Assists are not easy to come by, especially because you have to rely on the player you’ve provided that sublime pass to slot the ball past the goalkeeper clinically. That’s why assist records are difficult to break.
Thierry Henry still holds the record for the most assists in a league season (20), which Kevin de Bruyne recently reached but couldn’t surpass. Ryan Giggs still holds the record for the most assists in a career (162), with over 40 assists more than the next player on the list.
However, neither Giggs nor Henry are part of the Premier League’s most exclusive records club in history: assisting your teammates four times in a single Premier League game! In fact, there are only seven players in the history of the Premier League who have achieved such an astounding feat.
Today, Paul Pogba joined the club, triggering elite status by setting up four goals for Bruno Fernandes (2), Mason Greenwood, and Fred. So without further ado, let’s take a look at the list of the seven players who have all, at some point in their careers, made four assists in a single Premier League game.
#7 Dennis Bergkamp | Arsenal, 1999
One of the most creative strikers to ever play for the Gunners, Dennis Bergkamp was the iconic star who opened up this exclusive club in 1999. Quick on his feet with the sublime vision usually found in midfielders, the Dutchman created an astonishing four goals against Leicester City.
Arsenal youngster Nicolas Anelka scored the majority of the four assists on the night, picking up a fine hat-trick and helping his team-mate set a new record.
Bergkamp was a world-class footballer with a lot of iconic moments and performances, especially in the final third. But that quartet of assists has to be his best performance ever.
#6 Jose Antonio Reyes | Arsenal, 2006
This was when Arsenal hosted Middlesbrough at Highbury and gave them a profound and remorseless 7-0 thrashing. Many accolades went to Thierry Henry for his clinical performance in front of goal and his hat-trick, but the Frenchman’s exploits were nothing compared to what Jose Antonio Reyes did in that game.
The late Spaniard took the game to Middlesbrough, mesmerizing them with every turn, twist, and pass. Before the game was over, he had aided his team’s cause with a sublime four assists. With his performance that day, Reyes elevated himself to elite status as the second player in Premier League history to achieve that feat.
#5 Cesc Fabregas | Arsenal, 2009
It is common knowledge that the former Arsenal star is in second place for the record of most assists in Premier League history. While he remains 42 assists below Giggs’ remarkable 162, he surpasses the Manchester United legend when it comes to a different assist record: four assists in a single Premier League game.
Playing against Blackburn in 2009, Fabregas was explosive for Wenger’s side in their 6-2 win. Dominating the midfield for most of the match, the former Barcelona star put his name on the scoresheet, while assisting his fellow teammates with a record four goals. That match made him only the third player in history to achieve this.
#4 Emmanuel Adebayor | Tottenham Hotspur, 2012
While the first three players to achieve this remarkable feat were all at Arsenal, Premier League journeyman Emmanuel Adebayor became the first non-Gunner to do so in 2012. An out-and-out goalscorer, Adebayor was Tottenham’s sublime playmaker in their 5-0 win against Newcastle in 2012.
Creating four goals for his side while volleying a brilliant effort into the back of the net himself, Adebayor’s performance that day was extraordinary, as he became only the fourth player in Premier League history to accomplish the feat.
#3 Santi Carzola | Arsenal, 2013
Yes, Arsenal managed to add their fourth and final player to this list of seven. This will certainly be a difficult record for another club to break in the coming years.
Just a year after Adebayor’s fantastic performance against Newcastle, Santi Cazorla’s magical playmaking ability came to the fore against an unlucky Wigan Athletic side in 2013. The Latics defenders were no match for Cazorla’s passing quality and brilliance throughout the game as Arsenal scored four goals, with Carzola assisting them all.
Unlucky to get on the scoresheet himself, Cazorla was a force to reckon with, and that performance only stamped the player’s abilities in stone. He dictated the midfield, won the game in fine fashion and made history in the process.
#2 Harry Kane | Tottenham Hotspur, 2020
Sublime for Tottenham last season, Harry Kane’s partnership with Son Heung-Min made the star striker the first Englishman to join this elite list of players. Playing against Southampton, their brilliant partnership bore fruit to devastating effect as Son Heung-Min scored an astonishing four goals, with Kane assisting each of them.
It isn’t often a physically imposing striker is seen pulling the strings from the wings and the midfield, which makes Kane’s feat all the more impressive. With their goal rout, both players helped avoid certain defeat, as Spurs came from behind to beat Southampton 5-2.
#1 Paul Pogba | Manchester United, 2021
The Frenchman, against all odds, achieved this difficult feat only hours ago as Manchester United beat Leeds United 5-1 at Old Trafford. He is the latest star of the elite club and is also the first Manchester United player on the list.
Pogba set up Bruno Fernandes in the 30th minute for the first goal and played a superb pass from the flank to Mason Greenwood to set up the second. He then threaded a through-pass to Fernandes again to make it his third assist and finally teed up Fred to take his tally to four on the night.
With lots of rumors circulating about Pogba leaving Old Trafford, it is unlikely for interest in him to dwindle after such a brilliant performance at the start of the season.
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