Premier League include Shearer & Henry in Hall of Fame - Six more to follow

The Premier League has selected Alan Shearer and Thierry Henry as the first two players to be included in the new Premier League Hall of Fame. Six more players are supposed to follow by the start of May.

On Monday night, the league released a list of 23 nominees that fans can vote from: Tony Adams, David Beckham, Dennis Bergkamp, Sol Campbell, Eric Cantona, Andy Cole, Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba, Les Ferdinand, Rio Ferdinand, Robbie Fowler, Steven Gerrard, Roy Keane, Frank Lampard, Matthew Le Tissier, Michael Owen, Peter Schmeichel, Paul Scholes, John Terry, Robin van Persie, Nemanja Vidić, Patrick Vieira, and Ian Wright.

Shearer record goalscorer - Henry's goals per game only surpassed by Kane & Agüero

Alan Shearer and Thierry Henry were selected as the two most prolific retired strikers in the league. No player has scored more often in the Premier League than Shearer, and no forward has scored more goals per minute than Henry—at least among retired players. 

One look at the TM-Database reveals. Among the players that have scored at least 50 goals throughout their Premier League careers, only Sergio Agüero and Harry Kane have scored more frequently than Henry did throughout his career. Only former players are allowed to be nominated; to be more precise, the player in question will have to be retired by Aug. 1, 2020, to be nominated in 2021. 

Former Arsenal star Henry was also able to collect a few other arguments in his favor. The 1998 World Cup winner was the Premier League's top scorer on four occasions and is the foreigner with the most goals scored behind Agüero. Finally, Henry also holds the record for the most goals scored in an Arsenal shirt.

Premier League Hall of Fame: Who follows Shearer and Henry? 

Shearer won the Golden Boot on three occasions and won the title with Blackburn Rovers in 1995. The striker was also voted the best player in the league on five occasions—four times while playing for Newcastle United. Shearer is also the Magpies' record field player in the Premier League. Only goalkeeper Shay Given has played more often for the club since 1992.

Fans will have until May 2 to vote for their favorites. Among the players that have also been mentioned as potential initial candidates were Gareth Barry, Ryan Giggs, and Frank Lampard—the only field players that have played more than 600 games in the league. Among active players, only James Milner is close to that historical mark.