If you are something of a football nut, then you will no doubt have been disappointed that this summer didn’t bring with it the usual festivities associated with the World Cup, which should by now have been in full swing, but the good news is that your need for a football festival like no other is only slightly delayed and will appear on the horizon early in November.
Having a World Cup slap bang in the middle of a football season might take some getting used to, but there are perhaps some advantages when it comes to players being less exhausted as they might be at the end of an arduous campaign and though a lot has been made of the issues related to the hosting of the tournament in Qatar, it’s sure to still prove a massive success.
Interest in the tournament is already hotting up, and the latest World Cup odds are sure to be whetting the appetite of football fans as they await the return of Premier League action. Regarding the myriad betting markets for the tournament, one that is very popular and worth considering when it comes to your own betting strategy is the Golden Boot race.
In order to help you select a decent shout in this market, we’ve outlined five players worthy of your interest. This selection includes a few that are very much among the favourites, as well as a couple of longshots that may represent a calculated risk worth taking.
Golden Boot Hopefuls
Harry Kane (Tottenham & England) – 7/1
The Tottenham man finished the 2018 World Cup as top-scorer and already has form in this department and is sure to be a player that a lot of England fans back ahead of the tournament.
Such is the standing of the 28-year-old that last season was considered by most to be a poor one by Kane’s own very high standards, and yet he still managed to rack up 27 goals in all competitions for Tottenham alone.
Given that England have relatively easy group games where Kane can rack up the goals, against Iran and the United States, for example, it’s no surprise that the Premier League star is very much one of the favourites to land the Golden Boot in 2022.
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid & France) – 12/1
The veteran Real Madrid man had an incredible season in 2021/22, where he helped Real Madrid complete a La Liga and Champions League double and ended the campaign with 44 goals from 46 appearances.
As far as national team form, well, the 34-year-old was pushed out of the French set-up from 2015 up until 2021 for off-the-field reasons, but has scored ten goals in his last 16 appearances for Les Bleus and is a sensible bet to pick up the Golden Boot.
One slight issue could come from the fact that he’ll have to share the goal-scoring load with PSG youngster Kylian Mbappe and as such, this could restrict his personal total.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United & Portugal) – 14/1
There are some who may feel that the former Real Madrid man is past his best, but it is worth noting that in terms of Premier League goals last season, only Mohamed Salah and Son Heung-Min scored more goals.
This is perhaps Ronaldo’s last chance saloon when it comes to the World Cup, where it’s fair to say that the 37-year-old hasn’t been at his best. The Portuguese international scored in the 2006, 2010, 2014 and 2018 finals, but his total of seven goals in 17 finals games is not by any stretch of the imagination the kind of record that one would expect from such an accomplished player.
Maybe he can pull out all the stops in Qatar?
Neymar (PSG & Brazil) – 16/1
The Brazilian has scored six goals in ten World Cup finals matches and proved a big success in the qualifying campaign, where he helped A Seleção qualify with an outstanding record of 14 wins and three draws.
Neymar has always delivered the goods when in action for his national team, and under Tite, Brazil can mount a genuine challenge for a first title since 2002 and a bet on the PSG forward to finish as the top-scorer is a fairly sound one.
Interestingly Neymar is just three goals away from levelling with Pele in terms of national team goals, and you wouldn’t bet against the 30-year-old hitting those heights in Qatar.
Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich & Poland) – 40/1
Given that there hasn’t been a more consistent finisher in world football over the past few years than Polish forward Robert Lewandowski, the odds offered on the Bundesliga forward winning the Golden Boot are very long indeed.
Many don’t expect Poland to go far into the tournament, but that doesn’t mean Lewandowski can’t still challenge for the Golden Boot. After all, he gets to take on Saudi Arabia and Mexico in the first two group stage games before Poland faces Argentina.
If Poland gets out of the group, which seems eminently possible, then there’s no reason Lewandowski couldn’t get up a good head of steam. It’s unclear where the 33-year-old will be playing next season, with a move to Barcelona being possible, but wherever he’s playing his club football, he’ll be banging in the goals and could certainly impress in Qatar.
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