was founded in 1984 and is based in Bonn, Germany. Since 1991, the entity has also produced a monthly club world ranking. .

In the table below you can find the full “World’s Top Goalscorer of 2007′ rankings (which are also available on IFFHS’s official website). I’ve modified the columns a little bit, such as to clearly display club goals vs. international goals. Also, I’ve highlighted in bold all players based in Europe (UEFA).

The legend displays which world federation the player’s clubs belongs to:
AFC = Asian Football Confederation (Asia)
CAF = Confederation of African Football (Africa)
CONCACAF = Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (North America)
CONMEBOL = Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (South America)
OFC = Oceania Football Confederation (Oceania)
UEFA = Union Européenne de Football Association (Europe)

The separation of players by club federation yields interesting totals. Top-ranked is the UEFA federation with 64 players, and it comes to no surprise as the best players (and hence topscorers) are based in Europe. However, lower ranks reserve a few surprises.

UEFA (Europe)
64
AFC (Asia)
26
CAF (Africa)
10
CONCACAF (North Am.)
12
CONMEBOL (South Am.)
14
OFC (Oceania)
3

.
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Rank
Name
Club Team
Nat’l Team
GOALS
Club
Nat’l
Total

1
Trésor Mputu Mabi
TP M. Lubumbashi
Congo DR
19
1
20
2
Salvador Cabañas
Club América México
Paraguay
14
4
18
3
Juan Román Riquelme
Boca Juniors
Argentina
8
9
17
4
M. Noh Alam Shah K.
Tampines Rovers FC
Singapore
3
12
15
5
Kaká
AC Milan
Brazil
9
5
14
6
Dimitar Berbatov
Tottenham
Bulgaria
5
8
13
7
Cristiano Ronaldo
Manchester United
Portugal
8
5
13
8
Yasser Al-Qahtani
Al-Hilal FC Riyadh
Saudi Arabia
0
12
12
Sarayoot Chaikamdee
Pisico B.D. Qui Nhon
Thailand
0
12
12
Osea Vakatalasau
Nokia Eagles United
Fiji
0
12
12
11
Filippo Inzaghi
AC Milan
Italy
10
2
12
12
Jon Dahl Tomasson
Villarreal CF
Denmark
4
7
11
13
Faisal Al-Ajab
Al-Merreikh Omdur.
Sudan
6
5
11
Diego Forlán
Atletico Madrid
Uruguay
6
5
11
15
Razek Omotoyossi
Helsingborg IF
Benin
8
3
11
Blas A. Miguel Pérez
Cúcuta Deportivo
Panamá
8
3
11
17
Frédéric Kanouté
Sevilla FC
Mali
9
2
11
18
Siu-Ki Chan
Kitchee FC
Hong Kong
0
10
10
Seule Soromon
Suva FC
Vanuatu
0
10
10
20
Tae-Se Jong
Kawasaki Frontale
Korea DPR
2
8
10
21
Eduardo Da Silva
Arsenal
Croatia
3
7
10
22
Robinho
Real Madrid CF
Brazil
4
6
10
Steffen Iversen
Rosenborg BK
Norway
4
6
10
Lionel Messi
FC Barcelona
Argentina
4
6
10
Marco Streller
FC Basel
Switzerland
4
6
10
David Villa
Valencia CF
Spain
4
6
10
27
Flávio Amado da Silva
Al-Ahly Cairo
Angola
5
5
10
28
Luca Toni
Bayern Munich
Italy
6
4
10
29
Luís Fabiano
Sevilla FC
Brazil
8
2
10
30
Moham. A.A. Chermiti
Etoile Sp. du Sahel
Tunisia
9
1
10
31
Henrik Larsson
Man U.+ Helsingborg
Sweden
10
0
10
32
Landon Donovan
Los Angeles Galaxy
USA
0
9
9
33
Maksim Shatskikh
Dinamo Kyiv
Uzbekistan
1
8
9
34
Abdelhamid Amari
Al-Merreikh Omdur.
Sudan
2
7
9
Issam Jomaa
RC Lens
Tunisia
2
7
9
36
Aleks. Kerzhakov
Sevilla FC
Russia
3
6
9
37
Rafael Van d. Vaart
Hamburger SV
Netherlands
4
5
9
38
Didier Drogba
Chelsea
Côte-d’Ivoire
5
4
9
Mohammad Ghaddar
Al-Nejmeh Beirut
Lebanon
5
4
9
Humberto Suazo
CSD Colo Colo Sant.
Chile
5
4
9
41
Peter Crouch
Liverpool FC
England
6
3
9
42
Salem Al-Rouani
Al-Ittihad Tripoli
Libya
7
2
9
Hugo Almeida
Werder Bremen
Portugal
7
2
9
Kerry Baptiste
Joe Public FC Tunap.
T. & Tobago
7
2
9
Simão Sabrosa
Benfica + Atl.Madrid
Portugal
7
2
9
Rom. Pavlyuchenko
FC Spartak Moscow
Russia
7
2
9
Wayne Rooney
Manchester United
England
7
2
9
48
Zyad Chaabo
Al-Jaish Damascus
Syria
0
8
8
David Healy
Leeds United
North. Ireland
0
8
8
50
Ismail M. Al-Junaibi
Al-Wahda Abu Dhabi
UAE
1
7
8
51
Daniel Arismendi
Union Atl. Maracaibo
Venezuela
2
6
8
Adrián Mutu
Fiorentina
România
2
6
8
53
Omar Bravo
CD Guadalajara
México
4
4
8
José P. Guerrero
Hamburger SV
Perú
4
4
8
Mirko Vučinić
AS Roma
Crna Gora
4
4
8
56
Miroslav Klose
W.Bremen + Bayern
Germany
5
3
8
57
Ruud V. Nistelrooy
Real Madrid CF
Netherlands
6
2
8
58
Yssouf Koné
Rosenborg BK
Burkina Faso
8
0
8
Hernán Rodrigo López
Asunción+Club Amér.
Paraguay
8
0
8
Godwin Ndubuisi Eze
Al-Hilal Omdurman
Nigeria
8
0
8
61
W. Sebastián Abreu
Nacional Montevideo
Uruguay
0
7
7
Cong-Vinh Le
TCDK S.L.N. An Vinh
Vietnam
0
7
7
Commins Menapi
Youngheart Manaw.
Solomon Isl.
0
7
7
Carlos Alberto Pavon
Real CD S.P. Sula
Honduras
0
7
7
Thanh Bình Phan
Gach D. Tam Long An
Vietnam
0
7
7
Pipat Tonkanya
BEC T.S. Bangkok
Thailand
0
7
7
67
Thierry Henry
FC Barcelona
France
2
5
7
Kevin Kuranyi
FC Schalke 04
Germany
2
5
7
69
Marcus Allbäck
FC København
Sweden
4
3
7
70
Steven Gerrard
Liverpool FC
England
5
2
7
Mamedaly Karadanov
FC HTTU O. Asgabat
Turkmenistan
5
2
7
72
Sergio Agüero
Atletico Madrid
Argentina
6
1
7
Robbie Keane
Tottenham
Ireland
6
1
7
74
Zé Roberto
Santos + Bayern M.
Brazil
7
0
7
Cheikh Oumar Dabo
Jeunesse Sp. Kabylie
Mali
7
0
7
Christian Gimenez
Pachuca CF
Argentina
7
0
7
Robert Winters
SK Brann Bergen
Scotland
7
0
7
78
Maher Al-Sayed
Al-Wahda Damascus
Syria
0
6
6
Fan. I. Andriatsima
FC Nantes
Madagascar
0
6
6
Ulugbek Bakayev
FC Tobol Qostanay
Uzbekistan
0
6
6
Eliphène Alex. Cadet
AS Capoise Cap Haïti
Haitï
0
6
6
John Carew
Lyon + Aston Villa
Norway
0
6
6
Sunil Chetri
JCT M. Phagw. Punjab
India
0
6
6
Theofanis Gekas
Bayer Leverkusen
Greece
0
6
6
Gary Glasgow
Joe Public FC Tunap.
T. & Tobago
0
6
6
Edmond Kapllani
Karlsruher SC
Albania
0
6
6
Chih-En Lo
Yilan Senior H.S.
Chin. Taipei
0
6
6
Giancarlo Maldonado
Union Atl. Maracaibo
Venezuela
0
6
6
Zlatan Muslimović
FC Parma
Bosnia Herz.
0
6
6
Andrés S.S. Quintana
Qatar SC Doha
Qatar
0
6
6
Shane Smeltz
Wellington Phoenix
New Zealand
0
6
6
Euzeb. Smolarek
Racing Santander
Polska
0
6
6
Naohiro Takahara
Eintracht Frankfurt
Japan
0
6
6
94
Christian R. Benítez
Club El Nacional Quito
Ecuador
1
5
6
Roque Santa Cruz
Blackburn Rovers
Paraguay
1
5
6
Ronaldinho
FC Barcelona
Brazil
1
5
6
97
Walter Centeno
CD Saprissa S.J. Tibás
Costa Rica
2
4
6
Amando Guevara
CD Mot. Tegucigalpa
Honduras
2
4
6
Peng Han
Shandong L. Taishan
China
2
4
6
Oliver Karekezi
Helsingborg IF
Rwanda
2
4
6
Mamadou Niang
Marseille
Sénégal
2
4
6
Adékami Olufadé
KAA Gent
Togo
2
4
6
103
Karim Benzema
Lyon
France
3
3
6
Victor Nuñez
LD Alajuelense
Costa Rica
3
3
6
Andriy Shevchenko
Chelsea
Ukraina
3
3
6
Vágner Love
CSKA Moscow
Brazil
3
3
6
107
Odai Al-Saify
Sh. Al-O. Al-Qadisiya
Jordan
4
2
6
René Aufhauser
Red Bull Salzburg
Austria
4
2
6
Aleksandar Duric
Singap. Armed Forces
Singapore
4
2
6
R. Falcao García
River Plate
Colombia
4
2
6
Cristiano Lucarelli
Livorno+Shakhtar D.
Italy
4
2
6
Obafemi Martins
Newcastle United
Nigeria
4
2
6
V. Martín Sánchez
Club Deportivo Toluca
Uruguay
4
2
6
114
Dirk Kuijt
Liverpool FC
Netherlands
5
1
6
Saniel Kuljic
FK Austria Wien
Austria
5
1
6
Emad Mohammed
Sepahan Isfahan
Iraq
5
1
6
Goran Pandev
Lazio
Macedonia
5
1
6
Mahmoud Shelbaieh
Al-Wahdat Amman
Jordan
5
1
6
Fabian Taylor
Harbour View FC
Jamaica
5
1
6
120
Andre Roberto Beto
Paraná + Litex Lov.
Brazil
6
0
6
Wilfried G. Bony
Issia Wazi FC
Côte-d’Ivoire
6
0
6
Kavin Bryan
Harbour View FC
Jamaica
6
0
6
Ricardo M. Ciciliano
Los Millonarios Bogota
Colombia
6
0
6
João S. da Mota Neto
Seongnam Ilhwa C.
Brazil
6
0
6
Awad Deeb Ragheb
Al-Wahdat Amman
Jordan
6
0
6
Endurance Idahor
Al-Merreikh Omdurman
Nigeria
6
0
6
Steffen Hofmann
SK Rapid Wien
Germany
6
0
6
Amin Ltaïef
Espérance Sp. Tunis
Tunisia
6
0
6
Martín Palermo
Boca Juniors
Argentina
6
0
6



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  • 13 Responses to “World’s Top Goalscorer of 2007 by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS)”

    1. Andrei Meza says:

      where is lampard?

    2. ridder8 says:

      Ridiculous

    3. Rob says:

      Robbie Keane scored more goals than anyone else in the Premier League for the whole year of 2007. How is he tied for 72nd on the list?

    4. Winston says:

      lol hong kong top11? XDD

    5. Cheesman says:

      How the fuck does this make any sense?

    6. Shohan Khan says:

      And why isn’t the domestic league counted in this? This chart means jack shite.

    7. Ryan80 says:

      Shohan I think the purpose of this ranking was precisely to avoid domestic competitions, because then the Hong Kong players Winston was bitching about (for example) would have been ranked even higher. It’s probably much easier to score 30 goals in the Hong Kong league than score 10 goals in the Premiership.

      At least this way the relative “easiness” of scoring in a domestic league is trumped by the fact only continental competitions are counted. So if a player is scoring 30 goals in a shitty league, odds are than when his team plays abroad he won’t be quite nearly as good.

    8. Precisely Ryan. :)

      All in all, any type of these rankings which are a bit “out-of-the-ordinary” have to be taken with a grain of salt. They won’t mean much to the average guy, who’ll simply be disappointed his favorite striker hasn’t made the list. For all the others, each can draw his own conclusions.

      Mine, is that it’s interesting to see topscorers under this light, it’s just another way to look at things. Just with like “Best Ever” rankings, there never is a definitive winner, everyone will have his own opinion anyway.

      By the way, I did say the IFFHS was often criticized, didn’t I? ;)

    9. Faroe Islands says:

      hey ehm, we have a goal scorer in the faroes who scored 17 goals … where is he ???

    10. Afonso Alves says:

      What kind of list is this? And where is our Brazilian Goal Topscorer Afonso Alves? In his first season, the Brazilian scored 34 goals – a new Heerenveen record – which earned him the prestigious Golden Shoe, as the top scorer in European club football.

    11. daryl says:

      Great stuff, and a great way to uncover a few names that aren’t so well known outside their own countries. I’m particularly looking forward to seeing Tresor Mputu in action for DR Congo at the African Cup of Nations now.

    12. Faroe Islands, Afonso Alves - read the fine print:
      the criteria for selection are goals scored in full “A” international matches (i.e. with the national team), as well as goals scored in [inter]continental club competitions (i.e. UEFA Champions’ League, Copa Libertadores, and the like). No room for national competitions.

    13. JAMES says:

      I JUST WANNA SAY CONGRATULATIONS TRESORE MPUTU