Erling Haaland already a near certainty for the European Golden Shoe
Haaland’s blistering form for Manchester City in the Premier League means he is already in second place in the European Golden Shoe standings
Erling Haaland has hit the headlines for his unbelievable goalscoring exploits for Manchester City this season and has already moved into second place for the 2022-23 European Golden Shoe, despite only playing eight Premier League games.
14 goals in eight league games for Erling Haaland at Manchester City
A number of different statistics can be used to illustrate the magnitude of what the Norwegian has achieved at the Etihad so far: he has scored 14 goals in eight league matches, 17 times in 11 games in all club competitions this season, has netted hat-tricks in three successive home fixtures and has become the fastest player to score three Premier League hat-tricks, doing so in 40 fewer games than Michael Owen, who is next on the list.
And the current European Golden Shoe rankings is another metric by which to measure his early-season success, with the majority of the other contenders near the top having played double or treble the minutes that Haaland has in the league this term.
The European Golden Shoe – in which only league goals are counted – is calculated using a points system, with goals in different championships worth different amounts of points and multiplied by different factors. The leagues ranked 1st to 5th in the UEFA country rankings (Premier League, LaLiga, Bundesliga, Serie A and Ligue 1) have a factor of 2, leagues from 6th to 22nd have a factor of 1.5 and all other leagues have a factor of 1.
Erling Haaland already second in the race for the European Golden Shoe
This means that Haaland’s 14 Premier League goals this season have earned him a total of 28 points, already good enough for second spot in the standings. The City striker trails only compatriot Amahl Pellegrino of Bodø/Glimt, who has netted 19 goals in Norway’s Eliteserien, which, as the 12th best league in Europe, has a factor of 1.5. Pellegrino’s 19 goals are therefore worth 28.5 points.
| Player | Club | League | Goals | Minutes played | Factor | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pellergino | Bodø/Glimt | Eliteserien (NOR) | 19 | 1334 | 1.5 | 28.5 |
| Haaland | Man City | Premier League | 14 | 664 | 2 | 28 |
| Jeremejeff | Häcken | Allsvenskan (SWE) | 21 | 1863 | 1 | 21 |
| Abdikholikov | Energetik-BGU Minsk | Vysshaya Liga (BEL) | 20 | 1903 | 1 | 20 |
| Sæter | Rosenborg | Eliteserien (NOR) | 13 | 1070 | 1.5 | 19.5 |
| Krollis | Valmiera | Virslīga (LAT) | 19 | 2197 | 1 | 19 |
| Beglarishvili | Levadia | Meistriliiga (EST) | 19 | 2261 | 1 | 19 |
| Lewandoswki | Barcelona | LaLiga | 9 | 539 | 2 | 18 |
| Vatnhamar | Vikingur | Betri Deildin (FRO) | 18 | 1959 | 1 | 18 |
| Þórisson | KA | Besta-deild (ISL) | 17 | 1708 | 1 | 17 |
Given that Haaland still has 30 league matches left to play in 2022-23, it is already almost impossible to see anyone challenging him for the European Golden Shoe, with eight of the other players in the top 10 playing in summer leagues and coming towards the end of their seasons. With only six rounds of Eliteserien left to play, Pellegrino’s time at the top will surely be over sooner rather than later.
Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski the only possible Golden Shoe challenger?
The one exception is Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski. The Pole has similarly made a superb start to his time at Camp Nou, having found the net nine times in his first seven LaLiga matches. In spite of that, he already trails Haaland by five goals and 10 points, another indication of just how impressive the Norwegian’s form has been since his move to Manchester. The European Golden Shoe looks to be Haaland’s for the taking.