Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Cole Palmer and the chief contenders for the Club World Cup Golden Boot

Kane missed time due to injury, strolled through a few games, and had a humming attack around him, and still managed to walk the Bundesliga golden boot race last year, averaging nearly a goal per game and beating second placed Patrik Schick by five goals. This is, of course, Harry Kane's thing: he scores you goals - it's up to you to do what you want with them.

If these were any other Bundesliga games, you'd back Kane to win the whole thing. And he will certainly bang them in against the likes of Auckland City, Boca Juniors and Benfica. But he also has a pretty miserable record in big games, and has a knack of disappearing in knockout football. Odds are that he will be the tournament's top scorer at the end of the group stage. The key will be keeping it going after that.

Did Mbappe's goals mean anything this season? Sure, the Frenchman finished as Europe's top scorer, bagged a hat-trick in the Clasico, and spent a lot of time looking very happy celebrating. But after Madrid went trophyless, it all looked like a man content to be celebrating alone, enjoying individual success rather than team-wide accomplishment.

That, of course, has been the story of much of Mbappe's career. He is an immensely effective goalscorer, but he should have a more lush trophy cabinet. Few can refute that.

And so that same player will arrive at the CWC, no doubt hungry for goals. It will make for captivating viewing. Odds are, Mbappe will score a fair few. The question is: can Madrid remain in the competition long enough for it to matter in his golden boot quest? If they win it, then Mbappe will have enough time to bag the goals he needs. If not, it's up in the air.

Haaland endured something of a disappointing second season with Man City. He picked up a few knocks, Pep Guardiola's side lost their attacking flow, and the Norwegian didn't really know where he fit in among it all. There was talk that City are better off without him.

That's nonsense. In a well-balanced system, he turns a very good team into an unstoppable force. Issue is, that takes tactical tweaks and, crucially, time.

If City were in form, Haaland would be a lock here. Remember, this is the guy who broke the Premier League goalscoring record without really looking like he was trying in his debut campaign in England. Instead, this seems a lot like a team in transition, and a No. 9 still figuring out where he fits in.

No one really knows what to expect from the Cityzens - which leaves Haaland's golden boot prospects equally uncertain.

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One last time, eh lads? For the memories, yeah? Get the Uruguayan a few goals, feed him consistently. Remind the world, for a wonderful final few handful of fixtures, that Luis Suarez is one of the best strikers to ever kick a ball.

Issue is, Suarez can't really move anymore - but still tries to play like a younger version of himself. The Uruguayan hasn't adapted to MLS in the right way, which is ironic considering he found the net 20 times in his debut season in the league.

This campaign, though, his age has shown. He has scored just five in 13 games, and even if the seven assists make for good reading, Suarez's legs are catching up to him. That said, this is tournament football, and a smarter Miami could offer a different system.

A Suarez simply asked to function as a poacher could yet be deadly, and if Miami are to do anything, he will have to adapt his game. If he does, there could be some individual silverware as a reward.

Wouldn't it be nice? Salomon Rondon is 35-years-old, and like many, many talented footballers, has figured out how to be very good at that age in Liga MX. His Pachuca side dismantled the Columbus Crew in last year's CONCACAF Champions Cup final, and you'd bank on him to bag at least a few here.

Part of the Rondon allure is his efficiency. There are no extra bits here. He wins headers, gets into the box, and finds tiny pockets of space to shoot. Is it modern football? Not even remotely. But it can be mightily effective. This is the longest of long shots, but few would complain if such a vet made such a historic little run.

You'd get pretty good odds on Palmer doing this thing before the end of 2024. He was tearing up the Premier League for fun, scoring and creating. Since then, his production has tailed off. Part of the problem is he's tasked with doing so much for Chelsea. He is supposed to be their primary creator, goalscorer and vibes guy, all wrapped into one.

Well, things changed, and Palmer had to adjust his role into more of a creative presence. Yet at the end of the day, he finished as their Premier League top scorer, and provided in Europe, too. Give the Blues a few penalties for an obligatory stat pad, and he will be right in the mix.

PSG spread the wealth pretty well up front. In truth, what they have is three all-round mavericks, guys who can shoot, pass, dribble and press in equal measure. There is no lethal No. 9 here. You could argue that there isn't really a natural goalscorer.

But Dembele tends to be the primary beneficiary of it all, if only because he's often the one playing in the middle of Luis Enrique's buzzing, switchable attacking trident. He found the net 29 times between Ligue 1 and the Champions League, and settled into a real groove in front of goal towards the end of the campaign.

Dembele comes into the tournament in good form, and with a Champions League winner's medal hanging around his neck - just for good measure. The result could be an individual CWC to remember.