Champions League Top Scorer Betting: Mbappe And Salah Battle It Out With Haaland
Betting sites have installed Norwegian superstar Erling Haaland as the 6/4 favourite to win the Champions League Golden Boot this season.
He currently trails rivals Kylian Mbappe and Mohamed Salah by two goals in the race for individual glory, but there is plenty of time for him to close the gap.
The odds on Mbappe seizing the crown have lengthened after he was unable to prevent his PSG team from losing 1-0 to Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
The French forward could now be heading for an early exit, which would remove one of Haaland’s main rivals from the equation.
Meanwhile, Salah’s out-of-sorts Liverpool side face a daunting Round of 16 showdown with Real Madrid, so he will need to rediscover his best form quickly.
UK bookmakers currently see it as a three-horse race, but a few interesting long shots could still muscle their way into contention.
With that in mind, we have rounded up the leading contenders to finish as the top scorer in this season’s Champions League.
Erling Haaland
Erling Haaland has been the most prolific striker in European football this season following his blockbuster summer transfer to Man City.
He fired in his 26th Premier League goal in just 22 games to help his team to a vital 3-1 victory over Arsenal on Wednesday.
That goal left him eight clear of England captain Harry Kane in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot, and he can now turn his sights to the Champions League.
He banged in five goals in just four group stage games, at a rate of one every 50 minutes, and he would probably be top of the goalscoring charts if he had not been rested for a couple of matches.
Man City are gearing up for a two-legged Round of 16 clash with RB Leipzig, which they should win without too much trouble.
They are the favourites for the Champions League, so it is easy to see why in-form Haaland is the 6/4 favourite with football betting sites to finish as the competition’s top scorer.
Mohamed Salah
Salah is currently level with Mbappe on seven goals apiece at the top of the Champions League goalscoring chart.
The Egyptian forward drew a blank in Liverpool’s opening game - a disappointing 4-1 defeat to Napoli - but he has found the back of the net in all five matches since then.
He was on target in a 2-1 win against Ajax, and he then added to his tally when the Reds beat Rangers 2-0 at Anfield.
Salah fired himself into contention for the Golden Boot award by scoring a hat-trick against the Scottish side at Ibrox, and he also scored against Ajax and Napoli in their remaining games.
However, he now faces a stern test when Liverpool take on Real Madrid in the Round of 16. Jurgen Klopp’s men lost 1-0 Los Blancos in last year’s final, and they kept Salah quiet during that match.
He is the 5/2 second favourite with William Hill for the Champions League Golden Boot with various betting sites, but that could be dependent on him putting Carlo Ancelotti’s men to the sword.
Kylian Mbappe
Mbappe made a superb start to the Champions League campaign when he grabbed a brace in a 2-1 win against Juventus.
He also scored twice in a 7-2 victory over Maccabi Haifa, and he ended the group stage with seven goals from six games.
Mbappe was the top scorer at the World Cup, and he has 28 goals in 33 games for club and country this season.
However, a thigh injury restricted him to a cameo appearance in Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich, and his second-half goal was narrowly ruled out for offside.
The Parisians now have a mountain to climb in the second leg, so Mbappe has drifted out to 3/1 with BetVictor to win the Golden Boot.
Leroy Sane
Sane could emerge as a potential challenger to Haaland if Bayern vanquish PSG in the second leg of their Round of 16 contest.
He scored four goals in just four appearances during the group stage, leaving him three behind Mbappe and Salah.
The former Man City winger could not add to his tally in Paris, but he could enjoy more chances if Bayern go deep into the competition.
He is priced at just 20/1 with William Hill, but Bet365 have 33/1 on Sane in this market.
Vinicius Junior
Real Madrid’s rapid Brazilian forward is level with Sane after racking up a four-goal haul during the group stage.
He could cause problems for Trent Alexander-Arnold in the Round of 16, and he is a legitimate contender for the Golden Boot.
However, you would expect Karim Benzema to emerge as Real Madrid’s main goal threat as the competition wears on.
That’s why you’ll find Vinicius is also priced at 33/1 with 10Bet and various others.
The Rest
Lionel Messi - who has four goals to his name thus far - is also a 33/1 outsider with betting apps after he failed to score in PSG’s midweek defeat to Bayern Munich.
If he can engineer a comeback in the second leg, punters may flock to use their Champions League free bets on him, so that could be an interesting long shot.
Olivier Giroud is priced at 50/1 after his AC Milan side battled to a 1-0 aggregate lead over Spurs in the Round of 16. The Frenchman is also on four goals so far in the competition.
Longer shots include Karim Benzema (66/1), Darwin Nunez (66/1), Neymar (80/1) and Lautaro Martínez (100/1).
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