Norwich City striker Grant Holt has emerged as the best value striker in English football this season, as new national team manager Roy Hodgson prepares to reveal his 23-man squad for the 2012 European Championships.
To launch its exclusive ‘Cash for Goals’ customer promotion, Currys and PC World have commissioned Opta, Europe’s largest provider of football data, to find out who the ‘best value’ footballers are in the Premier League based on their ‘cash-per-goal’ value.
The analysis has revealed that uncapped Holt is the best value English footballer in the Premier League this season. Having hit the back of the net 15 times, Holt has a calculated cost-per-goal value of just £26,667 – a staggering 35 times cheaper than Manchester United's Wayne Rooney, who comes in at a whopping £981,481 per goal.
The goals of the Premier League's top scorer in 2011/12, Robin van Persie, have been valued at a bargain £91,667 each.
Joining Arsenal for just £2.75 million in 2004, the Dutchman has proved fantastic value for money compared to his goal-scoring rivals.
By comparison, Rooney, Frank Lampard and Jermain Defoe all cost around £1 million per goal or more, adding fuel to the argument that England's best players cost too much in transfer fees, forcing managers to continually look abroad to bolster their squads.
Of the Premier League’s top 20 goal-scorers, Manchester United forward Ashley Young has the most expensive cost-per-goal value at £2.8m after scoring six goals this season.
Fellow Euro 2012 hopefuls, Daniel Sturridge and Danny Graham, have a similar cost-per-goal value with Sturridge’s goals valued at £318,000 and Graham’s £290,000, while Peter Crouch, who scored 10 times, has cost Stoke City a fairly hefty £1m per goal.
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Phil Samuels, Category Director of Consumer Electronics at Currys and PC World said: "Our Cash for Goals promotion adds an extra level of intrigue for our customers when it comes to keeping track of the England squad’s success this summer. We commissioned this research to get a fun insight into the real ‘cash for goals’ based on football’s top scoring players. If Hodgson is looking for a bargain this summer then Holt should definitely top his list."
The ‘Cash for Goals’ promotion nets Currys and PC world customers £10 for every goal England scores during this summer’s Euro 2012 football tournament in Poland and Ukraine - £10 per goal off any TV or laptop costing £549 or over, purchased before Wednesday June 6.
Customers register via a simple form within three days of purchase, either in store or online, to officially take part in the offer. More details can be found at www.cashforgoals.co.uk
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Gregg Davies is the Chief Sub Editor of FourFourTwo magazine, joining the team in January 2008 and spending seven years working on the website. He supports non-league behemoths Hereford and commentates on Bulls matches for Radio Hereford FC. His passions include chocolate hobnobs and attempting to shoehorn Ronnie Radford into any office conversation.
