From Mohamed Salah to Robert Lewandowski via Karim Benzema, Kylian Mbappe and Ciro Immobile, European football is loaded with goal scoring talent chasing down Golden Boots in the Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A.
Proven performers that have mastered the most difficult skill in football – hitting the back of the net – are worth their weight in gold and can be expected to contribute significantly to pursuits of major silverware and qualification for continental competition.
Who tops the goal charts at present in the major divisions across Europe, with some of the biggest names on the planet competing with one another for the right to be considered the most clinical finisher around? GOAL takes a look.
Premier League top goal scorers 2021-22
Getty ImagesCristiano Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United in the summer of 2021 saw another prolific presence added to the Premier League ranks, with the Portuguese tending to break records wherever he goes.
The Portuguese was, however, always going to face fierce competition for top scorer honours from perennial Golden Boot contenders such as Tottenham striker Harry Kane and Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah.
Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Mohamed Salah | Liverpool | 22 |
2 | Heung-min Son | Tottenham | 21 |
3 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Manchester United | 18 |
4 | Harry Kane | Tottenham | 16 |
=5 | Diogo Jota | Liverpool | 15 |
=5 | Kevin De Bruyne | Manchester City | 15 |
=5 | Sadio Mane | Liverpool | 15 |
8 | Jamie Vardy | Leicester City | 14 |
=9 | Wilfried Zaha | Crystal Palace | 13 |
=9 | Raheem Sterling | Leicester City | 13 |
La Liga top goal scorers 2021-22
GettyLionel Messi bid farewell to Barcelona on the back of five successive Pichichi Trophy wins – with Luis Suarez the only man not named Messi or Ronaldo to claim that award in the last 11 years.
A window of opportunity has swung open for somebody else to step up and become the goal king of Spain, with France international Karim Benzema leading that charge as he becomes a Galactico in his own right at Real Madrid.
Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid | 27 |
2 | Iago Aspas | Celta Vigo | 18 |
=3 | Vinicius Jr | Real Madrid | 17 |
=3 | Raul de Tomas | Espanyol | 17 |
5 | Juanmi | Real Betis | 16 |
6 | Enes Unal | Getafe | 15 |
7 | Joselu | Alaves | 14 |
8 | Jose Luis Morales | Levante | 13 |
9 | Memphis Depay | Barcelona | 12 |
=10 | Goncalo Guedes | Valencia | 11 |
=10 | Angel Correa | Atletico Madrid | 11 |
=10 | Luis Suarez | Atletico Madrid | 11 |
=10 | Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang | Barcelona | 11 |
=10 | Carlos Soler | Valencia | 11 |
Serie A top goal scorers 2021-22
GettyRonaldo claimed the Capocannoniere award in his final season at Juventus, but Lazio frontman Immobile has been the most consistent marksman in Italian football over recent years – netting 29 times in 2017-18 and on 36 occasions in 2019-20.
He does face competition in the present from an exciting new generation of forwards, with the likes of Dusan Vlahovic and Lautaro Martinez leading the way while England star Tammy Abraham impresses at Roma.
Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ciro Immobile | Lazio | 27 |
2 | Dusan Vlahovic | Fiorentina/Juventus | 23 |
3 | Lautaro Martinez | Inter | 21 |
=4 | Giovanni Simeone | Cagliari/Hellas Verona | 16 |
=4 | Gianluca Scamacca | Sassuolo | 16 |
=6 | Tammy Abraham | Roma | 15 |
=6 | Domenico Berardi | Sassuolo | 15 |
=8 | Marko Arnautovic | Bologna | 14 |
=8 | Victor Osimhen | Napoli | 14 |
=10 | Mario Pasalic | Atalanta | 13 |
=10 | Edin Dzeko | Inter | 13 |
=10 | Joao Pedro | Cagliari | 13 |
=10 | Andrea Pinamonti | Empoli | 13 |
Bundesliga top goal scorers 2021-22
Getty ImagesIt comes as no surprise to find that Bayern Munich superstar Lewandowski has walked away with the Torjagerkanone prize in each of the last four campaigns, and six of the last eight.
The Polish striker remains a model of remarkable consistency, with the 40-goal barrier across all competitions broken in seven consecutive seasons.
Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Robert Lewandowski | Bayern Munich | 35 |
2 | Patrik Schick | Bayer Leverkusen | 24 |
3 | Erling Haaland | Borussia Dortmund | 22 |
=4 | Christopher Nkunku | RB Leipzig | 20 |
=4 | Anthony Modeste | Koln | 20 |
6 | Taiwo Awoniyi | Union Berlin | 15 |
7 | Serge Gnabry | Bayern Munich | 14 |
8 | Moussa Diaby | Bayer Leverkusen | 13 |
9 | Max Kruse | Union Berlin/Wolfsburg | 12 |
=10 | Jonathan Burkardt | Mainz | 11 |
=10 | Andre Silva | RB Leipzig | 11 |
Ligue 1 top goal scorers 2021-22
Getty ImagesMessi would have been expected to take record-setting exploits with him from Spain to France, but the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner has found the going a little tougher in Ligue 1 than it was in La Liga.
He is, however, surrounded by a star-studded cast at Paris Saint-Germain – including potential Golden Ball winners of the future – while the likes of Wissam Ben Yedder and Moussa Dembele boast the kind of pedigree to suggest that they can never be ruled out of a race for the Golden Boot.
Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Kylian Mbappe | Paris Saint-Germain | 25 |
2 | Wissam Ben Yedder | Monaco | 24 |
3 | Martin Terrier | Rennes | 21 |
4 | Moussa Dembele | Lyon | 20 |
=5 | Gaetan Laborde | Rennes/Montpellier | 15 |
=5 | Andy Delort | Montpellier/Nice | 15 |
=5 | Jonathan David | Lille | 15 |
8 | Mohamed Bayo | Clermont | 13 |
=9 | Neymar | Paris Saint-Germain | 12 |
=9 | Dimitri Payet | Marseille | 12 |
=9 | Ludovic Ajorque | Strasbourg | 12 |
=9 | Karl Toko-Ekambi | Lyon | 12 |
=9 | Randal Kolo Muani | Nantes | 12 |
=9 | Arnaud Kalimuendo-Muinga | Paris Saint-Germain/Lens | 12 |
All tables correct at time of writing on 16/05/2022