Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi – the two best players of their generation – dominated the Spanish top flight in the last decade at Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively. The two modern-day Goats once again brought La Liga into the mainstream after achieving unprecedented success. Let us see who are the top 10 goal scorers in La Liga of all time.
1. Lionel Messi (Argentina)
474 goals from 520 appearances
Lionel Messi is no longer a player of Barcelona after leaving the Catalonian club in the summer transfer to PSG. However, the career he left behind is unparalleled and Barca have to spend aeons to bring a likely replacement for him. Perhaps, the Argentine legend was the talismanic figure for Barca becoming global giants in the last decade. While breaking a plethora of records over the course, he is also the top scorer of the La Liga with 474 goals.
2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
311 goals from 292 appearances
Cristiano Ronaldo’s shock departure from Real Madrid to Juventus created a similar fuss like Messi’s and the Spanish club has since struggled to fill in his shoes. Ronaldo represented Los Blancos between 2009 and 2018 and during the course, he led the club to more success and most notably the hat-trick of Champions League titles under Zinedine Zidane’s reign. The new Manchester United star is second behind Messi in the top scorer list.
3. Telmo Zarra (Spain)
254 goals from 520 appearances
Telmo Zarra was the inspirational figure for Athletic Club’s dominance in the 1940s and 50’s. He holds the record for the most goals scored in Copa del Rey tournament and also won the Pichichi trophy six times during his career.
4. Hugo Sanchez (Mexico)
231 goals from 347 appearances
Often regarded as the greatest Mexican player in history, Hugo Sanchez achieved much success with the Madrid clubs Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid.
5. Raul Gonzalez (Spain)
228 goals from 550 appearances
Raul Gonzalez will arguably go down as one of the best players in the history of Real Madrid. The Spanish forward raised the bars by creating more records during his playing career. He was as impactful for the Spanish national team.
6. Alfredo Di Stefano (Argentina/Spain)
227 goals from 329 appearances
Di Stefano is often cited as one of the best players in Real Madrid’s history as he played a pivotal role in the club’s monopoly in both domestic and continental cups during the 1950s. The Argentine-born star also represented Colombia and Spain at the international level.
7. Cesar Rodriguez (Spain)
223 goals from 353 appearances
The Spanish legend helped Barcelona dominate La Liga prior to the rise of Madrid in the 1950s. Scoring 223 goals in 353 appearances, the Catalan legend went on to enjoy a respectable managerial career.
8. Quini (Spain)
219 goals from 448 appearances
Quini was regarded as one of the best strikers of his period after racking up goals in numbers for Sporting de Gijon and later Barcelona.
9. Pahino (Spain)
210 goals from 278 appearances
Pahino’s playing career dates back to the ’40s and he was indeed a special player during his time. He represented the Spanish clubs Celta, Real Madrid, Deportivo La Coruna and Granada.
10. Edmundo Suarez (Spain)
195 goals from 231 appearances
The Spanish legend helped Valencia become a recognisable force in La Liga during the 1940s, winning three league titles and two Copa del Rey trophies.
