Manchester City striker Erling Haaland had a record-breaking season in 2022-23 as the Premier League’s top scorer and will not be easily stopped again. The Norwegian footballer scored 36 league goals as City took the title ahead of Arsenal. Harry Kane also had a great offensive season but was still six goals behind Haaland.
Will Haaland win the Golden Boot again this season, or will someone get in his way? Let’s take a closer look at all potential applicants.
Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
Let’s start with the obvious favorite. Haaland broke almost every possible record last season, becoming the top scorer in the Premier League. Haaland has scored 52 goals in 53 appearances in all competitions for City. He scored twice or more on 16 occasions and scored six hat-tricks. Moreover, it is his team that is the favorite of the season according to all bookmakers, including Gal Sports Betting.
Harry Kane (Tottenham)
There is a lot of talk about Harry Kane leaving Tottenham Hotspur. If he doesn’t decide to move to another team before the transfer window closes, then Harry Kane is expected to be in contention for the top of the scoring race once again.
His 30 goals last season is an incredible result. For understanding, this would be enough to win the Golden Boot seven times out of ten over the past 10 seasons.
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Mohamed Salah has won the Golden Boot three times. He is no stranger to this trophy. In the 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2021-22 seasons, he was the top scorer in the Premier League. Even last year, when Liverpool’s attack went through a transition period and the team couldn’t repeat the form of previous campaigns, he still scored a solid 19 goals.
However, the Africa Cup of Nations, which will take place in early 2024, is worth noting, and playing for the Egyptian national team in this tournament may hinder his quest to get ahead of Kane, Haaland or other contenders.
Darwin Nunez (Liverpool)
While Haaland has adapted easily to the Premier League, Darwin Nunes took a little longer to get into the rhythm after a £64m move from Benfica last summer.
The Uruguayan has scored nine goals in 29 league appearances but has shown moments of quality that indicate his potential to become more prolific once he gets used to English football.
Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
Marcus Rashford endured his worst season in attack in 2021-22 with five goals but then improved with 30 goals in 56 appearances for Manchester United. Seventeen of them have been in the Premier League, but that’s still less than half of Haaland’s total, which means he’ll still find it hard to beat the Norwegian this season.
Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal)
Arsenal’s top scorers last season were Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard with 15 goals each, but Gabriel Jesus also hit double figures. Injuries have cut his chances of scoring more than 13 goals in all competitions, of which eight have been in the Premier League.
The Brazilian striker is high on the list of favorite scorers for next season, but injuries could again hamper him as he misses the start of the campaign following knee surgery.
Christopher Nkunku (Chelsea)
Last season was unforgettable for Chelsea in a negative way. And many of their problems could be solved with a quality striker on the team. Even though they spent a lot of money last summer and in January, they couldn’t solve the problem with the goalscorer. They will be hoping that Christopher Nkunku can do better than their options last season.
The France international joined the Blues for £52m from RB Leizpig where he scored 16 goals and provided six assists in 25 league games.
Nkunku impressed in pre-season with three goals, but a knee injury against Borussia Dortmund ruled him out early in the season. The player’s overall outlook will depend on how much time he misses.
Alexander Isak (Newcastle United)
The 23-year-old Sweden international had a good first season at Newcastle, scoring 10 goals in 22 games. His comeback is all the more impressive given that he spent most of his matches on the left flank as a builder rather than a finisher.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe could be tempted to play Isak in the center more often this campaign, adding Anthony Gordon and Harvey Barnes to his side to take up a position on the left flank.
If Isak becomes the center of attack for Newcastle, then his performance could increase significantly.
