Ivan Toney Passes 50-Goal Mark in Saudi Arabia — Should England Take Him to the World Cup?

Ivan Toney passed the 50-goal mark in his latest game in Saudi Arabia.

The Al-Ahli striker bagged a hat-trick in a 4-1 win over Al-Khaleej on Tuesday to take him to 52 goals in his first 70 games for his current club.

Ivan Toney’s impressive goals record in Saudi Arabia

Toney is averaging a goal every 1.35 games for Al-Ahli since joining the Saudi Pro League club for £40 million in August 2024.

His recent form is even more impressive. Since Saudi football returned from its winter break in December, Toney has scored 10 goals in just eight games.

Toney’s hot streak has strengthened calls for him to be recalled by England boss Thomas Tuchel.

One fan tweeted this week: “Ivan Toney to make England World Cup team? I don’t know any other English striker playing ball around the world other than Kane.”

How Ivan Toney’s form this season compares to other England strikers

Toney’s scoring rate this season compares very favourably against most English strikers around the world.

Harry Kane is flying in Germany with 32 goals in his first 28 games for Bayern Munich this season, giving him a strike-rate of 114.3%. That is significantly better than Toney’s 84.6% record of 22 goals in 26 games for Al-Ahli this term, while Kane is playing at a much higher level.

However, Toney has been much more prolific than Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins, Barcelona loanee Marcus Rashford, West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen and Tottenham’s Dominic Solanke.

Were Tuchel to select his second striker after Kane purely on how many goals they have scored this season, then Toney would be a shoo-in.

In reality, Toney’s place in England’s squad for the 2026 World Cup looks far less secure. The former Brentford striker has not featured for the national team since July, when he made a very brief cameo in a 3-1 defeat by Senegal at Wembley.

England strikers ranked by club strike-rate this season

Player	Club	Games	Goals	Strike-rate
Harry Kane	Bayern Munich	28	32	114.3%
Ivan Toney	Al-Ahli	26	22	84.6%
Tammy Abraham	Besiktas	26	13	50.0%
Danny Welbeck	Brighton	23	9	39.1%
Marcus Rashford	Barcelona	29	8	27.6%
Jarrod Bowen	West Ham	23	6	26.1%
Ollie Watkins	Aston Villa	30	7	23.3%
Dominic Solanke	Tottenham	6	1	16.7%

Should Thomas Tuchel take Ivan Toney to the World Cup?

Based purely on numbers, it is very easy to make a case for Tuchel to select Toney in England’s World Cup squad.

He has outscored Watkins, Rashford, Bowen and Solanke so far this season.

Critics will point to the standard of Saudi football. Many believe that it is much easier to score in the Saudi Pro League than the Premier League and also that it is harder to maintain elite match sharpness when playing at a lower level.

However, the Saudi Pro League is much better than it was a few years ago and Toney is sharing a pitch with multiple senior internationals every week.

Toney is also the most Kane-like striker of the candidates to be the Bayern ace’s understudy. That means Tuchel would not need to rip up his tactical playbook were Kane to be rested or get injured.

Another plus point for Toney is that he would be statistically the best penalty taker in the England squad were he to be called up. Toney has converted 96.15% of the spot-kicks taken during his senior career and would be a strong asset in a penalty shootout.

Finally, Toney is used to playing in extreme heat. That could be crucial, with temperatures potentially exceeding 28°C at 14 of the 16 host stadiums in North America.

He has also become accustomed to playing in front of large numbers of empty seats during his time in Saudi Arabia. With World Cup ticket prices higher than ever and Donald Trump’s immigration actions creating uncertainty and concern among some fans about travelling to the United States, it is highly possible that some matches at next summer’s tournament will struggle to sell out.