It’s almost closing time in Europe’s big leagues, but one thing yet to be decided is the Golden Boot awards. We look at who could add to their tally.
Anytime goalscorer market | Odds |
|---|---|
Chris Wood vs West Ham | |
Kylian Mbappe vs Sevilla | |
Mateo Retegui vs Genoa | |
Karim Adeyemi vs Holstein Kiel | |
Jonathan David vs Reims |
Odds courtesy of bet365. Correct at time of publishing and subject to change.
Chris Wood - Nottingham Forest vs West Ham
Wood is enjoying a tremendous season, and he has recently become only the second Forest player to score 20+ in a Premier League campaign. The Reds still have a chance to claim a Champions League spot, and the Kiwi will be key if they’re to pull it off. He’s their focal attacking point after all.
The 33-year-old doesn’t stand a chance at the Golden Boot - that’s expected to go to Mo Salah, but he does have a goal to reach. Two more in his final two games and he’ll equal Stan Collymore’s club record of 22 in a single PL season. Three more, and he’ll stand alone.
Kylian Mbappe - Real Madrid vs Sevilla
Things haven’t quite gone to plan for Los Blancos in Mbappe’s first season, but he’s shone on a personal level. Barcelona won La Liga, and Real are out of the Champions League - all that’s left now are personal accolades. He’s targeting the Pichichi Trophy, Spain’s equivalent of the Golden Boot.
The Frenchman has one hand on the trophy having bagged 28 goals in 32 games, but Robert Lewandowski is a hat-trick away from catching him. He’ll be desperate to hit the 30-goal mark - something not done at the club for a decade. It was last achieved by none other than Cristiano Ronaldo.
Mateo Retegui - Atalanta vs Genoa
It’s hard to see anybody catching Retegui in Italy’s Golden Boot race. With 24 goals, he leads his nearest competitor, Moise Kean (17), with only two games remaining. One more goal, however, would see him become the first to hit 25 goals in a league campaign since Pippo Inzaghi’s tremendous 1996/97 season.
The Italian hasn’t been quite so prolific of late, scoring just three since March, but they face a Genoa side in poor form. Retegui hopes to surpass Inzaghi’s record while helping maintain a five-game unbeaten run. They’ve already secured third place, so he can focus on personal achievement.
Karim Adeyemi - Borussia Dortmund vs Holstein Kiel
It’s been a pretty tough year for Adeyemi on a personal level. Injury kept him out for eight games early in the season after he’d started well, and it wasn’t until March that he truly got going again. Now, though, both he and Dortmund are in form.
Serhou Guirassy’s impressive form makes him the most likely scorer, but Adeyemi’s better value. With three goals in his last two games, he’ll be oozing with confidence, and BVB could climb to third this weekend if things go their way. It’s the last day of the season, and it’s against an already-relegated side, so he’ll want to end on a high.
Jonathan David - Lille vs Reims
It’s the end of an era at Lille this weekend as David prepares to play his final game for the club. After more than 230 appearances and over 100 goals, the Canadian will leave on a free transfer this summer. He has a chance to finish things off properly in front of a home crowd this weekend.
The Golden Boot is almost certainly going the way of Ousmane Dembele, but David’s 16-goal haul is still impressive. They face a Reims side winless in three, and though his goals have dried up over the last 10 games, this match will still be important for him. Football thrives on stories, and a proper send-off would be a dream scenario.