Born in the south east of Ireland, Simon put his life-long love of football to good use when he started a successful independent blog in 2010. That opened up an alternative route to a career in journalism, and having had work published across a number of sites and publications, Simon joined the staff at Spotlight Sports Group in 2018.
We’ve reached the second half of the 2019/20 Premier League season and alongside the battle for crucial points and places, the race to finish as the division’s leading marksman is starting to intensify.
At the time of writing, Leicester City’s veteran poacher Jamie Vardy tops the charts with 17 goals – a haul that gives him a four-goal buffer over the next most prolific duo, Southampton’s Danny Ings and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (13 each).
However, with 17 rounds of fixtures still to play this season, the chasing pack littered with goal-getting superstars has plenty of time to close the gap.
You can read about the favourites for the 2019/20 Premier League Golden Boot in more detail, along with FST’s standout candidates and best outside bets to land the accolade below.
Remember, you can back any of our selections at 1/4 each way odds with bet365!
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FST’s Frontrunners
Jamie Vardy – 1/1
Appearances: 19
Current season goal total: 17
Last season goal total: 18
Jamie Vardy has been in electric form for a rapidly-improving Leicester City team this season, hitting 17 goals in just 19 starts for the flying Foxes.
Remarkably, Vardy has run up his impressive haul despite recording fewer attempts on goal per game (2.6) than many of his rivals for the 2019/20 Golden Boot.
Vardy hit an incredibly rich vein of form between mid-October and early-December where he scored for eight successive Premier League fixtures, though recent return of just one goal from his last four starts is worryingly lean
Last season, Vardy bagged 11 of his 18 Premier League goals after the turn of the year however, which suggests the battle hardened 32-year old is capable of rediscovering and maintaining his productivity right the way through the campaign.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 6/1
Appearances: 21
Current season goal total: 13
Last season goal total: 22
After hitting 22 goals for the season, Arsenal star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang shared the 2018/19 Premier League Golden Boot award with Liverpool pair Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, and the Gabonese international should be there or thereabouts when the prizes are handed out this year.
The talismanic attacker’s importance to the Gunners cannot be overstated, and Aubameyang has notched an eye-watering 46% of Arsenal’s total Premier League goals himself this season.
With new manager Mikel Arteta at the helm, Arsenal will hope to surge up the table in the second half of the season, however, at an individual level, Aubameyang might find that his goal-scoring chances are cut a little by a positional reshuffle of the Gunners’ frontline.
Having being deployed as a central striker by former manager Unai Emery, Aubameyang has been shunted out to the left by mew boss Mikel Arteta in the Spaniard’s attempts to squeeze Alexandre Lacazette into his staring XI.
And while that certainly won’t completely dissolve Aubameyang’s considerable attacking threat, it could reduce the amount of time the 30-year old spends in prime goal-scoring positions.
Mohamed Salah – 8/1
Appearances: 17
Current season goal total: 10
Last season goal total: 22
Prolific Egyptian winger Mohamed Salah is seven goals behind Jamie Vardy in the race to be crowned as the Premier League’s top scorer this season, and while the distance between the players looks almost insurmountable at present, we think there are enough factors at play to facilitate a turnaround.
Liverpool’s quest to win the Premier League title this year has turned into a procession, and the relentless Reds pursuit of domestic glory has seen them win 19 of their 20 matches since August.
Jurgen Klopp’s charges look like they are going to gallop home in record-breaking style from here on in, and Salah, who started the campaign in unusually low-key style, has started to find his goalscoring touch just in time to join the party.
The 27-year old scored four times in his last five Premier League appearances for Liverpool, vastly improving on the ratio that saw him net just five goals in 12 starts before that.
With James Milner set for a spell on sidelines, Salah will also take on the role of Liverpool’s sole penalty kick taker in the second half of the season, heightening his potential attacking output even further.
At the prices quoted, Salah is definitely worth keeping an eye on.
Great value each way outsiders
Sadio Mane – 10/1
Appearances: 18 starts (1 sub)
Current season goal total: 11
Last season goal total: 22
Sitting just behind Salah in the bookmakers’ list of favourites for the Golden Boot is the Egyptian’s Liverpool teammate Sadio Mane, who looks an exciting prospect at a massive 10/1.
The Senegalese wide attacker has been in blistering form this season and the 27-year old already has 17 goal contributions (11 goals, six assists) in just 18 Premier League starts for Liverpool since the summer.
Mane, of course, was one of three players to share last season’s Golden Boot award and the former Southampton star has all the tools at his disposal to hit a lengthy scoring streak at just about any juncture.
Like Salah, Mane plays in a team that look like winning every week, and the rapid attacker is almost certain to finish the season with a goal tally in the 20s for the second year running.
Marcus Rashford – 14/1
Appearances: 21 starts
Current season goal total: 12
Last season goal total: 10
Manchester United academy product and local lad Marcus Rashford is already enjoying the most prolific season of his career in 2019/20, and the 22-year old looks well on course to break thought the 20-goal ceiling for the first time this season.
Rashford has already plundered 16 goals in all competitions for United this term, 12 of which were hit in the Premier League, though the forward could have had another couple to his name had he converted penalty kicks against Crystal Palace and Norwich City.
Having started 100% of United’s Premier League fixtures since August, there is still a risk of burnout for a player who had played a peripheral first team role until this season.
However, the powerful mix of momentum and confidence fuelling Rashford’s performances at present make him a hugely interesting pick at the prices quoted.
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