Top scorers in 2023 as Cristiano Ronaldo hits 50th goal of the year for Al-Nassr
Domestic league campaigns in Europe might be nearing the midway point, but the battle to be world football's most prolific goalscorer in 2023 is about to reach a thrilling conclusion.
Barely a fortnight remains in the calendar year, and only a solitary strike separates the top four candidates. And right in the mix of course is Cristiano Ronaldo, having hit his 50th goal of the past 12 months in Al-Nassr's win over Al-Shabab in the King Cup of Champions last Monday.
But despite winning an unprecedented eighth Ballon d'Or this year, Lionel Messi is not among the frontrunners. Erling Haaland's final tally meanwhile, will rest on whether the forward his deemed fit enough after injury to take part in Manchester City's FIFA World Club Cup campaign this month.
Mirror Football has the lowdown on the top five so far in 2023.....
Santiago Gimenez - 39 goals
Undoubtedly, the least-celebrated forward on this list but a name already being linked with European superpowers.
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Since joining Eredivisie side Feyenoord in the summer of 2022, Gimenez has been a revelation, and in this calendar year has 36 goals for his club as well as three for Mexico. Transfer interest in England is rife with Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea all tracking the 22-year-old, and it's shaping up to be quite the fight for his signature.
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Santiago Gimenez has been a revelation for Feyenoord (ProShots/Icon Sport via Getty Images)Kylian Mbappe - 49 goals
Amid all the negative headlines and accusations of greed surrounding Kylian Mbappe in 2023, it's been easy to overlook the undeniable notion that he's still been scoring prolifically.
Just 24 and already with 230 club goals to his name, he continues to strike at an incredible rate despite losing the creative services of Messi and Neymar. Now in the final year of his contract at Parc des Princes, a summer move to Real Madrid beckons and with it, will come the chance to banish accusations he simply enjoys flat-track bullying on extortionate wages in Ligue 1.
Kylian Mbappe is set to move to Real Madrid next summer (AFP via Getty Images)Harry Kane - 49 goals
He ended 2022 by blazing a penalty over the bar as England suffered World Cup heartbreak against France - 12 months later and it's fair to assume he's over the mishap.
A summer move to Bayern Munich only served to accelerate his goalscoring prowess, with Kane on fire in Germany having scored 22 times in all competitions. And the captain of the Three Lions continues to be Gareth Southgate's most pivotal figure, scoring nine times to lead his country to Euro 2024 qualification.
Club, country, Premier League, Bundesliga, Champions League - the list could go on. Regardless of where or at what standard Kane plies his trade, England's record marksman will always score goals.
Harry Kane celebrates socring in Bayern Munich's 4-3 win over Manchester United in September (Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)Erling Haaland - 50 goals
Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, Golden Boot, and European Golden Shoe glory - not a bad start to life in English football for Erling Haaland.
In fact, it speaks volumes about the overall impact of the Norwegian since joining Manchester City that despite the perception he's currently off the boil and botching chances in the Premier League, he tops the scoring charts this season on 14 goals. Add them to 30 other strikes for his club in all competitions, plus six for Norway, and you see why the 23-year-old is tipped to shatter records.
Erling Haaland won the Premier League Golden Boot last season (Stephanie Meek/Getty Images)Cristiano Ronaldo - 50 goals
It was billed as a deflating conclusion to an iconic career, but like only he can, Cristiano Ronaldo continues to rewrite the narrative over his big-money move to Saudi Arabia.
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Despite the influx of star names, the standard of club football in the Middle East remains dubious, and the argument as to whether him continuing to start for Portugal is counter-productive for the national side remains prevalent. But one notion that no-one can deny is that at 38, Ronaldo remains an athletic specimen with a relentless desire for scoring goals.
Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 50 times in 2023 (Mohammed Saad/Anadolu via Getty Images)Indeed, the numbers don't lie. To strike 50 times for club and country before the calendar year is out signifies an achievement that even his biggest detractors can't argue against. And be rest assured, the man with unrivalled self-belief is far from finished yet.
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