A star striker can be the difference maker for any team in the Premier League. The opening weekend demonstrated just how competitive and cutthroat the division can be, and with the games coming thick and fast before the winter break enforced by the World Cup, expect plenty of goals to unpack. From Fulham shocking Liverpool with a 2-2 at Craven Cottage, to Manchester United losing at home to begin the Erik ten Hag era, it was a weekend that showed the unpredictability of one of Europe’s most competitive leagues.
While it’s too soon to be predicting who will win the league and who’s facing the drop in terms of Premier League betting, the opening day gave us an idea of who would be in the hunt for the Golden Boot. Last year saw Mohamed Salah and Son Heung-min share the award after bagging 23 goals each, and the usual suspects in the top scorer’s chart, combined with a few new faces, opened their account to get off to a good start. Read on, as we look at a few players we think will be in the race for the Golden Boot come the end of the season.
Mohamed Salah
It’s almost impossible not to back Salah to win the Golden Boot at this point given the Egyptian’s fine record in front of goal at Liverpool. Having broken the scoring record for goals in one season on his return to England from Roma, Salah has shown consistency in front of goal and although his form tailed off after returning from the Africa Cup of Nations, he clawed Liverpool back into the game against Fulham on the opening day and with some winnable fixtures coming up expect the Reds’ Egyptian King to continue this purple patch as the campaign continues.
Erling Haaland
Manchester City’s trip to West Ham United presented the perfect opportunity for Erling Haaland to announce himself to the Premier League. Despite an underwhelming debut in the Community Shield defeat to Liverpool, it was clear to see that with the service of Kevin de Bruyne that the Norwegian will find goals easy to come by this season. Haaland bagged a brace at the London Stadium with a penalty to boost his confidence, followed by a well-timed run and finish to get the defending champions off to a perfect start. Under Guardiola expect to see the 22-year-old turn into a different beast to the goal machine we saw at Borussia Dortmund.
Darwin Núñez
Something of an outsider in the running for the Golden Boot, Liverpool’s Darwin Núñez showed why Jürgen Klopp shelled out a club record fee for the Uruguayan, with Núñez wreaking havoc in his cameo appearance against Fulham. Coming off the bench to replace an ineffective Roberto Firmino, the 23-year-old gave us a taste of what he’ll offer the league with a neat flick to open his account for Liverpool, before touching the ball onto Salah for the equaliser. It’s still unknown how long it will take for him to be a regular starter at Anfield, but if he continues finding the back of the net it will be hard for Klopp to overlook him.
Harry Kane
Although many would be picking his partner in crime Son to top Tottenham Hotspur’s goalscoring charts, we’re backing Harry Kane to complete the hattrick of Golden Boots after a bright start to the campaign in north London.
Although he didn’t find the back of the net in the 4-1 rout of Southampton, the England captain looked a real threat under Antonio Conte, and with the Italian enjoying his first full season in charge at Spurs, his shrewd recruitment, bringing in Dejan Kulusevski on a permanent deal alongside Ivan Perišić and Richarlison have bolstered their attacking options, creating even more chances for Kane.
If he can find his shooting boots in the early part of the season and carry that form into the World Cup we could see one of the deadliest strikers in Europe come the new year. It’s a marathon not a sprint, so expect Kane to be scoring consistently throughout the campaign.
