There’s silencing doubters and then there’s doing what Erling Haaland’s done this season.

Rory Jennings wasn’t the only one who believed the Norwegian machine would struggle after switching the Bundesliga’s space haven for the Premier League – hardly a land where catenaccio is rife.

And although Haaland scored at an unerring rate throughout his debut campaign, there were times, especially at the start of 2023, when some genuinely questioned whether the striker was a help or hindrance to Pep Guardiola’s Citizens. Such doubts arrived at a time when City were struggling to find any consistency, and it looked as if they’d relinquish their crown to the upstart Arsenal.

Yeah, as if that was ever gonna happen.

In typical City fashion, they clicked into gear and discovered their finest form when it mattered most. A third-straight league title followed, with Haaland smashing the single-season Premier League scoring record.

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Appearances: 35
Goals: 36

It took Haaland just 31 games to smash Andy Cole and Alan Shearer’s joint-single season scoring record. The Norwegian striker has led the scoring charts all the way through, and surely only he can break his own single-season record in the future.

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Appearances: 38
Goals: 30

A majestic campaign from Kane was overshadowed by Haaland’s ruthless efficiency. The England skipper has carried an abject Spurs team for much of the season amid one of the most prolific campaigns of his career to date.

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Appearances: 33
Goals: 20

Toney’s wonderful season came to a disappointing end when he was handed a hefty ban for betting infringements.

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Appearances: 38
Goals: 19

The mightily consistent Salah always seems to find himself close to the top of the scoring charts. However, Liverpool’s issues this term meant the Egyptian never quite clicked into overdrive.

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Appearances: 31
Goals: 18

Alexander Isak has snatched plenty of headlines and the Swede’s dazzling sequences have perhaps overshadowed a fine season put together by Wilson. Will he be Newcastle’s leading man as they prepare for their first Champions League campaign in 20 years?

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Appearances: 35
Goals: 17

Rashford has played a key role in United’s resurgence under Erik ten Hag this season, and the vast majority of his 16 goals arrived in the weeks that followed the World Cup break.

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Appearances: 36
Goals: 15

It’s been a coming-of-age campaign for Martinelli after he was handed Arsenal’s number 11 shirt last summer. The Brazilian’s enjoyed the best season of his young career and was rewarded in February with a bumper new deal.

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Appearances: 37
Goals: 15

Odegaard may well have been named Player of the Year had Arsenal won their first league title since 2004. The Norwegian was the creative pulse of Mikel Arteta’s Gunners, but he also finished the season as the highest-scoring midfielder.

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Appearances: 24
Goals: 14

Madman Mitrovic picked up a lengthy suspension at the end of the season, but the Serbian international’s fine form during the first half of the campaign saw him make the top ten in the Golden Boot chart.

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Appearances: 37
Goals: 14

Emboldened by the arrival of Unai Emery, Watkins embarked on an imperious scoring run at the start of 2023 in which he scored ten goals in 12 games. The England international wasn’t quite so prolific either side of that prolonged purple patch.

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Eight players have won the Premier League Golden Boot on multiple occasions, with Thierry Henry winning the most (four).

The Frenchman consistently out-duelled Manchester United hitman Ruud van Nistelrooy at the start of the 2000s, with Henry claiming three consecutive scoring crowns between 2004 and 2006. Only Alan Shearer has also won three straight Golden Boots.

Harry Kane and Mohamed Salah could yet tie or even break Henry’s record by the time their Premier League careers draw to a close. These current greats have each won three Golden Boots, but Haaland’s presence will make winning any future scoring titles tricky.

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