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Portugal will be relieved after securing their place in the 2022 FIFA World Cup by beating North Macedonia 2-0 in the 2nd Qualification round. It is satisfying given how North Macedonia created an upset by eliminating Italy from qualifying.
Had Portugal witnessed the same fate, the World Cup would have been deprived of some top-quality players. More than that, it would have meant that Cristiano Ronaldo most likely played in his last World Cup in 2018.
Portugal players have been dominant in the past few years
Over time, the number of high-quality players coming from Portugal has drastically increased. Some of the most hard-working and productive footballers in the world right now are of Portuguese descent.
Many of them have managed to do really well in front of goal in the 2021-22 season. Here, we take a look at the top Portuguese players who have scored the most goals this campaign.
Note: All competitions in club football are considered
#5 Rafael Leão (AC Milan)
Having come through the ranks at Sporting Lisbon, Rafael Leao joined Lille in the 2018-19 season after his contract was terminated with the Portuguese club. He joined AC Milan the following season and has been with them since.
The Portuguese has done pretty well with the Serie A giants, creating and scoring goals on a regular basis. The 23-year old has so far scored eight goals in 23 league appearances. Using his superb dribbling skills, Rafael Leao has successfully dribbled past players 80 times this season, the most in Serie A.
He has also contributed with a goal in the Italy Cup and twice in the UEFA Champions League, taking his total tally to 11 for this campaign. Rafael Leao is showing promising signs and certainly has a bright future ahead.
#4 Gonçalo Guedes (Valencia)
The 25-year old forward started his career with Benfica and is now with Valencia in La Liga. Goncalo Guedes has now become a regular player with the Bats and has been a useful outlet in attack.
In the 2021-22 season so far, the Portuguese has scored 11 goals in 26 La Liga starts. Using his agility and flair, Goncalo Guedes has won the third-most fouls (74) in the league.
Having scored twice in the Copa del Rey, the Valencia forward has in total scored 13 goals across all competitions. Goncalo Guedes can earn a transfer to a top club if he manages to provide more consistency to his game.
#3 André Silva (RB Leipzig)
At the age of 26, Andre Silva has already played in four different leagues. That being said, he has found his best form in the Bundesliga which came last season whilst playing for Eintracht Frankfurt.
He scored 28 league goals in 32 appearances with them, which helped him earn a move to RB Leipzig in the last summer transfer window. With Leipzig, the Portuguese striker has been in great form, scoring 10 goals in just 19 league starts this season.
Andre Silva has scored thrice in the UEFA Champions League and once each in DFB-Pokal and the UEFA Europa League. With a total tally of 15 goals across all competitions this campaign, the Portuguese has once again been impressive.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
It was a memorable summer transfer window this season as Cristiano Ronaldo marked his return to Manchester United. After 13 seasons, the Portuguese superstar is back to take the club back to success.
It hasn't been the best campaign so far given the inconsistent results United have achieved. Despite that, Cristiano Ronaldo has managed to score 12 Premier League goals in 24 appearances.
His efforts in the UEFA Champions League were immense as he scored six goals in seven matches. Cristiano Ronaldo has so far scored 18 goals across all competitions this season and it will be interesting to see how many more he can add before the end of the season.
#1 Diogo Jota (Liverpool)
Liverpool made a smart signing in Diogo Jota when they signed him from Wolverhampton Wanderers last season. Since then, the Portuguese has become an important member of the team under Jurgen Klopp.
His presence and impressive performances have forced the German manager to bench Roberto Firmino more often than not. So far, Jota has scored 13 goals in the Premier League this season and has the best goals per 90 mins ratio with 0.67 goals.
His contributions in the UEFA Champions League, FA Cup and the EFL Cup have been equally important for the Reds. Jota has in total scored 19 goals this season, more than any other Portuguese player in Europe's top five leagues.
