Mohamed Salah is in pole position to win the Premier League Golden Boot this season, having scored 22 goals so far in 2021/22.
Harry Kane is the defending champion after he held off a long challenge from Salah to narrowly finish first in the top-flight scoring charts with 23 last season.
READ MORE: European Golden Shoe: 2021/22 standings and award history
That was the third success for Kane, matching the total of Golden Boot triumphs held by the all-time EPL record goalscorer Alan Shearer.
This year Kane will be seeking what would be a record-equalling fourth crown.
Salah and Bruno Fernandes, who each made the podium last season, entered the campaign hoping to challenge again, while a proven Premier League scorer, Romelu Lukaku, returned to Chelsea after a prolific spell in Serie A with Inter.
READ MORE: Who will be the European Assists King for 2021/22?
Man Utd then brought Cristiano Ronaldo back to Old Trafford in a sensational return, making 2021/22 look like the most competitive Golden Boot race in years.
Former winner Jamie Vardy, Leeds striker Patrick Bamford, Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin, West Ham star Michail Antonio and Aston Villa duo Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings are part of a strong contingent from outside England’s ‘big six’ teams who were rated as contenders when the season began.
Keep this page saved throughout the season as we take an in-depth look at the latest standings for the players who have the most EPL goals.
Mohamed Salah remains favourite to win the Premier League Golden Boot award for a third time but his rivals Son Heung-min and Cristiano Ronaldo have gained ground in the standings this week.
Salah has scored 22 Premier League goals from 32 appearances (29 starts) for Liverpool this season.
However, the double Salah grabbed against Man Utd last month represented the only two goals he has scored in his previous six top-flight games, keeping the faint golden boot hopes of Son and Ronaldo alive.
In-form Tottenham forward Son still sits second, with eight goals in his last six outings taking him up to 19 for the campaign.
He scored twice in Sunday’s 3-1 home victory over Leicester City to move just three goals behind Salah at the top of the goalscoring charts.
Man Utd star Ronaldo has cemented his hold on third place in the standings with goals against Chelsea and Brentford in the past week.
Ronaldo’s penalty in the 3-0 win over Brentford at Old Trafford on Monday moved him on to 18 goals for the season, and he sits just four off the pace despite missing eight league matches for Man Utd over the course of this campaign.
The 37-year-old is finishing the season strongly despite his team’s struggles, but United only have two games left to play in the league, compared to four for Salah and Son’s sides.
Salah’s Liverpool team-mate Diogo Jota remains in golden boot podium contention with 15 goals for the 2021/22 campaign, although he did not find the net against United, Everton or Newcastle in his last three Premier League games.
Three of the top five players in the goalscoring charts in England represent Liverpool, with Sadio Mane fifth on 14 after improving his own total in the Man Utd rout.
Former Golden Boot winner Harry Kane is closing in on Jota and Mane, having moved on to 13 goals in the Premier League with his strike in the Leicester win.
That strike for Kane ended a disappointing run of five straight league matches without scoring.
He sits just ahead of Ivan Toney and Wilfried Zaha, who sit in a tie for seventh place in the standings on 12 goals each.
Kevin De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez are the top Man City players with 11 goals apiece, level with Arsenal star Bukayo Saka.
Chelsea’s top goalscorer, Mason Mount, is one of eight Premier League stars sitting on 10 goals for the season, with Jamie Vardy also in that group.
2021/22 EPL top goalscorers
Who are the past winners of the Premier League Golden Boot?
EPL Golden Boot winners
The record for most goals in a season is shared by Alan Shearer (1994/95) and Andy Cole (1993/94).
Both players scored an astonishing 34 goals, though the season was longer then – Shearer did it in 42 matches and Cole in 40.
Mohamed Salah came close to that record in 2017/18, scoring 32 times in 36 outings, producing the best Premier League goalscoring season for 13 years.
The Golden Boot winner with the best goals per game ratio in a season is Harry Kane.
England’s captain netted 29 times in just 30 games to win the 2016/17 title, averaging 0.97 goals per game.
Arsenal and Liverpool have had the most Premier League Golden Boot winners, with six each. Man Utd have had five while Tottenham and Chelsea are on four.
There are only three players who have scored the most goals in the EPL more than twice.
Shearer won the Golden Boot three times, once with Newcastle and twice with Blackburn Rovers, while Kane’s win in 2020/21 was also his third.
Thierry Henry holds the record, though, having been named the top scorer in the Premier League on four occasions for Arsenal.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Suarez have both won the award, scoring 31 goals in 2007/08 and 2013/14 respectively.
The Premier League began from the 1992/93 season.
Prior to that, Ian Wright was the last highest goalscorer in England when it was the old First Division.
Gary Lineker and Alan Smith were also winners in the 1990s before the league was rebranded.
Premier League: Player stats including appearances, goals and assists
Who are the Premier League top scorers of all time?
Alan Shearer is the highest goalscorer in Premier League history, having ended his career in 2006 with a magnificent 260 goals to his name in England’s top division.
Man Utd legend Wayne Rooney (208) is the only other player who has scored more than 200 EPL goals.
Andy Cole (187), Sergio Aguero (184), Frank Lampard (177) and Thierry Henry (175) are other former Premier League players who sit near the top of the all-time list.
Kane is the highest-scoring active player and had 166 goals when he started this season.
He has long been cited as one of the rare contenders who has a chance to rival Shearer’s record total.
Robbie Fowler (163), Jermain Defoe (162) and Michael Owen (150) round out the 10 players in EPL history who have scored 150 goals or more.