Liverpool attack - Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino
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Who are the best attacking trios in Premier League history?

| 17.04.2020
SPORTSBOOK ODDS

We look back at some of the top-flight’s best front threes

Liverpool may have to wait a while, but they’ll almost certainly be crowned Premier League champions for the first time in the coming months.

If and when that happens, it will have been a real team effort. The additions of Alisson and Virgil van Dijk have transformed their backline, they arguably have the best full-back pairing around and the midfield have been relentless.

And at the top end of the pitch, they have a sensational attacking trio in Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane. But how do those three compare to the best trios in Premier League history?

Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane (Liverpool)

We start with that Liverpool trio, who seem to suit each other’s game perfectly. Roberto Firmino may not be the most natural goalscorer, but his energy and skill knit Liverpool’s play together in the final third.

He forces errors with his constant pressing and his smart movement opens space for his teammates to exploit.

There are few, if any, better left wingers than Sadio Mane at the moment, while Mo Salah has grown into one of the best goalscorers in the world in his time at Anfield.

Liverpool’s midfielders don’t chip in with too many goals, but when their attack is this effective, they don’t really need to.

Raheem Sterling, Sergio Aguero, Leroy Sane (Manchester City)

Sergio Aguero - Man City

The figures speak for themselves with this three. During 2017/18, Manchester City smashed plenty of Premier League records on their way to the title.

They racked up the most points of any side (103), the most wins in a single season (32), most away wins (16), most consecutive wins (18), and most importantly in this discussion, the most goals (106).

They may lose some of those to Liverpool when this season finishes, but the link-up between their three attacking stars was incredible.

So many of their goals came from either Leroy Sane or Raheem Sterling getting to the byline and cutting the ball back to one of their teammates to finish from close range. Opponents knew exactly what City wanted to do, they were just powerless to stop them.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Carlos Tevez, Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

There are some who believe that the 2007/08 vintage was Sir Alex Ferguson’s best Manchester United team, and a huge reason for that was their electric front three.

In theory, Carlos Tevez started in the middle, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney to either side of him. But in practice, it was much more fluid, with the trio constantly interchanging and making it almost impossible for defenders to track them.

Rooney and Tevez were two of the best strikers of their generation, but this was the year that Ronaldo really took his game to a new level. He scored 31 league goals and won the Ballon d’Or for the first time.

With these three spearheading the attack, United won the league and beat Chelsea on penalties to win the Champions League.

Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka, Florent Malouda (Chelsea)

Didier Drogba & Nicolas Anelka

Florent Malouda and Nicolas Anelka weren’t as spectacular as Eden Hazard in wide areas for the Blues, but they were perfect for this set-up. Between the three of them, Chelsea’s attack had a bit of everything – speed, power, creativity, clinical finishing and real grit.

Chelsea scored a then-record of 103 league goals under Carlo Ancelotti in 2009/10 with these three providing the firepower.

While they pinned defences back, it also left room for Frank Lampard to flourish. The current Chelsea boss scored 22 league goals in 2009/10. Not only was that his best tally during a single season, it’s the most goals ever scored by a midfielder in a Premier League campaign.

So there you have it, we’ve chosen four contenders – who would you crown as the best attacking trio in Premier League history?

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Author

Daniel Anwar

Daniel has written about sport for Coral, Squawka, FourFourTwo and the Premier League, among others.