Haaland’s Golden Boot Is There To Be Won, But These Six Strikers Have Other Ideas

Erling Haaland is chasing history. A fourth Premier League Golden Boot would put him level with Thierry Henry and Mohamed Salah at the top of the all-time list, and with Salah now gone from the league entirely, you'd be forgiven for thinking this is a foregone conclusion. We don't think it is.

The race for the Premier League top scorer award in 2026-27 is more open than it looks at first glance, and there are at least two or three genuine dark horses who the market might be undervaluing right now.

Why Haaland Isn't As Untouchable As The Odds Suggest

Haaland is obviously the man to beat. A hundred and twelve league goals in 132 games is a number that belongs in a different conversation from every other striker in England. He comes in fresh off a seven-goal World Cup campaign with Norway, which isn't a bad way to hit form going into a new domestic season.

The one variable that makes us pause is Enzo Maresca. City were transformed under Maresca last season at Chelsea, but this is a different animal entirely. Whether Maresca's system delivers Haaland the same volume of chances that Pep Guardiola's machine consistently produced is genuinely unclear. Haaland will still score plenty. The question is whether it's 27 or 36, and we think it matters.

The Two Names We'd Back To Finish Closest

Alexander Isak is the most interesting bet of the entire group. He finished second in the Golden Boot race in 2024-25 with 23 goals at Newcastle, outscoring Haaland that year and only finishing behind Salah. Liverpool paid £125m to bring him to Anfield, and then essentially wasted him, giving him minimal service and watching him limp through four goals in 22 appearances.

With Andoni Iraola now in charge and a full pre-season behind him, the expectation is that Isak finally gets to play the football that made him one of Europe's most feared forwards. If Liverpool build their attack around him the way Newcastle did, 25-plus goals is not outlandish. At his price point right now, he represents the strongest value in the market.

Igor Thiago is the other name we keep coming back to. Twenty-two Premier League goals for Brentford in his first proper season of English football, behind only Haaland in the final standings. He earned a first Brazil cap off the back of that form, which tells you everything about how quickly he elevated himself. There is transfer interest circling, which adds some uncertainty, but if he stays at Brentford and reproduces last season's output, he is absolutely in this conversation.

The Long Shots Who Could Surprise Everyone

Benjamin Sesko finished the season at Manchester United on a serious run of form. Nine of his 11 Premier League goals came after the turn of the year when Ruben Amorim was sacked and the back three was scrapped. In that period, only Morgan Gibbs-White scored more in the division. Sesko is 23 years old, operating in a system that now seems built around pace and vertical football under Michael Carrick, and he costs pennies in the Golden Boot market compared to the names above him.

Viktor Gyokeres had a steady debut season at Arsenal, 14 league goals, but what caught our eye was that 14 of his 21 goals across all competitions came after January. He got better as the season went on. Arsenal are now champions, the pressure of ending a 22-year title drought is off, and if Mikel Arteta lets the team breathe a little, Gyokeres could push toward 20 in the league.

Joao Pedro at Chelsea is a wildcard. Fifteen league goals in his first season is a strong start, but the arrival of Xabi Alonso and the competition for places makes his ceiling harder to predict. Alonso's Leverkusen spread goals across the squad rather than channelling everything through one striker, which could actually cap Pedro's ceiling before he reaches it.

Ollie Watkins remains a phenomenally consistent scorer at Aston Villa, third in Premier League goals since 2020 behind only Haaland and Salah, but he'd need to hit 25 or more to genuinely challenge for the boot. At 30, that's a big ask.

Our Call

Haaland wins it again. We wouldn't put our mortgage on it, but we'd put a decent accumulator leg on it. He's too clinical, too experienced in this league, and too physically dominant to be dislodged by most of these contenders.

For an each-way alternative, Isak is the pick. He's the one player in this list with a proven track record close to Haaland's level, a massive club now building around him, and a genuine point to prove after a wasted first season at Liverpool. If the service comes, the goals will follow.

The Premier League Golden Boot race may end predictably this season, but it's going to be worth watching closely all the way to May.