Best Number 9s In Liverpool History (Ranked) | OneFootball

The number nine shirt at Liverpool has seen some of world football's most talented artists paint their own stories upon the iconic shirt it lies on.

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And their fairytale careers at Anfield live long in the memory of the red half of Merseyside with their goals, performances and outright magic chanted about on terraces for years after.

Sometimes the burden of wearing such an iconic number can become too much for some to handle. For others, it's been the rocket fuel needed to kick-start their careers.

It's considered to be a huge honour to be gifted the chance to wear the number nine at Liverpool and it's a present that is only awarded to the finest players the club has seen.

In the 21st century, only 11 players have been gifted the chance to wear the number nine shirt at Liverpool. However, we'll be exploring the very best to have worn it of all time. In doing this, we'll consider several factors: the player's performance on the pitch, the value they delivered, the expectations set out for them, and the wider circumstances of their time at the club.

This comprehensive review is based on meticulous reporting and is substantiated with stats and figures provided by Transfermarkt, a well-regarded football data site. We will assess each signing's performances, their impact on the club, and the legacy they left upon the number nine shirt.

As you read further into this article, you will find some of those 11 players have managed to make it onto our list alongside some 20th-century greats. We can feel you chomping at the bit to get started, so with all that said, here are the best Liverpool number 9s in history, ranked.

8 Djibril Cisse

The Mayor of Frodsham, Cheshire deserves a place on our list for his whacky haircuts and flamboyant style alone, but alongside that, he wasn't too shabby on the pitch either.

Cisse wore the Liverpool number nine from 2004 to 2006 in a period where the club produced arguably their greatest ever result, the 2005 UEFA Champions League final win against AC Milan.

He scored a penalty on that momentous night in Istanbul and also got on the scoresheet a year later in the FA Cup final win over West Ham.

Big goals in massive games are what wearing the number nine shirt is all about and Cisse always produced on the grandest stages.

7 Steve Heighway

His 11-year stint with Liverpool's number nine on the back of his shirt says all you need to know about this club legend's prowess on the pitch and he scored 76 goals along the way.

Heighway led the line in the 1977 European Cup Final, where the Reds overcame the formidable German outfit Borussia Mönchengladbach.

The number nine's name is still sung among fans to this day, and his legendary status of being a key cog in the club's super-successful stint in the 1970s will forever be remembered.

1972/73, 1975/76, 1976/77, 1978/79, and 1979/80, alongside two European Cups in 1977 and 1978 were his greatest achievements in a Red shirt.

6 Ian St John

In his decade-long-stretch at Anfield, the Scottish footballer left his mark, creating one of the club's greatest-ever forward partnerships with Roger Hunt.

The fourth highest-scorer in a number nine shirt for Liverpool, St John found the back of the net on 118 occasions for the Reds. Despite his diminutive frame, the Scot could pack a punch.

He was brought to Anfield by the great Bill Shankly for a then club-record fee of £37,500. That would be nice in today's inflated market, wouldn't it?

St John left Liverpool in a better place than he found it, and took with him two league titles and an FA Cup winner’s medal alongside many a happy memory for Reds across the globe.

5 Roberto Firmino

The Brazilian's influence on the resurgence of Liverpool in recent years can never be understated. And the partnerships he created with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane will go down in Premier League history.

Firmino managed to score 111 goals with the number nine on his back, fully exceeding any expectations fans had for him when he arrived from Hoffenheim.

A key cog in Jurgen Klopp's heavy metal football, Firmino was the delicate magician who strung together silky counterattacks and attractive pacey play.

He left the Reds in the summer of 2023 with a tear in his eye and a cabinet full of silverware. Firmino will go down as a modern great of the club and the Reds already miss him dearly.

4 Billy Liddell

One of the greatest performers Liverpool football club has ever seen and one of the best talents to ever wear the iconic number nine on his back.

Liddell managed to rack up an impressive 228 goals whilst wearing the number for Liverpool, the second-highest of any player on this list.

The most unfortunate trait for Liddell was that he was at the prime of his powers on Merseyside when so many of his teammates weren't, and he was often left picking up the pieces for his team.

Nevertheless, his total goals speaks volumes about the kind of player he is. Number nines are meant to score goals, right? And that's exactly what Liddell did in the Red shirt.

3 Fernando Torres

Perhaps the most iconic Liverpool number nine in recent history, other than Roberto Firmino, El Nino and the Adidas, Carlsberg Liverpool shirt was a problem for defences across England and Europe.

In a time when Liverpool had few heroes to chant about, other than Steven Gerrard, Torres was signed to give the scouser some added firepower at the club and boy did he do just that.

His 81 goals for Liverpool isn't the most impressive tally on this list. Nevertheless, the flair, sheer pace and frightening talent he brought to Merseyside will never be forgotten.

If it weren't for his £50 million move to Chelsea, Torres would likely be viewed as more of a Liverpool legend. Alas, now the dust has settled, the Reds can look back more fondly at what the Spaniard achieved.

2 Robbie Fowler

Robbie Fowler was known simply as "god" to the adoring Anfield faithful, something which highlights the heavenly heights he hit with the Merseyside club.

The "Toxteth Terror" racked up an impressive 183 goals over his two spells with the club and in his day was one of the most fearsome forwards the Premier League had to offer.

His fairytale return to Liverpool in 2007, where he was given a one-year contract by Rafael Benitez, made his Anfield exit back in 2001 to Leeds United taste less sour.

The Guardian’s Rob Smyth described how Fowler “fused the mischief of Ferris Bueller with the swagger of Liam Gallagher.” Perfectly put.

1 Ian Rush

Simply the greatest-ever goalscorer to put on a Liverpool shirt and it would be wrong not to have Rush at the top of this all-time number nine list.

Bob Paisley splashed out £300,000 on the 19-year-old Rush, the biggest fee ever paid for a teenager in world football at the time and the rest is history.

After scoring 346 goals later, Rush cemented his name into Liverpool's number-nine history before he left for Juventus for a record fee for a British footballer, £3.2 million. This wasn't before the Welshman made an emotional return to Anfield in 1986 - firstly on a season-long loan from Turin and then moved permanently in 1988.

Rush won league Championships in 1981/82, 1982/83, 1983/84, 1985/86, and 1989/90. Three FA Cup's 1986, 1989, 1992. Five League Cups in; 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1995 and a European Cup in 1984.

As we have now come to the end of our list, a new name has emerged on the back of Liverpool's number nine shirt for the upcoming campaign in the form of Uruguayan Darwin Nunez.

Having made a name for himself at Benfica, the Reds dished out a club-record fee of £85 million for the striker in the summer of 2022 and an up-and-down first season followed.

An xG phenom, many expect the striker to come on leaps and bounds in his second season in England, much like he did during his time in Portugal.

With the number nine now placed firmly on his back, Nunez enters into the ranks and legacy of the names mentioned in this article and it will be interesting to see if he can fill the massive boots left by these legends.

Jurgen Klopp and co think that the 24-year-old can do just that and being given the shirt number indicates that he may have a huge part to play in the German squad in the future.

Following in the footsteps of Rush, Fowler, Firmino and many more is no easy task, but Darwin has demonstrated in his short time at the Reds that he is capable of kicking on and doing just that.

The passion and desire needed to wear the number nine shirt are attributes the forward has in abundance and his quest to become one of the club's greatest-ever strikers is well and truly on.