Harry Kane - England
If not for Haaland’s unprecedented 15-goal start to the Premier League season, Kane’s prolific goalscoring record would once again be front and centre of attention. The England captain has bagged eight goals from his first nine games to start the season, following on from his previous 17-goal campaign and his 23-goal, Golden Boot-winning 2020-21 season.
Kane’s stellar club form with Tottenham Hotspur has also carried over into internationals, where he is yet to shy away from a major tournament. The three-time EPL Golden Boot-winner scored three goals in both the 2018 FIFA World Cup and the delayed 2020 UEFA Euro tournament, including crucially in extra-time during their semi-final against Denmark in the latter.
Mustering a remarkable 16 goals from as many international matches last year, the 29-year-old’s incredible record for club and country is surely only a sign of things to come in Qatar.
Robert Lewandowski - Poland
While the Polish talisman remains an outside chance of attaining the golden boot, amid the nation’s poor record at the tournament and upon drawing the likes of Argentina and Mexico in Group C, the 34-year-old’s goalscoring record speaks for itself and, as we know, funnier things have happened at the World Cup.
The all-time leading goalscorer for the European nation has been scoring for fun since his arrival at Barcelona in the summer after coming off 12 remarkable seasons in the Bundesliga, netting nine times in his first seven league matches and three times from as many UEFA Champions League appearances.
While the striker has only scored twice for Poland this year and is yet to significantly fire at a major tournament, failing to score at the 2018 World Cup and only netting four times across the past three European tournaments, the record-breaker’s flying start to his Barca career and his 11 international goals from 2021 indicate that he is more than likely to fire past his group stage opponents this time around and compete for the coveted golden boot.
Karim Benzema / Kylian Mbappe - France
It is not often that two of the greatest strikers in the world also happen to play for the same country. But that is exactly the case for title holders France, who have both Paris Saint Germain star Kylian Mbappe and Real Madrid veteran Karim Benzema at their attacking disposal.
At 34 years of age, the latter is the firm favourite to take home the Ballon d’Or this month off the back of an extraordinary 44-goal 2021-22 season across all competitions. Having served a six-year ban from international football, Benzema was recalled to the French squad ahead of the 2020 Euros. Since then, he has scored 10 goals from 14 matches, clearly marking his triumphant return.
Mbappe’s outstanding form for club and country, which includes scoring four times in his six appearances for France this year and beginning the current season with eight goals from as many matches in Ligue 1, has been largely overshadowed by a dispute with the national team governing body concerning image rights amid France’s many ongoing controversies.
Despite the French national team’s horror lead-up to the tournament, it is unlikely that the immense goalscoring power of these two players will be contained in Qatar.
Sadio Mane - Senegal
Another outside chance for the award, the Senegalese winger has also impressed at his new club in Bayern Munich upon his arrival from Liverpool in the summer, scoring seven goals across all competitions to start the 2022-23 season.
A stellar calendar year has seen the 30-year-old show no signs of ageing, closing out his final campaign at Liverpool with 23 goals across all competitions and scoring eight goals for his country in just 13 matches. This included netting three times at the delayed 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in January, which saw the Senegalese triumph over then-teammate Mohammed Salah against Egypt in the final via a penalty shootout.
While either Serie A forward Boulaye Dia or the Turkish-situated Famara Diédhiou will lead the line for Senegal, leaving the Bayern man likely to play on the left, Mane’s explosive form of late could catapult him to a shock victory in the golden boot race with group stage matches against significantly lower-ranked opposition in Ecuador and host nation Qatar.
Neymar / Vinicius Jr. - Brazil
Like France, Brazil are also blessed with two golden boot contenders who play for Paris Saint Germain and Real Madrid, respectively.
Equalling his French teammate Mbappe’s eight goals in Ligue 1 this season, Neymar’s prolific goalscoring record speaks for itself, particularly in his ability to rise to the occasion in major tournaments. Netting four and two goals in the previous two World Cups respectively, the 30-year-old only trailed Bolivia’s Marcelo Moreno in goalscoring for the Qatar qualifiers, levelling with Luis Suarez on eight.
Vinicius Jr., who enjoyed a breakout 17-goal 2021-22 season in La Liga, was only beaten out by his French teammate Benzema (27) and Celta Vigo’s Iago Aspas (18) in the golden boot race and has added five more to his career tally to start the current La Liga campaign.
Despite only netting one goal for Brazil to date, the 22-year-old’s outstanding club form of late means that he could very well go head-to-head with his Ligue 1-situated teammate as they look to break down the stubborn defences of Serbia, Switzerland and Cameroon in the group stage.
Lionel Messi / Lautaro Martinez - Argentina
Ahead of his final World Cup, there is not much that can be said about Lionel Messi that hasn’t been said already. The Argentine captain has opened his account for Paris Saint-Germain with eight goals from 13 matches across all competitions, as well as netting an incredible 10 times for his country from six internationals this year.
Meanwhile, his compatriot Martinez has proved a force to be reckoned with since his arrival at Inter Milan, scoring 58 goals in his first four seasons with the club which included a 21-goal showing in his most recent campaign. Martinez finished third in the race for Serie A’s golden boot as a result.
While the tournament in Qatar will be Martinez’s first World Cup, the striker is not shy of experience in other major tournaments, netting five times across the 2019 and 2021 Copa America tournaments respectively.
Messi scored three incredible goals at Brazil 2014 en route to claiming the award for best player. Despite only salvaging one goal from the 2018 tournament, he looks poised for a strong finish to his illustrious international career in Qatar alongside Martinez and Argentina’s endless supply of attacking options, which include Angel di Maria, Julián Álvarez and Paulo Dybala.
Cristiano Ronaldo - Portugal
Despite the current Premier League season being only 10 weeks old, to say that the 2022-23 campaign for the Portuguese captain has been a nightmare would be an understatement.
Not only is Ronaldo yet to score a goal from his six league appearances, the 37-year-old’s seemingly inevitable exit from the club during the transfer window never transpired and, as a result, he has grown increasingly frustrated with the ‘stubbornness’ of new manager Erik ten Haag and is now reportedly unwanted by several elite clubs.
To make matters worse, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s match fitness could prove an issue for his selection in Qatar amid the lack of game time at United this season. Nevertheless, if Ronaldo can miraculously arrest the form of his 18-goal 2021-22 campaign at his fifth World Cup, the forward could prove the doubters wrong yet again, building further upon a career for a player who has really nothing left to prove.
Alvaro Morata - Spain
Following his two-season long loan spell at Juventus, Morata has made an incredible start to his Atletico Madrid return with four goals in his first seven league matches, recalling the form of his last season at the club where he bagged 12 goals during the 2019-20 campaign.
Leading the Spanish line in recent internationals, Morata scored the winning goals in both of their matches against Portugal in the UEFA Nations League. He looks primed to keep his starting position at the November tournament, as La Roja attempt to break down the defences of Costa Rica, Japan and fellow European heavyweights Germany in Group E.
While Morata is yet to score on the world stage, his five goals scored across the 2016 and 2020 Euro tournaments respectively and his nine international goals netted over the last two years suggest that it could very well be time for the 29-year-old to shine in Qatar.
Romelu Lukaku - Belgium
While the 29-year-old has not played for Belgium since mid-June due to an unfortunate run of injuries, Lukaku is still expected to lead the line for Roberto Martinez’s side in Qatar.
The Chelsea player, currently on loan to Inter Milan, has only scored once from his three appearances in Serie A this season due to a thigh injury that has kept him on the sideline. But the Belgian talisman netted eight times for Chelsea last season, and more impressively, 11 times for his country from just 12 matches in 2021, which included four goals at the Euros.
Lukaku equalled this feat at the last World Cup, where Belgium was only eliminated in the semi-finals by eventual winners France, proving his incredible knack for a goal for his country, even on the biggest occasions.
Memphis Depay - Netherlands
Being perceived by many as a Manchester United flop upon scoring just two goals from 33 Premier League appearances between 2015 and 2017, the Dutchman recovered the form of his boyhood club PSV upon transferring to Lyon in January 2017, where he managed an astonishing 76 goals in 178 games across all competitions.
This included two 22-goal seasons, which caught the eye of Barcelona and led to his imminent transfer there ahead of the 2021-22 season, where he has mustered an equally impressive 13 goals from 30 appearances in La Liga.
Meanwhile, the 28-year-old was becoming a goalscoring machine for his country, having netted 17 goals from 16 internationals last year and adding four more to his tally in 2022. With the Netherlands being the highest-ranked team in Group A and likely to face similarly ranked opposition in the Round of 16, Depay could run riot at the World Cup if his recent international form is anything to go by.
