Dan Childs
Show Bio
Thirty-six of the 51 matches at Euro 2020 will be played in the group stage and those fixtures could hold the key to deciding the race to win the Golden Boot — the trophy awarded to the player who scores the most goals in the tournament.
England striker Harry Kane was the Golden Boot winner at the 2018 World Cup with six goals, including two in England’s tournament opener against Tunisia and a hat-trick in their 6-0 success over Panama.
The 27-year-old’s success was largely down to taking advantage of poor group-stage opposition but Euro 2016 Golden Boot winner Antoine Griezmann of France did it in a different way by scoring five of his six goals in the knockout phase.
Something that Kane and Griezmann had in common was that both were the penalty-takers for their teams and it makes sense for bettors to size up which players will be taking the spot-kicks in the rescheduled European soccer tournament this summer.
The number of penalties is likely to increase with VAR (Video Assistant Referees) in use at a European Championship for the first time and that should enhance the Golden Boot chances of high-profile strikers Kane, Romelu Lukaku (Belgium), Kylian Mbappe (France), and Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), who are all expected to be on penalty-kick duty.
Sign of things to come? 🔥
Romelu Lukaku fires Belgium ahead against Croatia in their #EURO2020 warm up clash
📺 Watch #BEL v #CRO on Sky Sports PL now pic.twitter.com/kyzJzCMWIO
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) June 6, 2021
Best top scorer pick: Romelu Lukaku (+700)
Romelu Lukaku is Belgium’s all-time leading goalscorer and the Red Devils’ star striker looks a strong candidate to top the scoring charts at Euro 2020.
The powerful center-forward began his international career in 2010 but turned 28 only this year and is arguably at the peak of his powers, having scored 24 Serie A goals this season to help Inter Milan secure their first Scudetto in 11 years.
Lukaku averages better than a goal every two games at international level and has a great chance to impress this summer as the chief goal-getter for one of tournament favorites.
Belgium scored the most goals in Euro 2020 qualifying with 40 in ten games and has the potential to get off to a high-scoring start this summer with Group B matches against Russia, Denmark and Finland.
Long shot top scorer pick – Gerard Moreno (+5000 odds)
Another player worth considering at even bigger odds is Spain’s Gerard Moreno.
The Villarreal striker is fighting with Alvaro Morata to start in attack for his nation, but he has had a superb season, scoring 23 La Liga goals, and could excel if given the opportunity.
Moreno is a killer from the penalty spot too. He scored all 12 in normal time for Villarreal and then showed nerves of steel to slot home his spot-kick to help the Yellow Submarine overcome Manchester United in a shootout to settle the tied Europa League final.
Best forward in 2020/21 Europa League? ⚽️🤔
📺 All 7 of Gerard Moreno's goals in this season's competition @VillarrealCF | #UEL pic.twitter.com/GzzGxidKAt
— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) June 3, 2021
Kane the main man for England
England has a wealth of attacking talent but it is hard to look past Kane as the main threat of Gareth Southgate’s team. He became an assist king for Tottenham this season but still topped the Premier League scoring charts with 23 goals. Kane was also the leading scorer across Euro 2020 qualifying with 12 goals and he could do plenty of early damage this summer as England prepare to tackle Croatia, Scotland and Czech Republic in Group D.
Mbappe and Ronaldo are also among the market leaders but both could struggle to make early headway due to the difficulty of most of the games in Group F. The matches between France, Portugal and Germany could all be very close so Mbappe and Ronaldo might have to do a lot of their best work against the weak link of the group, Hungary.
There is also the danger of early elimination for one of the big guns, raising the prospect of Mbappe or Ronaldo missing out on the knockout stages. However, given a decent run of games, either could make a huge impact. Ronaldo looks as potent as ever, having topped the Serie A charts with 29 goals, and Mbappe finished the season with a flourish at PSG – scoring nine times in his last seven appearances.
Memphis can star for Netherlands
The Netherlands has a decent draw and much of its goalscoring threat could come from Lyon attacker Memphis Depay, who was joint-top of the Ligue 1 scoring charts in France this season with 20 goals.
Depay was on target six times in Euro 2020 qualifying and his penalty-taking role could help him to make an impact when the Dutch open up their campaign with home games against Ukraine, Austria and North Macedonia.
Robert Lewandowski has never left his mark on a major international tournament but this summer could be his moment to shine as the spearhead of Poland’s push for glory.
The Bayern Munich striker was part of the Poland team which reached the quarter-finals at Euro 2016 but he had a fairly quiet tournament, scoring only once in five appearances. However, the Poles impressed on the road to Euro 2020, finishing six points clear of Austria in qualifying Group G – and Lewandowski was the main man with six of their 18 goals.
They could be dark horses for a decent run this summer and progress could be powered by their outstanding center-forward, who topped the Bundesliga scoring charts this season with 41 goals in 29 appearances.
It's a rapid response from the Netherlands! ⚡
Memphis Depay fires in the equaliser…
Watch live on Sky Sports Main Event now! pic.twitter.com/ZRxLyy2Eav
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) June 2, 2021
Be sure to check out our full Euro 2020 betting preview, which includes picks and predictions for who wins the entire tournament!
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