Will anyone challenge Robert Lewandowski for the UCL 2022 Golden Boot

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The UEFA Champions League is hotting up as Europe’s elite competition enters a crucial period of the tournament.

As of the time of writing, 14 of the 16 teams scheduled to participate in the quarter-final stage of the competition are already known, with Chelsea expected to get past LOSC Lille whilst Juventus and Villarreal’s chances of progressing are on a knife’s edge given the aggregate score is 1-1.

Whilst there is still plenty of action still to come in the tournament, many fans will have decided to try and enhance their viewing experience by trying to combine it with another passion of theirs: sports betting.

This form of gambling has taken off in America in recent years as punters in various states around the country are now permitted to place legal online wagers across a variety of different sporting events and markets.

The UEFA Champions League is one such competition that many will have looked at as a perfect opportunity to place a bet, as the elite tournament hosts the best teams and players, whilst the range of markets available is incredible, too. With a host of NJ sportsbook promotions available to residents in the state, many will have been tempted to place wagers on markets including the race for the top goalscorer in the UCL this season, whereas others will explore markets such as the future winner.

Who are the candidates for the UCL Golden Boot?

For the focus of this article, we will take a look at the race for top goalscorer of the tournament this season and look at who could be named the Golden Boot winner once the Cup campaign comes to an end. However, for some, there may only be one likely winner given how well they are already performing:

Robert Lewandowski

After bagging himself an 11-minute hat-trick against Red Bull Salzburg in Bayern Munich’s 7-1 demolition of the Austrian side in the second-leg, Robert Lewandowski has propelled himself to the front of the race and, for many, looks to be uncatchable.

Indeed, a lot of it will rest on who the German giants get in the next round of the competition, however, that does not tend to keep the Poland international at bay or keep him from finding the net with regularity.

At the moment, only Sebastien Haller was close to catching Lewandowski’s 12, but the Ajax man was unable to get any closer after the Dutch outfit were eliminated from the UCL following their defeat to Benefica in the Round of 16.

Mohamed Salah

As current odds suggest, Liverpool’s sensational Mohamed Salah is thought to be the closest challenger to Lewandowski for the Golden Boot this season, although the Egyptian has a lot of work to do if he is to catch up.

He is currently sitting on eight for the tournament so far, therefore he would need to score five if he is to surpass the Polish ace; bear in mind that would also mean the Bayern man failing to score in any of the future matches he appears in this season’s Champions League campaign.

Stranger things have happened and say if Bayern were to be knocked out in the next stage whereas Liverpool make it to the final and Salah plays a crucial role, then it is possible despite seemingly appearing rather unlikely.

Karim Benzema

The very same scenario currently faces Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema at the moment, too, as he also sits on eight goals.

Of course, many will say he has already done enough for the Spanish side this season after he scored a 17-minute hat-trick in their second-leg victory over Paris Saint-Germain to help take them through to the quarter-final stage of the tournament, but the experienced French striker will be crucial if Los Blancos are to progress further.

As mentioned, his hopes of obtaining the Golden Boot this season are as slim as Salah’s, though, given the form that Lewandowski has been showing once again and he would perhaps need a miracle in order to be crowned the top goalscorer at the end of the competition.

Is there anyone else in the Golden Boot race?

To be brutally honest about the situation, no, it would not seem that there are any other individuals that have any real chance of challenging for the honour, with Bayern’s Leroy Sane and Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez both next on six.

Even if Lewandowski were to fail to score in his next appearances, everyone else would have to find the back of the net, and many would have to argue that a brace or more would have to be scored at the very least!