Van Nistelrooy vs Ferdinand
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Van Nistelrooy wins: Dominance, Peak, Statistics
Ferdinand wins: Longevity, Honours
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Showing full careers. Pick a window to recalculate the selected period.
Category radar
Verdict
Van Nistelrooy leads in 3 of 5 weighted categories. One of the deadliest penalty-box finishers of the 2000s: 150 goals for Manchester United.
Category breakdown
Season form · Goals per season
Career timeline · Goals per season
Cumulative output season by season — the shape of each career against the other.
GOAT pace tracker
Career stage · GOAT pace
Through season 5 · Goals per season| Ghost race · career day | 30 | 100 | 365 | 1000 | 1825 | 3650 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇳🇱 Van Nistelrooy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 75 | 207 |
| 🏴 Ferdinand | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 97 | 253 |
Careers are aligned at debut, so a rookie's first 5 seasons are measured against the same window in a legend's career — Yamal against Messi at the same age-stage, a tour rookie against Tiger Woods in 1996.
| Metric | Van NistelrooyRetired | FerdinandRetired |
|---|---|---|
| Career club goals | 350 | — |
| Premier League Golden Boots | 1 | — |
| Champions League top scorer awards | 3 | — |
| League titles | 4 | — |
| Champions League goals | 56 | — |
| Premier League titles | — | 6 |
| Champions League titles | — | 1 |
| Appearances | — | 673 |
| England caps | — | 81 |
| League Cups | — | 3 |
| Clean sheets | — | 250 |
| Dominance w25% | 80 | 76 |
| Peak w20% | 86 | 82 |
| Longevity w20% | 78 | 84 |
| Honours w20% | 76 | 80 |
| Statistics w15% | 88 | 76 |
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