There is unlikely to be any top-level European action until at least May, but there is seemingly a desire across the board to complete the 2019-20 campaign despite the issues that football currently face.
A number of players are enjoying impressive campaigns in terms of goals, and it does appear that the European Golden Boot will be going to an individual other than Lionel Messi this season.
Messi has incredibly finished at the top of the rankings in each of the last three years, while only once since 2008-09 has a player other than Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi picked up the award.
Indeed, Luis Suarez jointly shared the trophy with Ronaldo in 2013-14, while Diego Forlan was the last player to individually break up the Ronaldo/Messi dominance back in 2008-09.
Here, Sports Mole takes a look at the current European Golden Boot Rankings, and there is a fascinating race to pick up the award for the 2019-20 campaign.
For the purposes of this list, we have included the rankings from sixth to first, placing those with equal points higher or lower depending on how their goals to games ratio stack up and which league they were scored in. Goals scored in the top five leagues, according to the UEFA's list, are multiplied by two, while goals scored in the leagues ranked from six to 21 are multiplied by 1.5 to create an overall number.
6th. Lionel Messi (Barcelona, 19 goals, 38 points)
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Messi, as mentioned, is used to winning this award. The 32-year-old has serious ground to make up this season, though, as his record in La Liga during the 2019-20 campaign stands at 19 goals in 22 matches.
The Argentina international is currently eight goals and 16 points off the summit. Messi's record of goals and points is actually identical to Leicester City's Jamie Vardy but he has played fewer matches.
5th. Erling Braut Haaland (Borussia Dortmund, 25 goals, 42 points)
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The 19-year-old has been in wonderful form this season, scoring 16 league goals in 14 appearances for Red Bull Salzburg before adding nine more in the Bundesliga since arriving at Dortmund in January.
The teenager has only scored fewer than one of the players above him in this list, but he sits in fifth due to the points system, in addition to the fact that 16 of his league goals this season came in Austria.
4th. Timo Werner (RB Leipzig, 21 goals, 42 points)
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Werner, who continues to be linked with a switch to Liverpool, has been in excellent scoring form for Leipzig during the 2019-20 campaign. Indeed, he has struck 21 goals in 25 Bundesliga outings, handing him a total of 42 points and leaving him potentially in the mix come the end of the season.
The Germany international has proved his class across the board this term and Leipzig will do well to keep him this summer as the interest from a number of clubs continues to grow.
3rd. Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus, 21 goals, 42 points)
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As the Bundesliga and Serie A are both considered to be top European leagues, Ronaldo sits above Werner in this list despite having an identical record as he has needed fewer games to score 21 league goals.
Indeed, the Portuguese has only made 22 Serie A appearances this term, with the 35-year-old having some fitness problems. It is not a surprise to see the former Manchester United attacker in a high position, although he is some way behind the pace being set at the top of the rankings.
2nd. Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich, 25 goals, 50 points)
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The 31-year-old is again enjoying another excellent campaign, scoring 39 times in 33 appearances in all competitions, including 25 in just 23 Bundesliga appearances, leaving him second with 50 points.
Champions League goals, of course, do not count, but the Poland international also has 11 of those during the 2019-20 campaign and is arguably currently the best all-round centre-forward in the game.
1st. Ciro Immobile (Lazio, 27 goals, 54 points)
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Immobile leads the way in the European Golden Boot rankings with 27 goals in 26 Serie A appearances this season, handing him an overall points total of 54. The 30-year-old's league record for Lazio is brilliant, scoring 94 times in 131 appearances.
The Italian's form during the 2019-20 campaign has been key to Lazio's success, but he will have to hold off strong competition from the likes of Lewandowski to pick up the award at the end of the season.
Interestingly, no Lazio player has ever won this trophy, while it has been collected by just two Italian players in history, with Portugal and Argentina understandably clear at the top due to Ronaldo and Messi.
Matt Law
