Football FanCast columnist Jerome Johnstone continues his search for the Premier League's finest players of all time and after Tony Adams and Steven Gerrard picking up the awards for their respective positions, today the focus of attention will be on the strikers..

Since the very first moment that the gruff voiced Andy Gray and the ever hairy Richard Keys introduced the Premier League to our screens, little did we know what was around the corner - It illuminated a game that to be fair was in desperate need of an injection of life and the Sky's fortunes that have been pumped into the game over the last 16yrs has transformed it at every level and insured that the Premier League would become the best in the world.

We have really seen it all, whether it great games or goals, some of the world's best talent plying their trade in England and for your average neutral football fan you really couldn't ask for more. I know there are a lot of people out there who feel that there is a slow demise in the game in this country. It is a view that doesn't hold much weight in my eyes, especially as we go into the last game of the season with two teams level on points challenging for the title whilst at the bottom we have three teams fighting for 17th spot that will keep them in the Premier League next season - it is entertainment at its best and something that never use to happen in the supposed grand old days.

The Premier League throughout its 16 years has seen some of the finest footballers that this country has ever produced or been brought in from foreign shores. The likes of Scholes, Gerrard and Beckham have been coupled by the arrivals of the likes of Cantona, Zola or a Henry. It is a bottomless pit of talent and Football FanCast along with the WKD Sports shed are on a mission to find out who is the Premiership player of all time in defence/midfield/striker - it is the most unenviable task as there have been some great players and we will no doubt be accused of some glaring omissions, but that is what a friendly debate is all about.

After the last two debates which has seen, Steven Gerrard walk away with the Premier League's greatest midfielder and Tony Adams as defender, we move on to the frontline to find out who is the finest striker in the Premier League's history. Once again I will provide the three nominations but you guys are the ones who have the final vote and feel free to put us right if the player is not on the list.

Alan Shearer:
I don't think that there will be many people surprised at Alan Shearer's inclusion in my top three nominations. Big Al was simply a goalscoring machine which kick-started with his move to Blackburn Rovers, where he formed a wonderful partnership in the fabled SAS with Chris Sutton, and continued to even greater heights when he went to his spiritual home at Newcastle United. He simply had no weakness as a striker as he was strong in the air, shoots with both feet and had just the right amount of pace to get him in behind a defence. There was no such thing as a tap in with Al and he use to blast that ball in the net. It is one of the great shames in football that Shearer never led his team to any silverware which would have been more than he deserved for his services to that great football club.

Thierry Henry:
Quite simply the finest import that has probably arrived on our shores. A tall gangly winger was what Arsenal fans thought they had signed when he arrived from Juventus, little did they know that Arsene Wenger was going to turn him into a goalscoring machine. He was an absolute sensation and the type of player who was worth the admission fee on his own. There is age old phrase that someone is "unplayable" and in truth that was Thierry Henry. He struck up a fabulous partnership with Dennis Bergkamp and was regularly getting 25-30 goals every given season. He had no weaknesses and it didn't take him long to smash Ian Wright's goalscoring record and become Arsenal's leading goalscorer of all time - the Premier League is a far poorer place without him.

Ruud Van Nistelrooy:
There is no doubting that Ruud has earned his place among my top 3. An expert in the art of goalscoring, the Dutchman very rarely missed. Taking over from the partnership of Yorke/Cole, Fergie needed a front man who can take on their mantle and how. 30+ goals a season was very much the norm, and who could forget that wonderful solo goal at Highbury which all but clinched the title for Manchester United in 2003. Unlike the other two nominees there was not one particular characteristic that really stood out other than his ruthlessness in front of goal. He very rarely didn't hit the target and his goals per chance ratio was extremely high. He has since gone and taking his goalscoring prowess to Real Madrid and like Thierry, is sorely missed in the English game.


Well they are my three nominations but use the vote button for those possible glaring omissions we have made.

It is the debate "Who is the Premier League's greatest striker of all time" that will be discussed on the WKD Sports Shed show on Nuts TV, so submit your vote and comment and get your opinion seen by many.

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