The name Sam Surridge won’t be familiar to most Premier League fans. Even supporters of Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth likely won’t have a great deal to say about the striker.
Over in America, however, the English striker is making a real impact. With MLS club Nashville, the 26-year-old has made a name for himself as one of the most prolific goal scorers in the league.
Surridge has been so hot in front of goal, in fact, he is even currently outscoring living football legend Lionel Messi.
Surridge’s Journey From Premier League Flop to MLS Star
Came through with Bournemouth
Surridge’s journey to MLS began in the South of England as he joined the Bournemouth academy when he was just 14. His talent was evident in loan spells with more local clubs Weymouth and Poole Town, and he later spent a further season with Yeovil Town, scoring 10 goals for the League Two club.
A further 12 goals in 20 games on loan at Oldham Athletic would see him return to Bournemouth to make his Premier League debut in 2019, playing against Arsenal. He’d end the 2019/20 campaign as the Cherries’ Under-21 Player of the Year.
Seven goals in 23 games on loan with Championship side Swansea City would follow, and he’d then break into the Bournemouth first team, scoring a first senior goal in the FA Cup fourth round, during a 2-1 loss to Arsenal.
However, with chances limited, he’d be sold to Stoke City in 2021, having scored seven times in 42 games for the Cherries. After just one season, Nottingham Forest would snap up the striker, and he’d help the club earn promotion into the Premier League, bagging an impressive seven goals in 20 Championship appearances.
Back in the English top-flight, Surridge would once again struggle for game time and in July 2023, Nashville would snap him up for $6.5m (£5m). His form in America has been solid throughout, but the striker has gone up a level in 2025.
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Surridge Outscoring Messi
“A killer in the most important moments
After a hat-trick (his second of the season) in a 3-2 win at New England Revolution, extending the Coyotes’ unbeaten streak to 12 games, Surridge moved up to first in the Golden Boot. Teammate Daniel Lovitz praised the English forward, saying:
“Obviously, once the goals start coming, he’s a really dangerous guy to play against. It’s something that we’ve found out; throughout his time here, and having him be so prolific is so important to free up space for other guys, but he’s such a killer in the most important moments.
“That’s what [you would] want for your No. 9. He’s a pleasure to play with.”
As the stats above show, Surridge’s form in 2025 has been so good, he’s outshone Messi. The Englishman has more goals (15 compared to 12), and has two more goal contributions in total (17) than the Argentine.
What’s more, he’s racking up more xG (13.4 to 7.7) and scoring with more frequency, bagging every 109 minutes, with Messi needing three more minutes on average to find the back of the net. It’s certainly a remarkable showing from a striker who flopped in the Premier League, scoring just one goal in 26 top-flight outings for Bournemouth and Forest.
Stats via SofaScore – as of 26/06/25
