Top 5 candidates for winning the European Golden Shoe this season

The new season is just around the corner and all the teams are in a hurry to buy new players before the transfer deadline. There is a lot of unfinished transfer business left and we could see quite a few players leaving their clubs now.Some marquee transfers have already taken place as Cristiano Ronaldo has transferred to Juventus and Gonzalo Higuain has transferred out of the same club to AC Milan. The real action is about to begin as well, with the Premier League set to start this Friday and the other top 4 leagues beginning a week later.With the beginning of every new season come new awards to be won, and this year is no different. Every league has its own set of awards and there is always tight competition for them.The European Golden Shoe is awarded to the leading goal scorer from the top division of each European national league. Lionel Messi won this award the last time around as he scored 34 goals in La Liga, and that was the highest tally of goals in all the European leagues.However, it wasn't a landslide victory as the likes of Mo Salah (32 goals) and Harry Kane (30 goals) provided him with stiff competition. And this year, the competition will increase even further as Gareth Bale can play more of a lead role in Ronaldo's absence and Ronaldo could find it easier in Serie A.There are other world class forwards like Robert Lewandowski, Neymar, Luis Suarez and Kylian Mbappe who are in contention too.Here is a look at five players who would likely lead the race to win the Golden Shoe this year.#5 Sergio AgueroSergio AgueroThe Argentine forward is a constant threat for any opposition. Known for his incredible goal scoring abilities, he has established himself as one of the best forwards in the world. He is also the top goal scorer in Manchester City history, with 201 goals. Aguero scored two goals in the Community Shield match last week. Add to that the two goals he scored at the World Cup and you know that he is in good form. In his 39 appearances last season, he scored 30 goals (21 goals in 26 Premier League games) and assisted seven times. He is one of the strongest contenders for the European Golden Shoe and is eminently capable of winning it.All stats via Transfermarkt

Top 5 candidates for winning the European Golden Shoe this season

#3 Lionel Messi