Hunting Shearer: Kane, Lukaku chase Premier League scoring record

One was typified as a one-season wonder, the other as a limited player worth a pittance of a pricey transfer fee, but with each performance, Harry Kane and Romelu Lukaku bear fewer and fewer critics.

And for good reason, as the pair of 24-year-old goal-poachers continue to score at impressive clips, setting standards along the way for top-flight production.

Neither player will publicly admit to it, but there's one standard that both have eyed, and that's Alan Shearer's Premier League record for goals. Once an unfathomable and unreachable mark, both Kane and Lukaku fit the profile of a player capable of surpassing the Geordie's astounding achievement.

Related: Ranking the Premier League's top 5 strikers

Here's a look at how the three strikers' metrics match up, including Saturday's results:

Alan Shearer

Had the inaugural Premier League season taken place in 1987-88 and not 1992-93, this record would be even more elusive. Shearer scored 23 goals in five seasons for Southampton before moving to Blackburn in the summer of 1992 as England's revised top-tier was set to kick off.

Shearer's best season output was the 34 goals scored for Rovers in 1994-95, which is level with Andy Cole (1993-94) for most tallies in a 42-game season. Shearer sandwiched that total with 31 goals in both the season prior and after, the second of which is joint-tops for a 38-game campaign with Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Suarez.

Goals scored: 260
Matches played: 441
Goals per match: 0.59

Harry Kane

After an inconspicuous pair of seasons split between Tottenham and Norwich City, Kane has caught fire, scoring 21 goals in 2014-15 before tallying 25 and 29 in the two subsequent seasons, both good enough for league-best.

Kane's goals per match standard of .67 betters even Shearer's mark, and if the England international can avoid long-term ailments, with his average of 25 goals per season over the last three terms, Kane could catch the record during the 2024-25 campaign, when he'll be 31 years old.

Goals scored: 82
Matches played: 122
Goals per match: .67

Romelu Lukaku

Lukaku hasn't scored at the same rate as Kane, but the Belgian did get off to a quicker start, scoring 17 times for West Brom in his breakthrough campaign before bagging 15 and 10 in the subsequent seasons with Everton.

Now at Manchester United, Lukaku is finally getting the service he merits, and it's realistic to think he can surpass last season's career-best total of 25 scored with the Toffees. Assuming he continues at that rate - and he's leading the Premier League with six scored - Lukaku should better his .47 goals per match standard. Using the same 25 goals-per-season rate, Lukaku could match Shearer's record at the start of the 2023-24 season, when the towering Red Devil will be 30 years old.

Goals per match: .47
Goals scored: 91
Matches played: 192