The curtain has come down on all the strongest leagues in Europe – there is only one more postponed match in Serie A that cannot change anything drastically – so we can officially declare the new winner of the European Golden Boot.He led from the start of the race and, in the end, deservedly got a valuable individual recognition, which could at least heal his wounds from another trophyless season.##NAJAVA_MECA_8123986##As you already probably know, we are talking about Harry Kane, Bayern Munich’s center forward. In his first season in the Bundesliga, he showed that he is a valuable signing and a worthy successor to Robert Lewandowski. Thanks to him, the German top tier has the best scorer in Europe for the third time in the last four years.Let’s remind you, before Kane, Lewandowski wore this ribbon on two occasions, in 2021 and 2022. Last season, Erling Haaland was the best.The captain of the England national team scored 36 goals in the German championship. He could have had a slightly better performance, however, he missed the last two games due to injury, but that is less important. The competition was certainly far behind him.Kylian Mbappe 26, Serhou Guirassy 25, as much as Haaland, Lois Openda 24, Lautaro Martinez 23…Note: Goals in the ‘TOP 5′ leagues on the UEFA ranking are multiplied by a coefficient of two, from the sixth to the 22nd league goals are multiplied by one and a half, and all others by one.We already knew that Harry Kane would be the top scorer in Europe for the 2023/24 season. He thus became the first Englishman since Kevin Phillips (Sunderland, 30 goals) to do so, but what worries many football fans and will be discussed in the coming weeks is the following question: Can Harry, with such a fantastic goal-scoring season, the best in his career – and without a trophy – to be eligible to compete for the Ballon d’Or?Many will shout immediately – no way!And yet, it should be taken into account that as early as 2022, France Football has started certain changes in the system of voting and evaluation of what has been done, all with the aim that collective successes remain in the background, and that individual performance comes first. In translation, the numbers will come to the fore more and more, while the trophies should prevail on the side of the one who will have them in case the players are equal in terms of goalscoring performance.Many people did not like this announcement, because defenders, including midfielders, will be discriminated against, but that’s how it is. It is a joint decision of France Football and UEFA, which is taking over the organization of the award from this year onward.🚨 Harry Kane has won the European Golden Shoe with 36 goals! 👟 pic.twitter.com/TydUMEORLb— Bayern & Football (@MunichFanpage) May 26, 2024 Another key change is that football players’ performance is not looked at in a calendar year but in a season. For example, the World Cup in Qatar is counted in the 2022/23 season, while the EURO2024 in Germany falls under the current season.So what trump cards Harry Kane can rely on?In addition to being the best scorer in Europe, the Englishman is second in terms of ‘contribution’ (combined number of goals and assists in all competitions) with 56 points (44+12), two less than the leader Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting Lisbon, who, however, played five more games.According to this parameter, Kane is the best in the Champions League, he is also the top scorer in the elite competition (and will remain so if Joselu, Vinicius or Rodrygo do not score four goals in the final against Dortmund), and he also had the biggest goal-scoring contribution in the EURO qualifiers with the English national team.Of course, no matter how hard France Football tries to minimize trophies, i.e. collective successes, there is no doubt that the performance of the candidates for the flattering title at the European Championship in Germany and the Copa America will have a serious impact on the jury.And now let’s take a look at that list of candidates. The impression is, it could be the most interesting race for the Ballon d’Or in the last 16 years, or since Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi ‘monopolized’ the award. Because still no one has done enough for anyone to point their finger and say – yes, it is him, the new best player in the world.The first three names that probably come to everyone’s mind: Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior. Then Harry Kane comes in fourth (so be it because he’s the only one without a trophy out of these three), while players like Phil Foden or Florian Wirtz could somehow be lurking on the edge. Although, their time is yet to come and it is certain that serious candidates will be in a year or so…Of course, Toni Kroos could also jump to the fore (well, with a touch of sentimentality, primarily due to the fact that he is retiring), but only on the condition that he wins both the Champions League and the European Championship.If we talk about numbers, the situation is as follows:Kylian Mbappe – 44 goals & 10 assists (a treble in France, potential EURO 2024)Jude Bellingham – 23 goals & 12 assists (La Liga, Spanish Super Cup, potential EURO 2024)Vinicius Junior – 23 goals & 11 assists (La Liga, Spanish Super Cup, potential Copa America)Harry Kane – 44 goals & 12 assists (no club trophies, potential EURO 2024)—————————————————————————-Phil Foden – 23 goals & 12 assists (The Premier League, potential EURO 2024)Florian Wirtz – 18 goals & 20 assists (Bundesliga, German Cup, Europa League final)After all, let’s hear your opinion… Have we left out any ‘strong’ candidates? Who are you cheering for? Do you believe that anyone can threaten Ronaldo and Messi?
