The Major League Soccer Golden Boot presented by Audi’s run will soon come to a close with just weeks left in the regular season.
Inter Miami superstar Lionel Messi ran away with the award earlier in the season before an ankle injury in the international squad this summer derailed his charge. With the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner back in the mix for the Herons, he could be late for the award Miamilast matches of the campaign.
While the likes of Cucho Hernández, Petar Musa and Evander have had no trouble finding the back of the net this season, their respective goal tallies don’t exactly match the players at the top of the table.
Miami’s Supporters’ Shield charge has been boosted by Messi and a certain ex-Barcelona team-mate leading the line, while a pair of attacking midfielders could sneak in at the last minute to wrest the award from a former Crystal striker Palace and Liverpool.
While these players need to clear the chances that come their way, it’s important to remember that they are also elevated with strong supporting casts to set them up for scoring opportunities.
The Philadelphia Union’s Quinn Sullivan has used attacking midfielder Daniel Gazdag twice this season to help him score 17 goals during the regular season.
As Gazdag usually plays just behind Union forwards Tai Baribo and Mikael Uhre, he has been able to enjoy second chances by crashing into an opposing team’s penalty area to pounce on loose balls. The forward presence of Uhre and Baribo also draws more attention to the two forwards and less to Gazdag.
It’s no surprise that Andres Gomez and Cristian ‘Chicho’ Arango formed a great partnership against Real Salt Lake – both players are Colombia internationals.
Gomez attended Arango three times before leaving for Ligue 1 club Rennes at the start of the summer. Full-back Alexandros Katranis and winger Diego Luna have also chipped in with two assists each to help their team-mate move to the top of the table.
LAFC winger Denis Bouanga’s 17 goals have him very much in the conversation to retain the 2023 Golden Boot title.
Fellow winger Mateusz Bogusz played a part in Bouanga having the opportunity to win the individual award for the second consecutive season, assisting the Gabonese international twice. Defender Maxime Chanot has also stepped up with two assists for Bouanga.
Bouanga has also scored seven penalties this season with Timothy Tillman and Eduard Atuesta being fouled for two of those goals.
Christian Benteke, 33, tops the Golden Boot charts with 19 goals in charge of DC United.
The former Belgium international could not have scored so many goals without the help of winger Jared Stroud. Stroud has assisted Benteke five times in MLS in 2024, more than any other DC player. Mateus Klich also contributed with three assists of his own for Benteke, pulling the strings from midfield.
As many expected, Lionel Messi has had no problem linking up with Luis Suarez at Inter Miami.
Messi has provided a team-leading five assists for the Uruguayan forward in the 2024 MLS season, with four of those assists coming in a 6-2 win over the New York Red Bulls in May.
Julian Gressel also scored Suárez with three goals, while Diego Gómez and Jordi Alba assisted him twice. Winger Matias Rojas helped the cause by drawing Suárez’s attention down the wings to draw defenders out of position.
