JUST IN: Messi 1st, CR7 2nd & Suarez 3rd... Players with most assists since the year 2000

Assisting a goal is just as important as scoring it.

Ask any striker in world football and they'll wax lyrical about the midfield geniuses behind them who setup the goals they score week in week out.

Of course, there are a selection of strikers who have also chipped in with a more than healthy number of assists throughout their careers.

In fact, there are five players considered to be 'out-and-out strikers' who feature in the top 25 assist makers this century, which you can view below.

Some of the statistics on show are mighty impressive and there are no prizes for guessing who is number one...

All data sourced from Transfermarkt.

25. Karim Benzema

Games: 740

Assists: 176

The striker who can do it all. Benzema's ability to assist, as well as score a shed load of goals, are reasons why he'll go down as one of Real Madrid's greatest ever.

24. David Beckham

Games: 581

Assists: 176

That right foot was so deadly. Beckham's best season in terms of assists came in 1999/2000, where he notched 15 in the Premier League alone with Manchester United.

23. Hulk

Games: 601

Assists: 178

Wherever the Brazilian has played during his journeyman career, goals and assists have followed. In the 2015/16 season with Zenit, Hulk registered 19 assists in just 29 league games.

22. Wayne Rooney

Games: 862

Assists: 179

Like Benzema, Rooney is the definition of a 'complete forward'. Rooney's highest total of assists in a Premier League season (13) came in 2007/08.

21. Eden Hazard

Games: 675

Assists: 181

A creative genius. While at Lille during the 2011/12 season, Hazard recorded 18 assists - and 20 goals - in just 38 Ligue 1 games, remarkable stuff.

20. Andres Iniesta

Games: 849

Assists: 182

Iniesta's game was about so much more than goals and assists. That being said, the Barcelona icon's output as a creator was still pretty impressive.

19. Dusan Tadic

Games: 587

Assists: 185

Put some respect on Tadic's name! The Serbian forward notched 15 assists in just 25 games during the 2019/20 Eredivisie season.

18. Dries Mertens

Games: 691

Assists: 188

One of the most underrated players of the modern era. The versatile forward has hit double figures for assists in four different seasons - once with Utrecht, twice with PSV and once with Napoli.

17. Thierry Henry

Games: 716

Assists: 190

Far more than just a serial goal scorer. Henry's tally of 20 assists in the 2002/03 Premier League season is still a division record!

16. Neymar

Games: 501

Assists: 190

The Brazilian averages 0.38 assists per game played, which is the joint-second best ratio on this list. Neymar hit double figures for assists in three different seasons with Barcelona.

15. Arjen Robben

Games: 703

Assists: 193

Robben never had a standout season in terms of assists, but the Dutchman's record is remarkably consistent. Imagine how many he'd have to his name without injuries...

14. Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Games: 861

Assists: 196

Zlatan's assist record is stellar. Five times in his club career, the enigmatic Swede hit double figures, including 15 in 33 games for PSG during the 2013/14 Ligue 1 season.

13. David Silva

Games: 754

Assists: 200

A playmaking genius. Arguably Manchester City's greatest ever player, with the illusive Spaniard reaching double figures for assists in five different seasons in English football.

12. Kevin De Bruyne

Games: 520

Assists: 200

De Bruyne is level with his midfield partner-in-crime, but in far less games. The Belgian's record of 0.38 assists per game is level with Neymar in second place.

11. Andrey Arshavin

Games: 700

Assists: 201

A somewhat misunderstood genius. Arshavin's time at Arsenal was mixed, to say the least, but he was in a league of his own at Zenit, notching 106 assists in 374 games for the Russian club.

10. Steffen Hofmann

Games: 629

Assists: 208

You may be asking; who? Well, Hofmann is far from a household name around the world, but he certainly is one in Vienna. The German midfielder scored 128 goals and assisted 208 in 540 games for Rapid Vienna. Amazingly, 25 assists came in just one Austrian Bundesliga season back in 2007/08.

9. Thomas Muller

Games: 667

Assists: 224

Muller recently equalled the Bundesliga record for most assists in a single season, creating 21 goals in 33 games for Bayern Munich. Not bad, Thomas, not bad.

8. Franck Ribery

Games: 649

Assists: 227

Ribery also notched 21 assists in a single Bundesliga campaign back in 2011/12, with the Frenchman hitting double figures for Bayern in six separate seasons.

7. Xavi

Games: 950

Assists: 230

No player on this list has ever delivered more assists in a single season in one of Europe's top five leagues than Xavi. In 2008/09, the Spaniard supplied 22 goals for his Barcelona colleagues, outrageous.

6. Cesc Fabregas

Games: 800

Assists: 234

A man born to assist. Fabregas has hit double-figures for assists in nine seasons during his career, including 19 in the 2014/15 campaign with Chelsea.

Fabregas with Chelsea

5. Angel Di Maria

Games: 695

Assists: 235

Even during his tumultuous season with United, Di Maria managed 11 assists in 27 Premier League games, some effort that.

4. Mesut Ozil

Games: 653

Assists: 253

Will we ever see him in an Arsenal shirt again? Who knows. His career may be petering out, but Ozil's stats speak for himself, with the German's record of 0.39 assists per game the best on this list.

3. Luis Suarez

Games: 713

Assists: 256

Remember when we mentioned the phrase 'complete forward' earlier? Well, this guy epitomises just that. An out-and-out striker should not have 250+ assists to their name, freakish numbers.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo

Games: 1008

Assists: 258

Ronaldo's assist record is criminally underrated. Yes, he may not be as much of a 'team player' as some, but the stats simply do not lie.

1. Lionel Messi

Games: 866

Assists: 319

The assist king! In 12 - yes, TWELVE - of his La Liga campaigns with Barcelona, Messi's assist tally has been in double-figures. There aren't enough superlatives in the English language to describe this guy.