The job of a goalkeeper in a football team is relatively simple: keep the ball out of the back of the net.
Modern goalkeepers are becoming increasingly involved in starting moves from the back, but their primary job is to prevent the opposition from scoring.
However, there are circumstances where a goalkeeper can pop up at the other end of the pitch and become a hero by finding the net. Here are the top goalscoring goalkeepers ever:
Rogerio Ceni (129 goals scored)
The goalkeeper is a legend at Brazilian club Sao Paulo in his homeland, but not just for his goalkeeping ability. Ceni is the goalkeeper with the most career goals, having scored an incredible 129 goals in his playing career.
Ceni enjoyed a 22-year career with Sao Paulo, making a whopping 1197 appearances in all competitions.
Despite being a goalkeeper, Ceni was also a set-piece specialist, with 59 of his goals coming from free-kicks and 69 coming from the penalty spot.
In 17 appearances for the Brazilian national team, Ceni didn’t score a goal.
Jose Luis Chilavert (67 goals scored)
Although lagging way behind Ceni in the goalscoring stakes, Chilavert’s tally of 67 goals scored is still mighty impressive for a goalkeeper.
The majority of his goals came while playing in Argentinian with Velez Sarsfield, as he fired home 48 goals in 341 appearances for the Fort.
Chilavert holds the record for the most international goals scored by a goalkeeper, as he scored eight times for Paraguay in 74 appearances. He was also the first-ever goalkeeper to score a hat-trick in a competitive game.
Jorge Campos (46 goals scored)
The Mexican goalkeeper was infamous for his small stature, as he stood at just 5 ft 6 in, which by goalkeeper standards is small.
Campos’ story is slightly different, as many of his goals came from playing as a striker for UNAM. He was registered as a goalkeeper, but he wasn’t playing as first-choice Adolfo Rios blocked his path to a starting berth.
As he wanted to play, Campos asked his head coach if he could play as a forward. His coach agreed, and he scored 21 goals in 50 appearances in all competitions that season.
Over the next six seasons, he scored ten times for UNAM before leaving for LA Galaxy. At times during his MLS career, especially at Chicago Fire, he would go up front if his team needed a goal.
Unfortunately, he never quite recaptured that prolific goalscoring campaign at UNAM.
He scored six goals in his second spell with the Mexican club in season 1998/99. However, he failed to find the net for any of his other clubs after that period.
Johnny Vegas Fernandez (45 goals scored)
The Peruvian goalkeeper, not the Northern British comedian, was relatively prolific for a goalkeeper, scoring 45 goals in 495 appearances in club football.
A chunk of those goals came while playing for Sport Boys in his homeland, as he plundered 20 goals in 189 appearances from 1997 until 2003.
He ended up scoring 40 times in the Peruvian Primera Division, once in the Copa Sudamericana and four times in his country’s second tier.
Rene Higuita (43 goals scored)
Nicknamed ‘El Loco’ (The Madman), the Colombian was made famous by his eccentric style, epitomised by his famous ‘Scorpion Kick’ save against England at Wembley in a 1995 friendly clash.
However, Higuita wasn’t just famous for his eccentric style. He was also highly effective in front of goal during his career, scoring 43 goals in his professional career.
Like Ceni, most of his goals were scored from dead-ball situations, with 35 being penalty kicks and seven coming from free-kicks. However, he also scored a goal from a goal-kick in July 2003 for Bajo Cauca against Pumas de Casanare in the Colombian second tier.
Although the majority of his goals came in the club game, Higuita also scored three times for his national team.
Dimitar Ivankov (42 goals scored)
The Bulgarian ‘keeper enjoyed a 16-year career in the professional game, scoring a highly impressive 42 goals along the way. He is considered to be the highest-scoring European goalkeeper in his history.
During his career, he played for the likes of Levski Sofia, Kayserispor and Bursaspor.
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He became known for his goalscoring ability, especially as a penalty kick taker, with all of his career goals coming from the penalty spot.
The bulk of his career goals came while playing in his home country with Levski Sofia, as he found the net on 18 occasions in a nine-year career in the Bulgarian capital.
Marcio (40 goals scored)
The Brazilian enjoyed a long 17-year career in professional football, representing the likes of Bahia, Fortaleza and, most regularly, Atletico Goianiense.
Marcio played for the latter from 2007 to 2015, scoring 37 goals in over 400 appearances for the club. He also scored twice for Goiania and once for Goias.
Fernando Patterson (35 goals scored)
The one-cap Costa Rican international started his career in 1989 and didn’t retire until 2013 when he was 43 years of age. By the time he hung up his boots, Patterson had scored 35 goals in his career.
The most prolific period of his career was during a three-year stay with Guatemalan outfit Xelaju, where he scored five goals in 85 appearances in the Guatemalan top-flight—his time in the Central American country led to him becoming a naturalised citizen.