The Premier League is approaching a landmark age: on August 15, the competition will be 30 years old, with that date ultimately ushering in a golden era for English football.
Although we may be 10 days away from that particular milestone, Friday sees the latest edition of the Premier League kick off with Crystal Palace and Arsenal contesting the opening game of the 2022-23 campaign at Selhurst Park.
As such, it only seems right to jump the gun a little and look back on the first 30 years of what many believe has become the greatest league in world football.
So, buckle up as Stats Perform takes you on a trip down memory lane…
Managing expectations
This is classic 'pub quiz' territory: which manager has presided over the most Premier League games?
You know it's either Alex Ferguson or Arsene Wenger, don't you? You probably end up going for the Manchester United icon because of his sheer longevity.
Alas, you'd be wrong.
Wenger took charge of 18 more Premier League games (828) than 'Fergie' before he brought his long Arsenal career to a close.
Nevertheless, Ferguson's 13 titles look unlikely to ever be matched. His closest rival in that respect is Pep Guardiola (four), with Wenger joined on three by Jose Mourinho.
Play on, player
Over the first 30 seasons of the Premier League, 4,488 players have appeared in the competition at an average of 149.6 debutants per campaign.
If we ignore the inaugural season for obvious reasons, the campaign with the most debutants was 2015-16 when 162 players made their Premier League bows.
Of the nearly 4,500 individuals to feature in the competition, Gareth Barry sits clear with the most appearances (653), the last of which came during the 2017-18 season with West Brom.
It's a record that will take some beating, but if anyone's got a chance of toppling him, it's his former Manchester City team-mate James Milner.
The 36-year-old, now of Liverpool, is fourth on the all-time list with 588 outings.
Forever young
Everyone loves a 'wonderkid'. The Premier League has seen more than its fair share over the years, and some got started very, very young.
Mark Platts was the first 16-year-old to ever play in the Premier League when he made his Sheffield Wednesday debut in February 1996.
When Matthew Briggs came along 11 years later and featured for Fulham at 16 years and 68 days old, you'd have been forgiven for thinking his record would stand the test of time.
It lasted 12 years until another Fulham player shaved 38 days off Briggs' record – that player was Harvey Elliott. Now at Liverpool, the young midfielder looks set for a glittering career.
The name of the game
Alan Shearer, Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, Mohamed Salah, Wayne Rooney – when you think of Premier League goalscorers, these are probably the names that immediately spring to mind.
Well, you're wrong. You should be thinking about Andrew Johnson, Glen Johnson, Tommy Johnson, Bradley Johnson, Roger Johnson et al.
Why? Because there are more players with the surname Johnson to have scored in the Premier League than any other surname.
There have been 21 of them to be exact, two more than the Williams clan.
Synonymous.
Get to the points
It's been a frustrating few (nine?) years for Man United fans, but don't worry, folks, if you just look at the big (massive) picture, it'll definitely all feel much better.
United still sit top of the overall Premier League table with 2,366 points, giving them a healthy 225-point cushion over second-placed Arsenal.
Manchester City may have won four of the past five league titles, a feat only United had achieved before them in the Premier League, but the real story is that they're way back on 1,629 Premier League points.
Yo-yo with the flow
To be fair, almost every single one of you knows what's coming here.
You guessed it, Norwich City's relegation from the last season makes them the yo-yoingest (yes, we've just made that up) club in Premier League history.
That was their sixth relegation to go with their five promotions to the top flight since 1992, taking them one clear of West Brom, who have the same number of ascensions but only five demotions to their name.
I love goals, goals, goals, goals
Of course, Shearer remains the Premier's League all-time leading scorer with 260, 52 more than Wayne Rooney in second.
But Harry Kane looks to be in with a chance of usurping both England greats – in fact, another solid season could take him beyond 200 as he begins the 2022-23 campaign on 183.
Kane also appears among the very best goalscoring combinations in the competition's history as he and Son Heung-min have linked up for 41 goals – that's five more than Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard as the next-best.
As for high-scoring matches, there have been three Premier League games that have finished with a nine-goal margin – two were achieved by Man United (9-0 v Southampton in February 2021, and v Ipswich Town in March 1995) and Leicester City managed it in October 2019, also crushing Saints 9-0.
Do call it a comeback
Your team's trailing 2-0, you're despondent and bereft of hope. But then, out of nowhere, you've got a goal back. Then the equaliser. And then, just when you'd convinced yourself "this draw feels like a win", a third goes in, and it's pandemonium.
There are few more satisfying situations in football than when you team produces such a turnaround – the despair you were feeling earlier only makes your full-time jubilation that bit more intense.
The biggest such turnarounds that led to wins all involved teams coming back from three goals down. Leeds United, Wimbledon and Wolves have all managed it in 4-3 victories, while Man United beat Spurs 5-3 from 3-0 down.
No team have done so since Wolves in October 2003, although Newcastle United certainly deserve a special mention – they are the only team to find themselves 4-0 down and avoid defeat. Their 4-4 draw with Arsenal in February 2011 remains a Premier League classic.
Stop the clock!
Here's another for the pub quiz enthusiasts: who scored the quickest goal in Premier League history?
Netting just 7.69 seconds into an April 2019 game between Southampton and Watford, Shane Long opened the scoring to break a 19-year record that had been set by Spurs defender Ledley King.
To put that into context, it'd take you longer to read that sentence. It was also quicker than Usain Bolt's world-record time in the 100 metres (9.58 seconds).
The latest goal ever is maybe a less notable record, but it nonetheless belongs to Bruno Fernandes, who in September 2020 scored a penalty after 99 minutes and 45 seconds to seal United a dramatic 3-2 win over Brighton and Hove Albion – yes, that's the game when the Seagulls hit the woodwork a record five times.
As for the quickest hat-trick, that was scored by Sadio Mane for Southampton against Aston Villa in May 2015, with his first and third goals separated by just two minutes and 56 seconds.
Southgate lauds 'extraordinary' England record-breaker Kane
Gareth Southgate felt the "extraordinary" Harry Kane showed his "mental strength" by scoring a record-breaking goal in England's 2-1 Euro 2024 qualifying win against Italy.
The Three Lions gained a measure of revenge for their loss to the Azzurri in the final of the last European Championship at Wembley with a victory in their Group C opener at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Declan Rice opened the scoring and Kane become England's outright leading goalscorer with a penalty at the end of the first half in Naples on Thursday.
A debut goal for the Argentina-born Mateo Retegui in the second half and Luke Shaw's late red card could not prevent England from securing a first away win over Italy since May 1961.
It was a special night for Kane, who broke a record he shared with Wayne Rooney by scoring his 54th goal for England.
A commanding first-half display enabled Southgate to become the third England manager to celebrate 50 victories in charge of the national team after Alf Ramsey (69) and Walter Winterbottom (78).
Southgate hailed his captain, who stepped up to make history in the Three Lions' first game since he crucially missed a spot-kick in a World Cup quarter-final defeat to France in December.
He said: "Kane was extraordinary. Breaking the record in these conditions demonstrates all the mental strength he has.
"It's truly an exceptional achievement; the players cheered for him and this is a reaction both to the record and what he had to go through in Qatar."
England were a cut above Italy in the first half, but it was a different story after the break and Southgate felt they made life difficult for themselves following such an impressive start.
"We had an exceptional first half, while it was a very tough second half," he said. "We showed two different faces; we controlled the game very well in the first half as soon as we escaped the first line of pressing and at the interval it might have been 3-0.
"At the beginning of the second half we made some wrong decisions and the momentum changed."
Ronaldo's commitment and experience crucial for Portugal's new cycle – Martinez
Roberto Martinez believes Cristiano Ronaldo's experience and commitment is crucial to Portugal's new cycle.
Ronaldo became the most-capped men's player of all time when he took to the field in Lisbon on Thursday for his 197th Portugal appearance.
The 38-year-old marked the occasion with two goals, scoring from the penalty spot before lashing in a free-kick to complete a 4-0 rout over Liechtenstein in Euro 2024 qualifying Group J.
Joao Cancelo put Portugal ahead early on and Bernardo Silva netted shortly after half-time, with Martinez's tenure getting off to the simplest of starts.
Ronaldo was dropped to the bench by previous coach Fernando Santos for Portugal's World Cup knock-out games, but Martinez wanted to get the five-time Ballon d'Or winner into his starting XI.
"It's a new cycle," Martinez told Portuguese media outlets.
"It's important for a player to show commitment and [to know] that we can use his experience, and Cristiano shows that."
Posting on social media, Ronaldo expressed his pride at sending yet another record tumbling.
"Such good feelings to play and score again for our national team, in a special stadium for me," Ronaldo wrote. "Proud to be the [most-capped] international player ever."
Reflecting on his team's dominant display, in which Portugal had 35 attempts and accumulated an expected goals (xG) of 3.9 to Liechtenstein's 0.03, Martinez said: "We have to enjoy situations like this.
"I realised that when you play for Portugal it's special. The players follow that line, it was a step forward to prepare for the next game.
"Of course it's an opportunity for me to get to know the players, the interaction, see how to take better advantage of the qualities. But I'm left with the attitude and willingness to work. I'm very proud of the result."
Portugal continue their qualification campaign against Luxembourg on Sunday.
Kane savours 'magical moment' of breaking England goalscoring record in win over Italy
Harry Kane savoured the "magical moment" of becoming England's outright record goalscorer in a 2-1 Euro 2024 qualifying victory over Italy.
Kane made history in the Three Lions' Group C opener at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on Thursday, breaking a record he had shared with Wayne Rooney by converting a penalty just before half-time.
The captain's 54th goal for his country doubled England's lead after Declan Rice had opened the scoring in a repeat of a Euro 2020 final that Italy won at Wembley in July 2021.
Argentina-born Mateo Retegui pulled a goal back on his Azzurri debut, and although Luke Shaw was sent off in the 80th minute for a second bookable offence, Gareth Southgate's side held on for their first victory away to Italy since May 1961.
Kane told Channel 4: "It means everything. We're so excited to put the England shirt back on, get the campaign started for the Euros next year. It had to be a penalty, of course, but once it hit the back of the net there was so much emotion.
"It's a magical moment. Thanks to everyone who's helped me get to this stage. It's a great night. We haven't won in Italy for so long. To score, and win this game, is just special."
Kane added: "I was on the pitch when Wayne broke the record. I know what it meant to him and I was so proud of him. I remember when I presented him the boot for breaking the record, he said he would be giving it back to me one day. A special man."
Rooney wasted no time in congratulating his former team-mate.
He posted on social media: "Congratulations to @HKane on becoming @England’s all-time leading goalscorer. I knew it wouldn't take long but that was quick. Great man, unbelievable goalscorer and an England legend. Congrats Harry."
Tottenham's record goalscorer Kane suffered the agony of a missed penalty that saw England crash out of the World Cup with a defeat to France at the quarter-final stage in December.
The striker felt it was important to show a positive response to that heartbreak in Naples.
He said: "It was tough to finish in that way, but we spoke this week about getting back to it. We feel like we are one of the best teams in Europe.
"Coming here and putting in a performance like that today shows we are ready for the next challenge. We've got a difficult campaign ahead."
Italy's defeat was their first in 41 European Championship qualifying matches.
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