Salah is on track for the best season of his career.

Mohamed Salah is having the best season of his career? In 22 matches, the Egyptian has already scored 16 goals and provided 12 assists. At 32, the Liverpool winger has only gotten better. But who else among the stars has had powerful seasons after the age of 30? The list is full of top players!

Lionel Messi (Barcelona)

2018/2019 season, 31 years old
Stats: 50 matches, 51 goals, 20 assists
Messi had an incredible 2018/2019 season. Barcelona won La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup, reached the final of the Copa del Rey, and made it to the semifinals of the Champions League. The Catalans could have won the European trophy, but the famous comeback by Liverpool at Anfield stopped them. Still, it's hard to deny Messi's magic. He terrified opponents, played extremely effectively, and didn't slow down after turning 30. He won the 2019 Ballon d'Or, and rightly so.

Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)

2017/2018 season, 32 years old
Stats: 44 matches, 44 goals, 8 assists
Ronaldo's final season in Spain was successful. Yes, Real Madrid didn’t win La Liga (finishing third) or the Copa del Rey. But they took the Spanish Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup, Club World Cup, and most importantly, the Champions League. These victories wouldn’t have been possible without Ronaldo. He didn’t play many matches, but his efficiency was remarkable. The highlight of his 2017/2018 season was his stunning goal against Juventus in the Champions League quarterfinals. In the 64th minute, Ronaldo scored a spectacular bicycle kick — one of the best goals in Champions League history, if not football in general.

Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)

2021/2022 season, 33 years old
Stats: 46 matches, 44 goals, 15 assists
After Cristiano Ronaldo's departure, Karim Benzema became Real Madrid's main star. His peak came in the 2021/2022 season. At 33 years old, Benzema showed he could lead the world’s strongest club. Real Madrid won La Liga, the Spanish Super Cup, and the Champions League, with Benzema leading the team to titles in every competition. He scored 15 goals in the Champions League, becoming the competition’s top scorer, and at the end of the year, he received the Ballon d'Or.

Zlatan Ibrahimović (PSG)

2015/2016 season, 33 years old
Stats: 51 matches, 50 goals, 20 assists
Ibrahimović was a goal machine in any league. Even at 33, Zlatan knew how to contribute to his team’s success. In Ligue 1, he dominated, scoring 38 goals in 31 matches, and PSG won the league title, the French Cup, Super Cup, and League Cup. However, in the Champions League, PSG only reached the quarterfinals. While his individual stats were impressive, they weren’t enough to propel PSG further — he scored 5 goals and provided 4 assists in 10 matches.

Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

2020/2021 season, 31 years old
Stats: 47 matches, 55 goals, 10 assists
Bayern Munich looked monstrous during the coronavirus season. Even the lockdown didn’t prevent them from winning all the trophies: the Bundesliga, Cup, Super Cup, and Champions League. And the key player in Hans-Dieter Flick’s team was Robert Lewandowski. The Polish striker scored with ease, style, and efficiency. There were no doubts that Lewandowski deserved the 2020 Ballon d'Or, but France Football canceled the award that year. Fans are still debating whether the award should have been given to him retroactively.

Antonio Di Natale (Udinese)

2010/2011 season, 33 years old
Stats: 37 matches, 28 goals, 6 assists
Antonio Di Natale is one of the best examples of the analogy between football and wine — he only got better with age and became one of Italy's top attacking stars. The late 2000s and early 2010s were his best years. In the 2010/2011 season, he won the Serie A top scorer race for the second consecutive time, scoring 28 goals in 36 matches. Additionally, Di Natale led Udinese to a top-4 finish in Serie A, which earned them a place in the Champions League qualifying rounds, although they didn’t make it to the main stage.

Didier Drogba (Chelsea)

2009/2010 season, 31 years old
Stats: 44 matches, 37 goals, 13 assists
Drogba was one of the best forwards in the Premier League in the 21st century. However, he wasn't a prolific goal scorer throughout his career, only hitting 20+ goals in the league twice while at Chelsea. The 2009/2010 season was his best in terms of stats. At 31, Drogba showed ruthless finishing, scoring 29 goals in 32 matches, plus 10 assists. Chelsea won the Premier League under Carlo Ancelotti, and Drogba was named the Premier League’s top scorer and Chelsea’s Player of the Year.

Aritz Aduriz (Athletic Bilbao)

2015/2016 season, 34 years old
Stats: 55 matches, 36 goals, 10 assists
Aduriz spent his entire career in Spain and was considered a solid striker, though not a star. His breakthrough season came at the age of 34. In 2015/2016, he scored 32 goals in all competitions, 20 of which came in La Liga. He helped Athletic Bilbao finish 5th in La Liga and reach the quarterfinals of the Europa League.

Diego Milito (Inter Milan)

2009/2010 season, 30 years old
Stats: 52 matches, 30 goals, 8 assists
Inter Milan's 2009/2010 season is one of the best in Italian football history. Under José Mourinho, they completed a treble, and Diego Milito was key in attack, scoring 24 goals in Serie A for Genoa before joining Inter. He scored 22 goals in Serie A and added 6 in the Champions League, including a brace in the final against Bayern Munich, helping Inter win 2-0. Milito was named the best player of the season in Italy and the Champions League, but surprisingly, he didn’t make the top 10 of the Ballon d'Or voting.

Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria)
2018/2019 season, 36 years old
Stats: 39 matches, 26 goals, 7 assists
Quagliarella’s career was hampered by a blackmail scandal, but after that, he had an incredible 2018/2019 season. He won the Serie A top scorer race, surpassing Cristiano Ronaldo with 26 goals. It was his most productive season, and it came at the age of 36!