The Premier League has become one of the highest-scoring leagues in world football. In 2022/23, the season ended with a whopping 1,084 goals scored! According to Opta , that works out at 2.85 per game - a record since the league began.
The previous record was the year before, signalling a trend in British football. What was once known as one of the best defensive leagues in the world is now rife with goals. Perhaps this is down to new styles of play or maybe it’s thanks to all the attacking talent in the league.
Premier League clubs pay millions for the best players, which is why we’ve seen the likes of Erling Haaland and Mo Salah move here in the last decade. The question we’re interested in is simple: with so many attacking threats in the league, which footballer has the best Golden Boot odds this season? We checked the betting market and here’s what we found:
Erling Haaland - The Bookies’ Favourite
It’s no surprise that last year’s top scorer is the bookie’s favourite again. Most bookmakers in the UK put him at 2/9 to finish the year with the Golden Boot. However, we managed to find betting sites without GAMSTOP on BettingNonGamStop from outside the UK that offered better odds at 4/25.
Either way, the bookies think this guy is going to get the Golden Boot, so he’s not an ambitious bet at all. If you’re keen to play it safe, a little wager on Haaland feels like the right thing to do.
Especially when you consider his Premier League stats from last year:
Games Played: 35
Goals Scored : 36
Mohammed Salah - An Outside Bet
Haaland’s odds are nothing to write home about and many footy fans don’t see him as worthy of a punt. However, there’s another man who loves to score goals that presents much better value for money.
You can bet on Salah to win the Golden Boot in 2023/24 for odds of around 4/1 right now. A sneaky punt on him can quintuple your money come the end of the season - and it’s not a bad shout at all.
Erling Haaland recently picked up an injury and there are reports that Man City want to sign someone in January as cover. If he’s out for a few games, the door is wide open for Salah to swoop in.
Liverpool love scoring goals - partially down to their leaky defence - so there are ample chances for the Egyptian King to keep getting on the scoresheet. We think he’s got an outside chance of being top goalscorer this season and his odds will keep getting cut week after week.
Plus, history dictates that he can easily bag goals in this league - just look at his record since he joined Liverpool in 2017:
17/18 Season
Games Played: 36
Goals Scored : 32
18/19 Season
Games Played: 38
Goals Scored : 22
19/20 Season
Games Played: 34
Goals Scored: 19
20/21 Season
Games Played : 37
Goals Scored : 22
21/22 Season
Games Played: 35
Goals Scored : 23
22/23 Season
Games Played: 38
Goals Scored: 19
Son Hueng-Min - The Lucky Punt
If you’re really feeling lucky and want to make a lucky punt, put some money on Son Hueng-Min to win the Golden Boot. He’s never done it before - though that’s largely because he’s been in a team with Harry Kane for years.
With big Harry terrorising defenders in Germany, the stage is set for Son to shine. In fairness, he has hit double figures in all of his Premier League seasons since 2016/17. That’s remarkable given he’s always played second fiddle and was primarily used out on the wing to supply goals.
This year, he’s already matched his tally of 10 goals from last season and isn’t far behind Haaland at all. With odds of 12/1 across most bookmakers, this has all the makings of a genius wager.
Take last year out of the equation as Spurs were pretty rubbish and his stats from the two previous years are very easy on the eye:
21/22 Season
Games Played: 35
Goals Scored: 23
20/21 Season
Games Played: 37
Goals Scored: 17
So, that’s where the bookies think the Golden Boot is heading this year. In all likelihood, the man from Norway will reclaim his top goalscorer award but don’t rule out some little wagers on Salah or Son. You get great odds for both and if Haaland does stay injured for the foreseeable future, then who knows what’ll happen?!