Erling Haaland has climbed to the top of the 2025–26 Golden Boot standings after another standout performance for Manchester City. With his goal against Liverpool, the Norwegian now shares the lead, not with Kylian Mbappé or Harry Kane, but with a surprising contender.
Man City hosted Liverpool on Sunday as they looked to close the gap on leaders Arsenal in the Premier League, with Haaland in strong form. The Norwegian first missed a penalty in the 13th minute, but in the 29th he opened the scoring with a precise header, helping City secure a dominant 3-0 win and move into second place in the table with 22 points.
With that strike, Haaland increased his Premier League tally to 14 goals, giving him 28 points in the Golden Boot race. However, despite operating under a lower coefficient (1 point per goal), Darko Lemajić is also tied with the City star at 28 points.
Lemajić, a 32-year-old striker for Rigas Futbola Skola (RFS) in Latvia’s top division, has scored 28 goals this season, holding a share of the Golden Boot lead until Haaland’s goal against Liverpool. Still, the Serbian forward is expected to be surpassed, not only by Haaland, but by other elite chasers like Mbappé and Kane.
Darko Lemajić of RFS.
The Latvian Virslīga has already concluded after 36 matches. Although RFS finished one point behind champions Riga FC (87 to 88), Lemajić secured the league’s Golden Boot with his 28-goal haul. His tally is now final for the season, leaving him vulnerable to being overtaken by stars from Europe’s top-five leagues who still have dozens of matches remaining.
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How far behind are Mbappé and Kane?
Haaland and Lemajić currently sit atop the Golden Boot race, though the Norwegian has the clear advantage thanks to reaching 14 goals in far fewer games than the RFS striker. Still, despite being in scoring form across all competitions, Mbappé and Kane are not expected to make things easy for him.
Kane is currently fifth in the Golden Boot standings with 13 goals and 26 points, though he has experienced a slight dip, scoring just once in his last three Bundesliga matches. Mbappé, meanwhile, is also on 13 goals with 26 points, sitting sixth after failing to score in Real Madrid’s draw with Rayo Vallecano on Sunday, but with 24 La Liga matches still ahead, the French star remains firmly in contention to climb the rankings.
