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The 2019/20 edition of the La Liga promises to be a fascinating one. The usual suspects of Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid have all made big-money moves in the transfer market and the race for the Golden Boot could well be much closer than what was the case last season, with Lionel Messi finishing the season a staggering 15 goals more than his closest competitor.
Each of the top-three teams in the league have added massive firepower to their ranks, with the likes of Eden Hazard, Luka Jovic, Rodrygo Goes, Joao Felix, and Antoine Griezmann joining their respective teams in big-money moves this summer.
The Trofeo Pichchi is awarded at the end of the season to the league's top-scorer and with the top-three sides adding some much-needed firepower to their ranks, the LaLiga is blessed with attacking talent in abundance.
With the forthcoming season of the Spanish top-flight around the corner, let's look at the top-five contenders for the LaLiga golden boot.
#1 - Lionel Messi
Surprise surprise, Lionel Messi tops the list! The Argentine has continued to defy expectations by scoring at an almost unbelievable rate and is widely regarded as the greatest player to ever grace the game.
Since his debut over a decade ago, no player has been involved in more goals in the league and the La Masia graduate has established himself as one of the greats of the game and currently tops the all-time La Liga charts for goals and assists - a staggering stat for a once in a generation player.
Messi has won the Pichichi in each of the last three seasons and although the diminutive Argentinian will start the forthcoming season as the overwhelming favorite for the crown, the race for the Golden Boot promises to be much closer this time around.
He finished the league season with 36 goals, an astonishing 15 goals more than Karim Benzema, who was his closest competitor and there's every chance Messi replicates those numbers once again.
Messi's exploits in the league will take some beating and although it's a bit bold to make predictions before a ball has been kicked, putting money on the Argentinian to win the golden boot once again is among the safest bets you can make.
#2 - Karim Benzema
Karim Benzema's case in an interesting one. Alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale, the Frenchman was part of one of the most feared trios in world football as Real Madrid went on to define an era in European football.
The Los Blancos stunned the world of football by sealing a record-breaking hat-trick of Champions League trophies and Benzema played a key role in each of their triumphs, also going on to win the league in the 2017/18 season.
With Cristiano Ronaldo sealing a shock move to Juventus and Gareth Bale struggling with injuries last season, the Madrid club had a league season to forget, as the likes of Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari were both appointed at the helm and sacked in next to no time.
Zinedine Zidane, who departed the club after Champions League glory at the end of the 2018/19 season, returned to his beloved club for his second stint as manager in order to steady the ship and kick-start a new era.
Benzema was one of the only bright spots in an otherwise forgettable season for the record European Champions, leading from the front as he took on the reins as the team's talisman after Cristiano's departure.
His tally of 21 league goals last season was second only to Lionel Messi and the Frenchman at times was the lone warrior as his teammates failed to provide him with any kind of support.
Real Madrid are amidst an ongoing spending-spree in the transfer market, shelling out in the excess of £300 million on the likes of Eden Hazard, Luka Jovic, Ferland Mendy, Eder Militao and Rodrygo Goes as they look to compete on all fronts next season.
Benzema is reported to be one of Zidane's most trusted players and after his exploits last season, he could go on to have an even bigger impact this season with better quality around him.
#3 - Luis Suarez
At this point of his career, Luis Suarez's inclusion could be termed controversial but the fact remains that he's been one of the most prolific goalscorers in world football in the last decade.
After a scintillating season with Liverpool, wherein he scored an astonishing 31 league goals despite missing the first six weeks of the season, Suarez topped off his exploits with the Merseyside giants at the FIFA World Cup 2014 as he spearheaded Uruguay to the quarter-finals of the tournament.
Barcelona came calling in the summer of 2014, eventually getting their man for a reported £65 million fee and it is in Spain that Suarez established himself as one of the finest No.9's of our generation.
Since his move to Barcelona in 2014, the Uruguayan striker has been a reliable performer for the Catalan giants and has eased the goal-scoring burden off Lionel Messi.
The mercurial front-man managed to topple the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Antoine Griezmann, Neymar and Lionel Messi to the Pichichi at the end of the 2015/16 season, registering a staggering 40 goals in the league as he spearheaded Barcelona to the La Liga title.
Despite widespread criticism, Suarez was joint-second in the goal-scoring charts last season and looks set to carry on from where he left off as Barcelona target a hat-trick of league titles.
The 32-year-old, now in the twilight of his career, has proved that he's still got something to offer and it has been reported that he's still firmly in the plans of manager Ernesto Valverde.
Antoine Griezmann joined Barcelona in a big-money move this summer and with the Frenchman's added quality in the final-third, Suarez could well end up topping his tally from last season despite not being at the peak of his powers, as he prepares to start his sixth season with the Spanish club.
#4 - Iago Aspas
Iago Aspas is a household name in the Spanish La Liga and it could be argued that the striker's impact for Celta Vigo over the years is quite underrated.
The Spaniard saved his club from relegation on the final day of the 2012/13 season with a late goal, before going on to earn a move to Liverpool in the summer of 2013.
His time in England was forgettable, to say the least. Aspas looked largely out of place and although he showed glimpses of his quality, his move to Liverpool was deemed a failure as he never got to terms with the pace of football in the Premier League.
With limited knowledge of the English language and the fast-paced football, Aspas struggled at Liverpool and was loaned out to Sevilla where he spent one season on loan, before returning to Celta on a permanent deal.
Since 2016, he has scored 19,20, and 22 league goals in the subsequent seasons and has established himself as one of the most reliable strikers in the country.
His tally of 20 league goals last season saved Celta Vigo from the drop once again, as the Spanish club finished 17th in the La Liga table, 4 points above Girona who dropped to the second tier.
Aspas is a modern-day legend at his club and is still going strong at the age of 31, making him one of the most assured performers in the league.
Since his return to his beloved club, he has also been a regular for the Spanish national team and has registered 18 caps to his name, scoring 6 goals.
Aspas' consistency over the years has been quite admirable and there's no reason why he wouldn't score freely next season as Celta look to prolong their stay in the top division.
#5 - Wissam Ben Yedder
Although Wissam Ben Yedder is not among the most flamboyant players in the league, his efficiency and a keen eye for goals make up for his lack of flair.
The Frenchman, fresh from enjoying the most prolific season of his top-flight career, will look to keep scoring goals in order to stake his claim for a place in the national team.
After signing for Sevilla from Toulouse, Ben Yedder has seen his stock rise dramatically, going on to become one of the best strikers in the country and being called up by Didier Deschamps for France.
The 28-year-old scored 18 league goals last season and helped Sevilla to a 6th place finish in the La Liga, securing Europa League qualification for the forthcoming season.
The strikers exploits last season saw him linked to Manchester United in a big-money move, as the Red Devils look to replace Romelu Lukaku, who reportedly has his heart set on a move to Inter.
Ben Yedder ticks a lot of boxes you look for in a modern-day striker and spearheaded Sevilla to a spot in Europe last season, establishing himself as a firm fan-favorite.
Aside from his goalscoring prowess, the forward has multiple facets to his gameplay and is regarded as a complete center-forward.
He drops deep to facilitate link-up play, presses the ball high up the field and his work-rate off the ball is outstanding, making him such a hard player to defend against.
Having been on the standby list for France's World Cup squad, Ben Yedder was handed his first start earlier last month, scoring in France's 4-0 demolition of Andorra in a UEFA Euro 2020 qualifier.
In the prime of his career now, Ben Yedder will look to carry on scoring goals for Sevilla in the hope that he can rack up more caps for his national side.
Honorable mentions
The likes of Antoine Griezmann, Luka Jovic, Eden Hazard, and Joao Felix could well present themselves as contenders for the golden boot next season.
Griezmann has been one of the most consistent performers in the La Liga in recent years and after sealing his dream move to Barcelona, the World Cup winner could thrive with better attacking quality around him.
Luka Jovic and Joao Felix, on the other hand, were breakthrough stars at Eintracht Frankfurt and Benfica. Although they were both owned by Benfica, the former was on loan at the Bundesliga club and went on to establish himself as one of the deadliest attacking talents in the country, scoring 17 league goals.
Felix meanwhile burst on to the scene with the Portuguese giants and was the dubbed to be the next big thing in world football as Atletico Madrid agreed to pay a record-breaking fee of €126 million to acquire his services.
Despite not being known for his goal-scoring exploits, Eden Hazard could have a thing or two to say about the race for the Golden Boot. After finally sealing his dream move to the Real Madrid, the Belgian superstar is Real Madrid's talisman and will look to improve on last season's tally of 21 goals in all competitions.
