Under The Spotlight: Premier League top goalscorer race

Mohamed Salah has led the way at the top of the Premier League goalscoring charts for much of the season. 

But the Liverpool forward, 29, is currently going through a dry spell — giving the chasing pack hope of overhauling him during the run-in.

We take a look at the main contenders in the Golden Boot race.

Salah out of sorts

Just a couple of months ago, it appeared the Egyptian star would run away with the Golden Boot when he struck his 18th and 19th goals of the campaign in Liverpool's home 6-0 rout of Leeds.

However, Salah has managed just one in the league since — a penalty against Brighton on March 12 — and he is stuck in a frustrating rut in front of goal.

Going into tomorrow's clash with Manchester United, Salah still has three more than closest rival Heung-Min Son, while he is five ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo and team-mate Diogo Jota, who have each struck 15 to date.

Sadio Mane has 13 on the board, while Spurs skipper Harry Kane and Brentford forward Ivan Toney are next on the list with 12.

With time running out for everyone, it is doubtful Kane or Toney will catch Salah now.

And Mane would have to score at least seven in Liverpool's seven remaining games without Salah registering again to make it to 20 for the season himself.

So it comes down to Jota, Ronaldo or Son as the most realistic candidates to snatch the top goalscorer prize away from Salah. 

Ronaldo's impressive goal return


Ronaldo's return to United has been one shining light during a difficult season at Old Trafford and the Portuguese superstar has impressed on a personal level. 

Hat-tricks against both Spurs and Norwich have bumped him up the list but the 37-year-old still has a lot of work to do to overhaul Salah.

The same could be said for Jota, who is not always guaranteed a start at Anfield, despite the fact he has managed 34 goals in just 74 appearances in all competitions since joining from Wolves in the summer of 2020.

Son in fine form

But Spurs forward Son, 29, will have Salah in his sights after what has been another remarkable campaign for the South Korean.

He has eight in his last eight league games. An, with six matches still to play, it is not beyond the realms of possibility to suggest he will score three more to move up to Salah's current mark of 20.

To further the case for Son catching Salah, his shot accuracy is the highest on the top goalscorers list at 69 per cent. He also has the best conversion rate among his Golden Boot rivals with 31 per cent.

But it would be a major surprise if Salah is not back amongst the goals himself in the remaining matches. 

He went close with a trademark curling left-foot effort in the 2-2 league draw with Manchester City before wasting a great chance to end his drought in the second half of the FA Cup win over them at Wembley on Saturday.

With Liverpool still chasing a historic Quadruple, they will need their top scorer to rediscover his touch and his brilliant record of 153 strikes in 244 games for the Reds suggests it is only a matter of time before he fires again.
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