The greatest super-subs in the history of football

In football, it's not only the 11 players on the field who shape the outcome of a match; the substitutes on the sidelines, ready to step in at any moment, can often be the ones to make the crucial difference. In the world's most unpredictable sport, impact can come from anywhere,

Some players have made their name in football for the magical moments they produce when coming off the bench. An easy example of a player who is currently doing it is Aston Villa's Jhon Durán.

The Villa striker has been in sparkling form this season, scoring six times off the bench and sealing match-winning goals against Bayern Munich, West Ham, Leicester City, and Everton, earning himself a new contract.

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However, Duran will need to deliver on a much longer scale to reach the legendary status of being one of the greatest super-subs ever. Here they are!

Former Manchester United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjær earned his name as a legendary super-sub in the 1999 UEFA Champions League final. He came on in the last ten minutes and scored United's winning goal in the 93rd minute to seal a historic treble.

The Norwegian striker earned his nickname 'The baby-faced Assassin' for his heroic moments off the bench for Manchester United. Solskjær scored 17 Premier League goals off the bench for United, which is the record for a single team's most goals off the bench.

The striker Solskjær shares the record for most goals off the bench for a single team with is former Arsenal man Olivier Giroud, who netted 17 off the bench for 'The Gunners' in the Premier League.

According to Givemesport, Giroud scored 40% of his goals in the Premier League coming off the bench, with many game-winning moments. Giroud scored 21 goals off the bench in all competitions for Arsenal.

Jermain Defoe scored goals wherever he went in the Premier League, and was even a lethal super-sub for Rangers in their title-winning season under Steven Gerrard.

Twenty-four of Defoe's 162 Premier League goals came from off the bench, a competition record. He never scored more than one goal in a game as a sub, so his goals came in 24 different matches—also, a Premier League record.

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Former Liverpool striker Divock Origi realised early doors he would struggle to get in Liverpool's front three of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, and Mohamed Salah. However, that never stopped him from being one of their crucial difference-makers.

The Belgian striker created many big moments as a sub for Liverpool. His first Premier League goal was a 96th-minute equaliser against West Brom. He scored against Aston Villa just 20 seconds after coming on, and found a last-minute winner against Everton in the Merseyside derby.

Sir Alex Ferguson brought in Mexican Javier Hernandez as his substitute weapon, with the striker waiting in the wings behind superstars Robin Van Persie and Wayne Rooney. The Mexican started 80 games for United and came off the bench 78 times. He was a real impact player.

'Chicharito' (as he was better known) scored 19 of his 53 Premier League goals off the bench. He scored a winning goal as a substitute in five Premier League games, sharing the record with six other Premier League strikers.

Belgian Leandro Trossard is a super-sub as Arsenal bid to secure their first Premier League title in over twenty years.

According to the Premier League website, Trossard has scored six of his 14 Premier League goals for Arsenal as a substitute, the highest percentage of any player to score more than ten goals for the club in the competition. One standout was his winner against Aston Villa earlier in the season.

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