Cristiano Ronaldo was at it again for Portugal over the international window, bagging braces against both Slovakia and Bosnia & Herzegovina in European Championship qualifying. The goals see him become the first player on the planet to score 40 goals for club and country this year – leading the likes of Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe and Harry Kane in our list of top 10 goalscorers in 2023.
Top 10 Goalscorers of 2023
Lautaro Martinez (31 Goals)
Off the back of winning the World Cup at the end of 2022, Inter Milan and Argentina forward Lautaro Martinez has enjoyed an incredible calendar year – bagging a whopping 31 goals.
Yet to score for his nation in 2023, all 31 of Martinez’s goals have come at club level, and he played a key role in his side’s run to the Champions League final last season, where they were eventually beaten by Pep Guardiola’s treble-winning Manchester City side.
Martinez is the current leader of the Serie A golden boot race with 10 goals thus far in 2023/24, four goals more than second place Victor Osimhen.
Mauro Icardi (31 Goals)
Another Argentine is level with Martinez in ninth in Galatasaray forward Mauro Icardi. The 30-year-old joined the Turkish outfit on a permanent transfer ahead of the new season, with his most notable goal so far coming in a 3-2 Champions League win over Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Icardi suffered a torrid few years in Ligue 1 with Paris Saint-Germain, but he’s back to his best in the Turkish Super Lig and it’s great to see.
MAURO💎@GalatasaraySK || #UCL pic.twitter.com/lIyXQJxJb3
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) October 5, 2023
Victor Osimhen (32 Goals)
Napoli marksman Victor Osimhen comes in at joint-seventh with an impressive 32 goals for club and country, as he led his side to a first Scudetto in 33 years last season. During this time he became the highest goalscoring African of all time in the Serie A, surpassing George Weah’s 46 goals.
The Nigeria international’s future has been up in the air in recent months however. After agreeing to stay last summer despite heavy interest from some Europe’s elite, Osimhen found himself in a spat with the club over a TikTok they’d posted seemingly mocking him, which has sparked rumours of an exit.
Hugo Cuypers (32 Goals)
Perhaps one of the more unfamiliar names on our list is that of Hugo Cuyper’s, with the Gent forward coming in at seventh alongside Osimhen with 32 goals. The Gent striker has had an incredible year, winning the Belgian Pro League’s golden boot with 27 goals – five more than second place Ayase Ueda.
Cuypers is yet to hit the same heights as the latter half of last season in the league, however he already has eight Conference League goals to his name from both the qualifying rounds, and the group stages in 2023/24.
Harry Kane (33 Goals)
One of the most prolific goalscorers of our generation, England captain and Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane is the sixth highest goalscorer in 2023 with 33 goals for both club and country.
18 of his goals came for Tottenham in the second half of 2022/23, and he hasn’t slowed down since switching for the Bundesliga in the summer – scoring nine goals in Bayern colours already, with the other six goals coming for the Three Lions.
Harry Kane scored his first hat-trick for Bayern Munich ❤️ pic.twitter.com/gzLex6pc9e
— GOAL (@goal) September 24, 2023
Kylian Mbappe (35 Goals)
Paris Saint-Germain and France talisman Kylian Mbappe is level in fourth with 35 goals to his name throughout the calendar year, having finished 2022/23 as the Ligue 1 top goalscorer for a fifth straight season, and is on track to make that six.
The 24-year-old was key in France’s quest to retain their World Cup title, and scored a wonderful hat-trick against Argentina in the final, but it wasn’t to be – as Lionel Messi cemented his legacy with a victory on penalties.
German Cano (35 Goals)
German Cano is level with Mbappe on 35 goals, and the Fluminense forward is one of two players on our list that ply their trade outside of Europe.
At 35-years-old, Cano’s goals have mostly come in cup competitions, with the Argentine netting 28 goals across different cups, whilst just seven of his goals have come in the Brazilian Serie A.
Barnabas Varga (38 Goals)
Ferencvaros and Hungary striker Barnabas Varga is another who isn’t typically a household name, but with 38 goals in the calendar year – he comes in at third on our list ahead of some of the world’s biggest talents.
Varga finished the 2022/23 season as top scorer in the Hungarian top flight with 26 goals for Paks, which earned him a move to league champions Ferencvaros, and he hasn’t looked back since. The 28-year-old’s form warranted a first international call-up, where he has since bagged on three occasions for his country.
Erling Haaland (39 Goals)
Treble-winning Erling Haaland is second on our list, just one shy of the leader, after another impressive year at the top level which saw him break countless records in both England and Europe.
Earning titles such as UEFA Men’s Player of the Year, and PFA Players’ Player of the Year, Haaland broke the record for most Premier League goals scored in a season, and became the quickest individual to score two, three, and four hat-tricks in the league in 2022/23.
With 39 goals to his name in Sky Blue colours in 2023, Haaland continues to take the English top flight and the Champions League by storm.
Cristiano Ronaldo (40 Goals)
After another impressive international window, Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player on the planet to score 40 goals for both club and country in 2023, and he tops our list ahead of Haaland, Mbappe and Kane.
The Portugal international scored a brace in each of his nation’s recent European Championship qualifiers against Slovakia and Bosnia & Herzegovina – a return which sees him register 40 goals or more in a season for a mind-blowing 12th time at the age of 38.
Criticised by many following his move from Manchester United to Al-Nassr, Ronaldo currently leads the goalscoring charts in Saudi Arabia with 10 goals to his name in just eight appearances, and he’s showing no signs of slowing down.
🇵🇹 Cristiano Ronaldo vs Bosnia and Herzegovina:
⚽️ Goals – 2
🅰️ Assists – 1
🏹 Shots – 2
🔐 Key passes – 1
🌡️ WS Rating – 8.69 pic.twitter.com/dMK6MYOGEF— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) October 17, 2023
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