With the European Championships and Copa America taking place this summer, football fans can be forgiven for forgetting the new Premier League season is just around the corner. The last campaign was dramatic until the very end, with football bet UK odds constantly changing due to the three-way title race between Liverpool, Arsenal, and Manchester City.
Ultimately it was City who prevailed, winning the Premier League title for a fourth-consecutive season. Now, as we approach what could be Pep Guardiola’s final season in English football, the Spaniard will be hoping his side can deliver the goods again, knowing star striker Erling Haaland will need to be on top form.
Despite suffering from some inconsistent performances, Haaland is always capable of finding the back of the net, and his 27 strikes last season ensured back-to-back Golden Boots.
In this article, we look at the players we think could challenge Haaland for the Golden Boot in the 2024/25 Premier League season. Read on to find out more.
Mohamed Salah
At the time of writing, Mohamed Salah looks set to remain a Liverpool player next season, even with interest from various clubs across the Saudi Pro League.
Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq came calling for Liverpool’s Egyptian King with a bid of £150 million, but Salah stayed at Anfield and scored 18 league goals as the Reds finished third in Jürgen Klopp’s final season.
Arne Slot has taken over as manager, and Salah will hope the Dutchman can instil the same attacking philosophy that proved successful at Feyenoord as he pursues the Golden Boot for the fourth time.
Alexander Isak
Even with the injuries Newcastle United endured at times last season, Eddie Howe had a perennial goal scorer in Alexander Isak.
The Swedish international is heading into his third season at St. James’ Park, arriving from Real Sociedad for a club-record £63 million in the summer of 2022. He scored 21 goals as the Magpies narrowly missed out on European football and will be hoping to improve on those numbers this time around.
Newcastle could lose Anthony Gordon this summer due to new financial fair play rules, leaving even more responsibility with Isak, who can operate as a winger and a recognised number nine.
Ollie Watkins
Aston Villa shocked everyone last season when they secured a place in the top four under Unai Emery, with the Spaniard proving to be one of the most tactically adept coaches in Europe.
While he reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2022 playing with two strikers, Villa’s new 4-2-3-1 system incorporates Ollie Watkins as a lone striker, and the former Brentford man enjoyed his best individual season to date as he smashed home 19 goals.
Watkins will have to balance his responsibilities of scoring domestically with the Champions League, where he will be coming up against some of the best strikers in Europe, and it will be interesting to see if he is up to the task.
Jean-Philippe Mateta
Certainly an outsider for the Golden Boot, there is no way we couldn’t include Jean-Philippe Mateta after his purple patch of form for Crystal Palace at the end of last season.
Oliver Glasner transformed the Eagles when he arrived in February. The Austrian helped the south London outfit to a top-half finish in the league, as Mateta finished the season with 19 goals in all competitions.
The stats don’t tell the full story, though. Mateta had been radiating confidence in the last few weeks, putting in good performances against the likes of Liverpool, West Ham United, and Villa, and scoring a hat-trick on the final day of the season.
If he can carry that good form over, it could massively help Palace deal with the loss of Michael Olise, who departed Selhurst Park for Bayern Munich in a deal worth up to £50 million.
