Paul Merson has made his prediction for next season's Premier League Golden Boot winner and it's NOT Erling Haaland.
The Manchester City superstar enjoyed an ultra-prolific campaign in his debut season in the Premier League.
He scored a staggering 36 league goals in a record-breaking feat in England's top flight.
But former Arsenal man Merson does NOT think the Norwegian phenom will be the Premier League's top scorer next season.
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He's backed Harry Kane to 'outscore his rivals' in the 2023/24 Premier League campaign.
The England captain also enjoyed a stellar term last season as he bagged an impressive 30 league goals.
The 30-year-old has been linked with a move to Bayern Munich but if he remains at the club, then Merson likes his chances of winning the Premier League Golden Boot.
"I’m going to go with Harry Kane for the Premier League Golden Boot next season," he said.
"Erling Haaland stopped scoring goals towards the end of last season, didn’t he? I’m not sure if teams have snuffed him out.
"Harry Kane’s record has been incredible. He got to 30 goals last season without scoring four goals a game. What he’s done is phenomenal in my opinion and if he does go to Man United, I don’t see how he doesn’t win the Golden Boot.
"It’s going to be difficult for Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku to win the Golden Boot, because we’re not sure who’s going to play at Chelsea."
Merson continued by revealing the 'big advantage' for the likes of Haaland, Kane and Mohamed Salah, who bagged 19 league goals last term.
"The big advantage that the likes of Haaland, Kane, and Mohamed Salah have is that they know they’re going to be playing every game," he added.
"The likes of Darwin Nunez and Alexander Isak won’t be playing every game either. Julian Alvarez is also a great player, but he’d have to get a hat-trick in every game he plays to get close. He’s a starter in almost every other team in Europe.
"Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli couldn’t have played any better than they did last season, and they didn’t get close to Kane and Haaland.
"You’ve got a lot of forwards getting to 15 goals in the Premier League, but that’s not going to win you the Golden Boot.
"You’ve got to play almost every game in the Premier League to win the Golden Boot and Kane will probably have that opportunity. I’m backing him to outscore his rivals in the Premier League next season."
Who will win the Premier League Golden Boot next season? Let us know.
Topics: Paul Merson, Football, Premier League, Harry Kane
Nasir Jabbar