7 Longest Goals Scored in Premier League History (Ranked)

On the final day of the 2023/24 season, Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo wrote himself in the Premier League history book by scoring a stunning opener for the Blues from inside his own half. Caicedo’s goal was the pick of the bunch as Chelsea ran out 2–1 victors over AFC Bournemouth. The Ecuadorian’s first goal for the club was officially recorded as being over 50.5 yards in distance – not a bad way for the £115 million man to open his account.

In football, long-distance goals are rare but are always met with great excitement and joy, but not so for the beaten goalkeeper, who will always have questions asked of them when conceding a goal of that nature. In the English top flight, a few players have wowed fans over the years by scoring from inside their own half. Not all of them have been scored by outfield players, with goalkeepers getting in on the act, especially when the wind has started blowing, during the winter months. Whether from a set-piece situation or a pass back from a defender that has been booted long, the Premier League has seen some crazy scenarios that have led to goalkeepers finding themselves on the scoresheet.

Ranking Factors

GIVEMESPORT looks back at seven long-range strikes from the Premier League era and takes into consideration a few factors when ranking them, meaning the order is not strictly set by their distance from the goal, but by the situation within which the goal took place, and its overall impact on the fixture. Those factors are as follows:

• Distance from Goal
• Positioning of the opposing goalkeeper
• Goal Importance/Match Result

With all these factors in mind, here is the full list in descending order:

7 Charlie Adam

66 yards

Former Liverpool midfielder Charlie Adam scored an outrageous goal against would-be champions Chelsea back in 2015. Throughout his career, the Scotsman has backed himself multiple times from halfway, much to the frustration of fans who feel his shooting from the halfway line can slip into self-indulgence, and is a negative for the team as a whole when passing may be a better option.

However, on this particular occasion, his persistence eventually paid off as he saw Thibaut Courtois off his line and pinged in a wonder goal.

The goal comes in at seventh in the overall rankings due to a couple of factors. Although it is slightly further out than some of the other strikes, the importance of the goal is diminished somewhat as Stoke would still go on to lose the match, despite Adam’s stunning finish. There is also an argument that Courtois should have done better with the save, as he could get a hand on the ball as it looped over his head, but to beat a goalkeeper of the Belgian’s height and stature is still an incredible feat.

6 David Beckham

57 yards

A true icon of English football, David Beckham truly announced himself to the world with this long-range strike against Wimbledon in 1996. With Manchester United leading 2–0, Beckham noticed that Wimbledon’s goalkeeper Neil Sullivan was standing a long way out of his goal, and hit a shot from the halfway line – 57 yards out – that floated over the goalkeeper and into the net.

A goal that is consistently touted as the best goal scored on the opening day of the season, it helped to establish Beckham as the out-right first-choice right-side midfielder in United’s starting eleven. Although by no means the furthest-range strike on the list, it has to be higher rated than Adam’s due to its impact and the sheer audacity to take it on.

There is an argument to be had that this goal from Beckham, paved the way for all the halfway-line attempts that came after it, as players had confidence that it might come off.

5 Xabi Alonso

65 yards

Another former Liverpool player makes the list, in the shape of Xabi Alonso. The exquisite Spaniard was known for his technical ability and was also no stranger to long-range stunners. Merely nine months after scoring a goal of a similar magnitude in the FA Cup against Luton Town, Alonso brought his party piece to the Premier League.

At the time, the midfielder was widely regarded as one of the most gifted players in world football, with his long-range passing and vision widely lauded. His ability was highlighted to the extreme against Newcastle when having won the ball back himself just outside the centre circle, he spotted Steve Harper off his line and took his opportunity.

Harper was on the back foot the whole way and was left grasping at thin air as Anfield went into raptures.

The fact Liverpool would go on to win the match makes the strike that much sweeter, as it helped to determine a positive result for the team. Steve Harper’s position did help the ball find the back of the net, especially as he lost his footing on more than one occasion, which ultimately stopped this worldie of a goal from being higher on the overall list.

4 Wayne Rooney

58 yards

Is there a more perfect way to complete a hat trick than scoring from inside your half? Well, Wayne Rooney is a player that has completed that task. Having already scored two to give Everton a commanding lead, Rooney’s hat-trick goal turned out to be one of his best. Joe Hart, in the West Ham goal, had initially done well to race from his goal to tackle Calvert-Lewin, but he could only divert the ball into the path of Rooney, 58 yards from goal.And the England goalkeeper could do nothing as Rooney fired the ball over everyone and into the net. A strike that felt out of this world. The trajectory of the shot was unreal. Rooney is no stranger to audacious goals, but given the circumstances surrounding this finish, it has to be regarded as the best long-range goal scored by an outfielder in the history of the Premier League.

3 ​​​​​​​​​​​​​Tim Howard

100 yards

For the next goal on the list, we move into the realm of goalkeepers scoring goals. In a game at Goodison Park against Bolton Wanderers, American shot-stopper Tim Howard couldn’t even bring himself to celebrate after his incredible wind-assisted goal sailed over Adam Bogdan to give Everton the lead. A bitterly cold January evening yielded an unbelievable strike from the Everton goalie as his counterpart in the opposition net, Bogdan, was caught out by the wintery conditions. The Hungarian completely misjudged where the ball would bounce and could only dive helplessly into his own net as the ball sailed over his head.

The fact that Bogdan and Bolton were able to rally and come back to win the game 2-1 after such a luckless incident must be given great credit, but for Howard, it means his excellent strike can only obtain third spot, as his side were unable to claim all three points from the fixture.

2 Paul Robinson

80 yards

It was an incident that involved two England goalkeepers, with Paul Robinson getting the better of Three Lions’ team-mate Ben Foster. Distribution was always one of the strongest aspects of Robinson’s game – he would often hang long free-kicks to the edge of the box to try and unsettle the opposition’s back line.

However, on this occasion, his kick from 80 yards ended up in the back of the net, as a total misjudgment from the Watford keeper saw the ball bounce over his head and extend Tottenham’s lead. His defence lets down Foster on this occasion, but that shouldn’t take away from the spectacular efforts of Robinson.

Unusually, it wasn’t a maiden career goal for the Spurs goalkeeper – he scored a last-gasp header for Leeds United against Swindon Town in a 2003 League Cup tie, but from a considerably closer range than this strike. In the same vein as Alonso’s goal against Newcastle, scoring a long-range goal in a victory makes the legacy of the goal even greater.

1 Asmir Begovic

101 yards

Number one on our list is also the current record holder in the top-flight for the distance of his excellent strike. Bosnian Asmir Begovic holds the accolade after his amazing strike against Southampton at the Britannia Stadium. Not only because of its distance, but also the time the goal was scored makes the attempt even more remarkable. With only 13 seconds having passed in the first half before Begovic saw his thumping clearance loop over a hapless Artur Boruc with assistance from the windy conditions inside the ground. Similarly to Tim Howard, Begovic was too embarrassed to properly celebrate, feeling sympathy for his opposite number and showing solidarity as a member of the goalkeeper’s union.

Coincidentally, the goal made Begovic Stoke’s joint top-scorer for the season, at the time, another ridiculous stat that football can sometimes have. The goal was an important one for the Potters as it would be their only one in the fixture that would see the home side pick up a valuable point after Southampton equalized through Jay Rodriguez later in the match.

An iconic moment immortalized in Premier League history that will be spoken about and mentioned in pub quiz questions up and down the country for years to come.