After getting delayed for almost a year, Euro 2020 is back with a bang to entertain football fans and the majority of the fans are happy to watch their favourite players and teams playing to win the championship.
As the season has kicked off in June, now the fans are looking forward to the Golden Boot Award, which is given to the best goal scorer in the tournament.
French striker Antoine Griezmann holds the title after scoring six goals from seven starts in 2016 as France finished as runners-up against Portugal in Euro 2016.
Griezmann will be facing tough competition this year as the Euro 2020 championship will be witnessing some of the best football scorers. Terrific goal strikers like Harry Kane, Serge Gnabry, Romelu Lukaku, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Kylian Mbappe will be competing to bag the title.
Let’s look into the form of the top five golden boot contenders of Euro 2020 so far:
KYLIAN MBAPPE
Kylian Mbappe is considered one of the best strikers in the ongoing football season. With his striking rate, he is very much capable of winning the Golden Boot Award.
He is heading into Euro 2020 with a lot of energy and confidence after a successful season for his club Paris Saint-Germain. He scored 27 goals in 31 matches in the Ligue 1.
He is the youngest player to score eight times in eight Champions League games this season. He won the Ligue 1 Golden Boot award for 2019-2020. With his stellar performance, he has won the hearts of football fans. David Trezeguet has recently called him the rightful successor to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
But the young and dynamic French star has failed to score even a single goal for Les Bleus so far, and his performance on the field has been far from satisfactory. Didier Deschamps will be hoping the youngster will return to form in the crucial fixture against Portugal.
HARRY KANE
Harry Kane is considered one of the best strikers in the world. He has scored 222 goals for his club. With his stellar performance in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, he won the Golden Boot award. Harry has been unstoppable this season and has scored 23 goals in the Premier League.
He also bagged 14 assists which is the highest by any player this season. He is looking forward to adding another six goals to his already existing 34 goals for England so that he can break Michael Owen’s international record (40).
In one of his recent interviews, Harry Kane expressed he will be leaving Tottenham after the season. And with a good performance at Euro 2020, he would spark the interest of the football clubs who will be queuing to reel him in.
The Tottenham striker, like Mbappe, has failed to strike so far for the Three Lions in their group-stage fixtures. Questions are being raised about the tactics that Gareth Southgate is using in recent days. With England through to the knockout rounds, Harry Kane will have a crucial role to play in the team’s fortunes.
ROMELU LUKAKU
Romelu Lukaku is a phenomenal player and one of the best forwards at EURO 2020. He is looking forward to breaking his own 2018 FIFA World Cup record of having finished the competition in second place.
He had a stunning season with Inter Milan where he bagged 24 goals in 36 matches in Serie A. Lukaku has led Inter Milan to its first title in 11 years. He has a goal average of 1.56 in 90 minutes making him one of the top contenders and most dangerous attackers in the EURO 2020.
He is aiming to bring the same game to Euro 2020. With Kevin De Bruyne and Youri Tielemans present, Lukaku is in a good position to win the Golden Boot this season.
The Belgian star has already scored thrice in the tournament from seven attempts, scoring twice in their opening fixture against Russia and once against Finland. His goals have made Belgium’s path to knockouts smooth and there are surely more to come in the knockout rounds.
ANTOINE GRIEZMANN
Griezmann will try to retain his title after winning the Golden Boot in Euro 2016. He has scored 20 goals in 51 games for Barcelona this season ahead of the Euros.
With Kylian Mbappe out of form so far, it has been Griezmann’s job to rescue France especially in the game against Denmark.
But the French veteran had just one shot on target this tournament so far and the trio of Kylian Mbappe, Karim Benzema and Antoine Griezmann are yet to show their potential for the World Champions.
CRISTIANO RONALDO
It would be an injustice not to talk about Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo when it comes to the best players in football. Age is just a number for this legend. He is also an all-time high goal scorer for the team.
He is going to give tough competition to other strikers who are in the race for the Golden Boot. Ronaldo had a good season with Juventus and will be bringing the same energy to the EURO 2020.
The Juve striker is the first player to become the top scorer in three major leagues – in England, Italy, and Spain. With 29 goals in 33 matches, he topped the charts in this season’s Serie A.
Ronaldo has scored 103 goals in 173 games for Portugal before the start of the Euros and was looking forward to adding another six to them this summer to overtake Ali Daei’s (109) record as international football’s highest goal scorer. Ronaldo has already scored thrice in the two fixtures that Portugal played in the tournament along with one assist to currently lead the Golden Boot race. Along the way, Ronaldo has made history as the all-time leading goal scorer in the Euros. With crucial fixtures ahead for the defending champions, the GOAT will have surely more goals to his name.
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