A number of solid favorites, including Harry Kane, Mo Salah and Erling Haaland, feature in the 2022-23 Premier League Golden Boot battle.
According to Premier League odds, three of the previous four winners (Mo Salah, Harry Kane, Son Heung-min) are among the favorites to win the Golden Boot, awarded to the player who scores the most goals during the season.
The odd-one out and sole favorite is newbie Erling Haaland, who finished third in Bundesliga scoring last season with 22 goals. Darwin Nunez, another Premier League newcomer, rounds out the top five favorites. Liverpool paid Benfica over $100 million to secure Nunez’s services.
Let’s explore the three frontrunners’ chances of winning the coveted individual accolade.
Harry Kane (+600)
In terms of Premier League betting odds, Harry Kane provides the best value. The Tottenham talisman finished fourth in scoring last season, notching 17 goals in 37 appearances. It was, however, an odd year for Kane, who, at the start of the season, was preoccupied by a potential move to Manchester City. That preoccupation severely hampered his offensive output.
Kane managed to find the net just once in his first 15 contests, by far his worst stint in the top flight. Coinciding with Antonio Conte’s appointment as Tottenham manager, Kane put the transfer speculation behind him and got back on track.
He scored 16 goals in 23 contests to finish the campaign, the second-best goals-per-match ratio of any player. Only teammate and co-Golden Boot winner Son was more prolific in the run-in.
Kane has won three Golden Boots and enters the season highly motivated to return to his top-goalscorer perch. The England captain also has a few new lethal offensive threats alongside to aid in his quest. Dejan Kulusevski had the most assists per 90 minutes in the Premier League after his mid-season arrival from Juventus.
Spurs just signed Richarlison from Everton, another highly influential attacking option Kane will benefit from. Son, the +1000 fifth favorite, and Kane are the most successful scoring duo in Premier League history, further enhancing Kane’s stake on the individual honor.
Only an injury setback – a relative likelihood where Kane is concerned – or an otherworldly campaign from newcomer Haaland will prevent the Tottenham ace from returning to the top of the Premier League goal-scoring chart.
Mo Salah (+450)
Like Kane, Mo Salah is a three-time Golden Boot winner. The Egyptian shared last season’s award with Son, finishing the campaign with 23 goals in 35 appearances.
Salah has an advantage over Kane in that Liverpool will almost certainly be in contention for the Premier League crown, meaning goals aplenty for a prolific Reds’ side. Salah is without long-term striker partner Sadio Mane, who recently departed for Bayern Munich.
Liverpool, befitting their perpetually proactive character, didn’t miss a beat in signing Mane’s replacement, or should I say replacements.
The Merseyside club signed Luis Diaz during last season’s winter transfer period and added Nunez just weeks ago. Nunez, prior to his first season in the top flight, is the +1400 sixth favorite to win the Golden Boot.
While both players are bursting with talent and ability, it will take some time to build with Salah the type of telepathic connection he shared with Mane.
Even so, all three players are too good not to start banging in goals for fun.
I’d be remiss not to mention Liverpool’s fourth offensive weapon, Diogo Jota, who, at +2500, is the eighth favorite to win the Golden Boot. The Portuguese star’s presence can only help Salah in his quest for a fourth Golden Boot.
Erling Haaland (+250)
To say a lot is expected of Haaland is the understatement of a millennium. The $60 million man arrives from Borussia Dortmund as one of the world’s most prized assets. Haaland not only scores at a bountiful rate, he also produces against the world’s best teams.
Haaland scored 86 goals in 89 appearances with Dortmund, 15 of which in just 13 Champions League matches. He’s also netted 61 goals in 66 Bundesliga contests, numbers that elevate Haaland to near demigod status. And he is still only 21 years old.
His skill set and goal-scoring nous is such that he probably won’t endure the same assimilation challenges as other newbies. However, there is a slight chance the imperious Norwegian will require some time to adapt to the Premier League. Though there are a lot of similarities between the Bundesliga and Premier League, likely debunking that theory.
Haaland has the privilege of playing with a handful of the most esteemed and decorated players, including Kevin De Bruyne, arguably the world’s best playmaker.
You can see why, even prior to playing a Premier League contest, he’s the favorite to win the Golden Boot.
Always playing second fiddle to Robert Lewandowski, Haaland never won a Golden Boot during his time in Germany. Let’s see if Kane or Salah can follow in Lewandowski’s footsteps.
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