Former England midfielder Danny Murphy has identified Joao Pedro as the chief contender to Erling Haaland in this season's Premier League Golden Boot race. However, he still anticipates that the Manchester City striker will end the campaign at the top of the scoring charts.
Haaland has been in blistering form, netting five goals in his first five appearances, putting him at the forefront of the goal-scoring leaderboard. Close behind him are Alexander Isak with four goals, while Joao Pedro has contributed three strikes to Chelsea's cause.
Murphy elaborated on why he believes Pedro possesses the qualities that could allow him to draw level with the Norwegian:
I think Joao Pedro is his main rival, thanks to all his attributes and, more importantly, the players providing him with service.
When you have Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers creating opportunities every week, chances are bound to come.
Nevertheless, Murphy cautioned that even an impressive season from Pedro might not be enough to dethrone Haaland:
Even if he has a fantastic season, I still think Haaland will be ahead. Erling has this remarkable ability to score all sorts of goals, even the scrappy ones, regardless of whether he's having a good game or flying under the radar.
He somehow manages to find the net, and what he does is simply incredible.
Additionally, Murphy mentioned Kai Havertz as another potential top scorer in the league. The German remains Arsenal's main striker, despite the summer signing of Victor Djoekers.
He highlighted Havertz's abilities:
Havertz could also be a contender, provided he stays injury-free. While he may not directly compete with Haaland for first place, he could definitely make his way into the top three or four.
Havertz finishes chances coolly and excels in the air. If Arsenal continues to dominate and win matches, he will get plenty of chances, which translates to goals.
Ally McCoist also believes Haaland is the frontrunner for the Golden Boot, suggesting that if Joao Pedro finishes the season eight to ten goals behind the Norwegian, it would still mark an outstanding campaign:
If Joao Pedro ends the season within eight to ten goals of Haaland, that would be an impressive result. Haaland is just on a different level.
With Enzo Maresca at the helm, Manchester City is increasingly delivering the ball into the box, which suits Haaland perfectly. I think he will once again be the top scorer, and by a substantial margin.
