‘Selfish’ goal streak separates Cristiano Ronaldo from Harry Kane & Kylian Mbappe as bold Euro 2024 Golden Boot claim made by former England international

Ronaldo, Kane and Mbappe all have their sights set on continental glory this summer, with another European Championship crown coming up for grabs on German soil. They are expected to provide inspiration for Portugal, England and France as talismanic captains of their respective nations.

All three are charged with the task of delivering end product in the final third, and boast record-breaking CVs to suggest that they are some of the very best in the business. Those heights have been scaled due to talent and relentless drive, but Ronaldo is considered to take the art of goal-getting to extreme levels.

Mills has suggested that CR7, unlike his fellow forwards, would not be happy to claim another Euros title unless he was also in the Golden Boot hunt. The former England international has told BetVictor: “The Golden Boot, yes it's great, but it's only great if you win the tournament. I know centre forwards can be a little selfish at times, but I think Harry Kane would accept one goal in the Euros and winning it. Kylian Mbappe hasn’t scored in the Euros before. I'm pretty sure he would take one goal and a tournament win too. But maybe Cristiano Ronaldo wouldn't.

“It's difficult to say whether Ronaldo will win it again. There may be a game where somebody scores two or three goals that you weren't expecting. If someone has that perfect game and suddenly goes from one goal to maybe four, then of course they're in with a shout. It's always very, very difficult to predict. Winning the Golden Boot depends on how far you go in the tournament of course. Obviously, the more games you get, the more opportunities you will have. It sometimes depends on who is taking penalties too - that can make the numbers a little lopsided. It's a nice accolade to have and the strikers generally get all the plaudits and headlines. But you've got to have a strong defence and a very, very good goalkeeper to win major tournaments. Sometimes that's overlooked.”

Mbappe – who has suffered a badly broken nose with France – and 39-year-old Portuguese frontman Ronaldo are yet to get off the mark at Euro 2024. Kane, who has faced questions of his contribution to England’s cause, has netted once so far – with Niklas Fullkrug, Georges Mikautadze, Jamal Musiala and Ivan Schranz the only men with two goals to their name.