In 2006/07, McCarthy scored 18 goals in his debut Premier League season enough to finish second in the Golden Boot race behind Didier Drogba. That was a campaign when physical duels were relentless, pitches were heavy, and goals came at a premium.

“You didn’t want to be outdone by your rivals,” McCarthy recalled. “There were so many world-class strikers Drogba, Rooney, Henry and Keane. The list goes on. Every weekend was a battle.”

It’s hard to argue against the numbers. Between 1997 and 2007, the Premier League’s top scorers rarely broke the 25 goals mark. In 1998/99, the Golden Boot was shared by three players Michael Owen, Dwight Yorke, and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink each with just 18 goals.

Compare that to the 2022/23 season, when Erling Haaland smashed home 36 goals, the most ever in a 38 game campaign. The gulf in scoring stats raises the question: has it become easier to score, or simply different?

McCarthy believes defending has evolved not necessarily improved. “Back then, defenders like Terry, Vidic, or Ferdinand was warriors,” he said. “You could beat them with pace, but you’d feel every tackle. Now defenders are faster, technically gifted, and tactically drilled.

It’s a new kind of challenge but maybe not as rough.” The data supports part of his point: in 2004/05, teams averaged 1.24 goals conceded per game; by 2023/24, that figure rose slightly to 1.36, showing that while teams attack more freely, defences still bend without entirely breaking.

The rise of the modern defensive midfielder has also changed the art of defending. Players like Rodri, N’Golo Kanté and Sergio Busquets have redefined structure, shielding backlines and controlling transitions.

That shift has reduced traditional man-to-man duels meaning strikers now face tactical walls instead of individual battles. “Football’s more technical now,” McCarthy admits, “but it’s less personal. In our day, you looked your defender in the eye and knew it’d be war.”

Yet the argument is not one-sided. For every Drogba or Henry of McCarthy’s time, there’s a Haaland, Kane, or Salah rewriting records in the present. Pitches, sports science, and analytics have advanced but so has the athleticism of defenders like Virgil van Dijk and William Saliba.

The modern game may be cleaner, quicker, and more analytical, but the fight for dominance remains timeless. “Greatness doesn’t belong to one generation,” McCarthy concluded. “It evolves just like the game itself.”