With every Premier League side now having played nine fixtures, fans betting on soccer this campaign are starting to get some idea about their side’s chances over the coming campaign – as well as the stars that they can come to depend on.
The race for this season’s Barclays Golden Boot is well and truly on, with a number of candidates already throwing their hats into the ring. Last season’s winner, Manchester United’s Robin van Persie, is off to a strong start having bagged five goals, but faces strong competition from Old Trafford strike partner, Wayne Rooney, who at this stage is just one goal behind his team mate.
Liverpool themselves boast a duo of striking options that will both see themselves as genuine Golden Boot contenders in their own right. Luis Suarez has made light of his early season suspension by netting six Premier League goals, whilst Daniel Sturridge currently leads the way with eight goals from just nine starts.
One goal behind Sturridge is Manchester City’s main candidate, Sergio Aguero, whose sharp finish against Chelsea moved him onto seven goals for the season; Negredo will also feel that he represents a challenge to van Persie’s title, but will need to improve on his return of just three goals if he is to keep touch with the current leaders.
One team however, that really do have just one out-and-out challenger for the Golden Boot is Arsenal, and their striker, Olivier Giroud. He has scored five goals to date, a return equal to that of teammate, Aaron Ramsey – although some Premier League betting pundits believe that the player’s recent purple patch will not last for the duration of the season.
Lukaku, Soldado, Remy and Benkeke make up the rest of the likely candidates, but with such a formidable pace set it looks possible that it might take more than the 26 goals notched by Robin van Persie on the way to claiming last year’s award.