In less than two weeks, all the top five European leagues — the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, the Bundesliga, and Ligue 1 — will return with another hopeful new season. From newcomers to veterans, every player will look to hit the ground running, either picking up where they left off last season or improving upon their last-term showings.
In this article, we will take a look at a handful of forwards who face the challenge of beginning the 2024-25 season as explosively as they closed 2023-24. Below, we will check out the five players who scored the most goals in club soccer in the first part of 2024. Let’s begin!
#5 Vinicius Jr. (Real Madrid): 18 Goals 26
Kicking off the list is Real Madrid left-winger Vinicius Jr., with the jet-heeled Brazilian racking up 18 goals in 26 matches in the first half of 2024. Over the course of the 2023-24 season, the No. 7 scored 24 goals and provided 11 assists in 39 games in all competitions.
Vinicius Jr. was integral to Los Blancos’ La Liga-UEFA Champions League-Supercopa de Espana-winning season. In La Liga, he chipped in 15 goals and six assists in 26 matches. In the UEFA Champions League, he scored six times — including the final — and claimed five assists. Lastly, in the Supercopa de Espana, he scored a sensational hat-trick against Barcelona in the final, taking Real Madrid to a 4-1 win.
#4 Jonathan David (LOSC Lille): 19 Goals
One of the most sought-after strikers in the world, Jonathan David scored a whopping 19 goals in 24 matches for LOSC Lille in the first half of 2024. The 24-year-old ended the 2023-24 season with 19 goals and four assists in 34 Ligue 1 matches; three goals and four assists in Coupe de France; three goals in eight UEFA Europa Conference League; and one goal and an assist in Conference League qualifiers.
David’s brilliant performances in Ligue 1 allowed Lille to finish fourth in the rankings. David and Co. are currently competing in the qualifiers to book a place in the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League.
#3 Harry Kane (Bayern Munich): 19 Goals
Joining from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2023, Harry Kane enjoyed a career-best season at Bayern Munich. Throughout the campaign, the England skipper scored 44 goals and claimed 12 assists in 45 games in all competitions. Nineteen of his goals came across 23 matches in the second half of the 2023-23 season.
Courtesy of his 36 Bundesliga goals (72 coefficient points), Kane won the European Golden Shoe. Unfortunately, despite Kane’s unmatched performance in front of goal, Bayern Munich ended the season without any silverware. The Bavarians’ last trophyless season was in 2011-12.
#2 Erling Haaland (Manchester City): 19 Goals
Manchester City goalmachine Erling Haaland capped off the 2023-24 season strongly, scoring 19 goals in 23 matches across competitions. Over the course of the campaign, the Norwegian netted 27 goals in 31 Premier League games, winning his second consecutive Golden Boot. He also scored six times in the UEFA Champions League and five times in the FA Cup.
Haaland’s blistering performances helped Manchester City finish two points ahead of Arsenal in the Premier League title race. However, City could not defend their FA Cup and Champions League crowns, losing to Manchester United (final) and Real Madrid (quarter-finals), respectively.
#1 Kylian Mbappe (PSG): 23 Goals
Kylian Mbappe enjoyed a blistering ending to the 2023-24 season, scoring a whopping 23 goals in 26 matches for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in all competitions. Throughout the 2023-24 season, Mbappe scored 44 goals and provided 10 assists in 48 matches for the Parisians. He scored 27 times in Ligue, eight times in the UEFA Champions League, once in Trophée des Champions, and eight times in Coupe de France. His goals helped PSG to the Ligue 1 title, Coupe de France, and Trophée des Champions in 2023-24.
Mbappe left PSG at the end of his contract on June 30, joining Real Madrid as a free agent. It will be interesting to see how the 25-year-old fares in his first-ever foray outside of France.
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