The Championship is famously unpredictable, making heroes of some and fools of the rest of us.
Few would have pegged Blackburn’s Sammie Szmodics as a player who could net 27 goals but he did the business, almost single-handedly keeping Rovers up in 2023-24.
Szmodics is 15.00 to repeat the feat, but could still leave Ewood Park, with Southampton among those looking to take him to the Premier League. Even if he stays, the Republic of Ireland international may struggle to rediscover such a rich vein of form.
Championship Golden Boot Odds
Player | Odds |
Emmanuel Latte Lath | 11.00 |
Mateo Fernandez | 11.00 |
Carlton Morris | 13.00 |
Haji Wright | 15.00 |
Joel Piroe | 15.00 |
Sammie Szmodics | 15.00 |
Rest of market | 17.00+ |
All odds are courtesy of Parimatch, correct at the time of publishing and subject to change.
Emmanuel Latte Lath
Middlesbrough’s Emmanuel Latte Lath tops the betting alongside Leeds’ Mateo Fernandez. The latter is expected to be afforded more game time this season but may not be a guaranteed starter, so Latte Lath is preferred.
After signing from Atalanta in August 2023, the Ivorian scored 16 Championship goals. However, that number does not accurately reflect his form, with eight of those strikes coming in his final six appearances.
That run will give him the confidence to get going again and a home game against Swansea at the Riverside, a fixture in which he netted twice last term, looks a nice way to start.
Carlton Morris
Teams targeting promotion need a reliable source of goals and Luton’s Carlton Morris has become increasingly prolific.
Never fully trusted at Norwich, the 28-year-old learned his craft while on various loans. After a good spell at Barnsley, he banged in 20 strikes to help the Hatters win promotion via the play-offs in 2022-23. Improving as the campaign went on, he backed it up with a respectable 11 in the Premier League.
Morris’ early career was blighted by his wasteful finishing. He showed last season that he has the movement and skill to thrive in the top-flight and also demonstrated how sharp he could be in the box, quickly learning that you get little time to pick your spot against the big boys.
Luton begin their campaign on Monday against Burnley, a team their skipper scored against in 2023-24.
If he maintains his Premier League form, which his pre-season numbers suggest he can, then his 13.00 could prove very handy.
Jonathan Rowe
Value hunters need look no further than Jonathan Rowe. Currently at Norwich, he is being hotly pursued by Leeds, with the Canaries potentially open to selling the winger who is in the final year of his contract.
There were times last season when Rowe was the Championship’s best player and it is hard not to think he became stifled under David Wagner.
Wagner’s replacement Johannes Hoff Thorup looks set to play with more adventure, while he wouldn’t be short of freedom should he join former Norwich boss Daniel Farke at Elland Road.
Considering he hadn’t scored a professional goal before last term, the 21-year-old’s tally of 12 was more than respectable and he could prove an apt replacement for Leeds’ top scorer last season, Crysencio Summerville, who netted 20 times to earn a move to West Ham.