Salah and Son share Premier League Golden Boot after final day drama

Son Heung-min will share the Premier League’s Golden Boot with Mo Salah after pulling level with the Liverpool hitman on a dramatic final day.

Salah went into the final game of the season out in front on 22 goals, with the Liverpool forward chasing his third Golden Boot after winning it outright in 2017-18 (32 goals) and then sharing it with Sadio Mane and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang a season later with 22.

The Egyptian started from the bench against Wolves but scored from a corner after being introduced in the 58th minute. Liverpool did all they could to claim the title by picking up maximum points, but Manchester City’s triumph over Aston Villa meant it was eventually all for nought.

Right behind Salah ahead of kick-off was Tottenham’s Son Heung-min, whose two second half goals in Spurs’ 5-0 thumping of relegated Norwich City brought his haul for the campaign to 23. The brace was a fitting way to cap off his most prolific season in a Spurs shirt, and the first in which he has outscored the talismanic Harry Kane.

It was possible for Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo to perform an unlikely overtake on 18 goals, but he was not even named in United’s squad as Ralf Rangnick’s men slumped to a 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace that summed up their dismal campaign. The Portugese superstar last topped the standings back in 2007-08 with 31 and was Manchester United’s leading scorer this season.

Leading the way for both goals and assists in the Premier League this season, Salah won the FWA Football of the Year award for his invaluable contributions to Liverpool’s title charge.

There were goal-of-the-season contenders against Manchester City and Watford in October, while a hat-trick at Manchester United that same month spelled the beginning of the end for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Old Trafford.

A winner at Aston Villa followed in December, while doubles against Everton, Leeds and Manchester United helped Liverpool close the gap on league leaders City.

The goals did dry up towards the back end of the season but his goal against Wolves was enough to see him pick up the Golden Boot, albeit a shared one. That accolade may not be paired with a Premier League winners’ medal, but Liverpool would not have pushed City so close without his contribution.

Tottenham’s top Premier League goalscorer in 2014-15? Harry Kane, with 21. A season later? Kane again, with 25. A season later? Kane again, with 29. And, well, you get the picture…

For seven straight seasons, Kane has led the way at Spurs, with this remarkable consistency resulting in three Golden Boots – 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2020-21 – a feat that only Thierry Henry (four times) and Alan Shearer (three) can also boast in the Premier League era.

This year, however, he trails Son, who scored the winner against Manchester City on the opening weekend, recently netted a hat-trick at Villa and recorded doubles against Leicester, West Ham and Norwich. None of Son’s 23 goals have come via the penalty spot.

A world-class player in his own right, Son entered the club’s top 10 all-time scorers this year but still remains an underrated star according to a former Spurs striker and Golden Boot winner.

“You always have players in the league who are great players, they do everything right on the pitch, but because their PR or publicity is not big enough, and they are not so open to the public outside of the pitch and their profile is not so big, people don’t give so much attention to them,” Dimitar Berbatov, who shared the Golden Boot on 20 goals with Carlos Tevez in 2010-11, tells i.

“In the case of Son, I think he’s underestimated and he’s showing it constantly with his feet and movement and goals. He is one of the top goalscorers in the league in the last seasons and he is constantly improving. Spurs are lucky to have him.”

No transfer has proved as divisive as Ronaldo’s this season, and while he heads into another summer of uncertainty, it is hard to believe United would have been better off if the 37-year-old had never returned to the club.

His most memorable contributions arguably came in the form of late Champions League winners and equalisers, but he repeatedly rescued United in the league as well.

Two goals helped United beat Arsenal 3-2 in December, while a hat-trick saw off Spurs by the same scoreline in March.

Add to that another recent treble against Norwich, plus goals against Arsenal, Chelsea and Brentford, and Ronaldo made a late charge up the charts.

The Golden Boot proved to be a step too far, however, yet only a fool would write off the evergreen Ronaldo ever being in contention again.