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Champions League is back! These four words are enough to send any football fan into a frenzy in the month of February. No, not even Valentine's day comes close to giving the sense of contentment that the competition's anthem gives when one's favourite team makes its way onto the field.
Real Madrid vs PSG. Chelsea vs Barcelona. Juventus vs Tottenham Hotspur. There are some mouth-watering ties lined up in the round of 16 with the top performers from the group stage now looking to continue their run in the knockout stages.
In a cut-throat tournament like the Champions League, it takes months of continued dominance to be the top scorer at the end of the competition. Being the leading goalscorer in the Champions League is an excellent achievement and this season too, there are many candidates fighting it out to claim the coveted honour.
In this segment, let us take a look at five such players who stand a chance to become the top scorer of the UEFA Champions League 2017/18 season:
#5 Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Despite currently having a stellar season in La Liga, Lionel Messi did not have a great group stage in Europe by his own gigantic standards. Messi scored three in the group stage, two against Juventus in the opening game and one against Olympiakos. The Argentine did not score in the last three Champions League games.
But you simply can't afford to ignore the man that has scored 29 goals this season and is on course to be the league's top scorer. Also, FC Barcelona are performing at a consistently high level this season and are considered as one of the contenders to reach the final.
In that scenario, Messi will have enough games to get close to his competitors and may even surpass them if the Catalans do play as many games as possible. There's also the added motivation for Messi this time around to finally break his duck against Chelsea. He will be itching to score one against the Blues and may inflict some more damage than what has already been done on Antonio Conte.
#4 Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
The Egyptian has taken the Premier League by storm. With 21 league goals to his name until now, Salah has been the standout player for Liverpool. The Reds have impressed in the Champions League this season, scoring the second highest goals after PSG in the group stages. Liverpool scored 23 goals in six matches with Salah scoring five of those.
Salah scored against all of Liverpool's Champions League opponents this season and also netted one in the playoff round against Hoffenheim. The English side has a relatively easy round of 16 fixture against FC Porto who are expected to be without the services of their main man Vincent Aboubakar for the first leg. This has seriously dampened their hopes of toppling Liverpool.
The reason why Mohamed Salah pips Harry Kane for a spot on this list is that Liverpool are expected to play more games in Europe than Spurs who play Juventus tonight. Liverpool and Salah are predicted to get on the act against Porto and even against tougher opponents in possibly the next few stages (it is their defence and not their attack which may let them down) whereas the same cannot be said for Harry Kane against a well drilled Juventus side.
#3 Edinson Cavani (Paris Saint-Germain)
If there is one side in the competition that has displayed a look of the champions in the group stages, it is Paris Saint Germain. And one of the mainstays of this Paris side which topped the group at the expense of Bayern Munich is Edinson Cavani. With 6 goals and 1 assist to his name in six matches, the Uruguayan striker is in the running to be the top goalscorer in Europe this season.
Cavani has a knack of scoring in the big games for PSG. Be it his goal against FC Barcelona last time around or his one goal and one assist against Bayern Munich in two outings this season, Cavani has effectively shared the workload with Neymar.
Paris Saint Germain are expected to beat their opponents in Europe by simply outscoring them, such is the might of their front line and one can be sure that Cavani will be among the goals in the knockout stages.
#2 Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain)
With six goals and four assists to his name, Neymar was the joint most productive player in the group stages. This is predicted by many as the season where the Brazilian poster boy emerges from the shadows of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi and finally makes his grand arrival.
His move to PSG and his stunning form this season is all pointing towards the fact that this may finally be the season of reckoning for Neymar. He is PSG's greatest hope of landing a European title and this team is capable of delivering the goods. The Parisians are looking like a team to beat this campaign with Neymar leading their charge from the front.
Barring the final group match against Bayern Munich, Neymar scored in each of PSG's Champions League encounter this season. He is expected to carry on his golden run of form and going by his current showings, Neymar can beat Ronaldo's last season's feat of 12 European goals.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Cristiano Ronaldo's performance this season in the Champions League and in the domestic competitions has been as starkly different as chalk and cheese. With 9 goals in 6 group games, Ronaldo topped the charts this season and was the highest scorer in the group phase for a record sixth time.
Ronaldo also set a record this season of being the only player to score in all the six European matches this season. Real Madrid need him more than ever to bail them out of their current rut. The reigning champions face a stern test against Paris Saint Germain.
Real Madrid have been utterly disappointing this season. Against PSG, Real need Cristiano Ronaldo to step up and continue his terrorizing form in Europe this season. His hattrick against Real Sociedad at the weekend was a perfect dress rehearsal for the great man.
If Ronaldo does manage to lead Real Madrid against a win over PSG with all the odds against their favour, there is absolutely no stopping him from winning the top scorer award for the second season running.
