Since their inception in 1905, Crystal Palace Football has experienced a long and colourful history in the English game, having featured in all four of the country’s football pyramid.
Some players have been prolific in front of goal for the Eagles, becoming heroes in the process. However, who has been the deadliest attacking players in Palace’s history?
Peter Simpson (165 goals scored in 195 appearances from 1929–1935)
The Scottish forward represented the Eagles for six seasons, scoring a highly impressive 165 goals in 195 appearances.
Simpson’s most prolific campaign came in season 1930/31 when he scored 46 goals in all competitions. He holds the record for Crystal Palace hat-tricks, as the forward scored 19 trebles during his career with the Eagles.
Edwin Smith (124 goals scored in 192 appearances from 1911–1920)
Smith arrived at the London club in 1911 from Hull City. The diminutive Birmingham-born star is still considered to be one of the greatest Crystal Palace strikers ever.
His record of 124 goals in 192 appearances in nine years is a highly respectable one. Only Peter Simpson has scored more goals than Smith for the Eagles.
Ian Wright (118 goals scored in 277 appearances from 1985–1991)
The former England international joined Palace from non-league Greenwich Borough at 21, with the fee reportedly a set of weightlifting equipment. He turned out to be one of the bargains of the era.
In six-and-a-half years with the club, Wright scored 118 goals in 277 appearances for Palace. His scoring record made him Palace’s post-war top goalscorer.
Wright won the Crystal Palace Player of the Year in season 1988/89 after he scored 24 goals to help the Eagles win promotion back to the English top-flight.
In September 1991, the forward earned a big £2.5m move to Arsenal, which was a record fee for the north London club at the time.
Mark Bright (114 goals scored in 286 appearances from 1986–1992)
Bright joined the Eagles in November 1986 from Leicester City for a fee of £75,000. He went on to play alongside Wright and become a club hero courtesy of his performances on the pitch.
The forward’s most prolific campaign of his Palace career came in the Second Division, as Bright scored 24 goals for the Eagles.
During his Palace career, Bright helped the team win the second-tier play-offs in season 1989/90 and a return to the top-flight.
In 1990, the forward won the Crystal Palace Player of the Year and was also named in the PFA Second Division Team of the Year in season 1987/1988.
Clinton Morrison (113 goals scored in 316 appearances from 1998–2002 and 2005–2008)
The Republic of Ireland international enjoyed two spells at Crystal Palace from 1998-2002 and 2005-2008. Morrison came through the Eagles youth system, scoring 71 goals in 180 appearances in all competitions.
He returned to the club from Birmingham City in 2005, costing the club a fee of £2m. Morrison scored 41 goals in his three seasons in his second spell.
The forward’s most prolific campaign for Palace came in season 2001-02 when he scored 22 goals.
Dougie Freedman (108 goals scored in 368 appearances from 1995–1997 and 2000–2008)
The Scottish international cost Palace £800,000 when he joined from Barnet in 1995. He stayed with the Eagles until October 1997, when he joined Wolves.
Freedman returned to the club from Nottingham Forest for a fee of £600,000. The striker enjoyed the joint-most prolific campaign of his Palace career in season 2001/02.
Freedman helped the Eagles win promotion to the Premier League via the play-offs on two occasions in seasons 1997 and 2004. He also won the Crystal Palace Player of the Year in season 2001/02.
The forward returned to manage Palace from January 2011 until October 2012. He also later returned to the London club as sporting director.
George Clarke (106 goals scored in 299 appearances from 1925–1933)
Having come through the youth system at Mansfield Town, the forward joined Palace from Aston Villa in 1925 for a fee of £500.
It turned out to be a bargain, as the winger went on to score 106 goals in 299 appearances in his eight years with the club from the English capital. He also formed an outstanding partnership with Peter Simpson, becoming the main supplier of the forward’s goals.
Johnny Byrne (101 goals scored in 259 appearances from 1956–1962 and 1967–1968)
Like many of the players on our list, Byrne enjoyed two spells with the Eagles, playing for the club from 1956-1962 and 1967-1968.
The forward came through the club’s youth system and played for Palace for six years before a move to London rivals West Ham in 1962.
Byrne returned to the club for the 1967/68 season, costing the club a fee of £45,000. He made 22 appearances in his second spell, scoring just four goals. In March 1968, he joined another London rival, Fulham, for a fee of £25,000.
Albert Dawes (92 goals scored in 156 appearances from 1933–1936 and 1938–1939)
Dawes enjoyed two spells at Crystal Palace. The first spell saw him arrive from Northampton Town as a replacement for the injured Peter Simpson in 1933.
During his first spell with his club, Dawes highest goal tally was 38 goals scored in season 1935/36. His goals in the Division Three South saw him called up to the England squad.
In December 1936, the forward joined Luton Town. However, he returned to Palace for a season in 1938. His second spell saw him score 16 goals in 44 appearances in all competitions.
The forward played for Palace during the Second World War in the regional league, although his appearances are not counted towards his career statistics.
Wilfried Zaha (90 goals in 458 appearances from 2010–2013 and 2014–2023)
The Ivory Coast international came through the youth academy at Palace. Zaha had two separate spells with the Eagles from 2010 until 2013 and then from 2014 until 2023.
He spent four seasons with Palace before making a big-money move to Manchester United. He struggled to establish himself at Old Trafford and returned to the Eagles in 2014. The winger stayed until the summer of 2023 when he joined the Turkish giants Galatasaray as a free agent.
Zaha won the Crystal Palace Player of the Year in seasons 2015/16, 2016/17 and 2017/18.