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Hello and Welcome back to our assessment of the race to the Pichichi Trophy for the month of March 2019. Barcelona have opened up a 7-point lead at the top of the table and their dominance in this list shouldn't come as a surprise. Atletico Madrid are second, while Real Madrid are third in the table, 12 points behind the Catalan giants with 12 games remaining.
Also Read - Top Contenders for the La Liga Golden Boot: February 2019
Since our last assessment, there have been quite a few notable changes in the race to the Golden Boot. The most interesting has been the long-awaited inclusion of a Real Madrid player among the top ten contenders at the start of March.
The 10 men that make up this list are some of the finest strikers of the league and their goalscoring form has been crucial to their team's performance so far in the season. These 10 men represent 9 different clubs, but who is the front runner for the La Liga Golden Boot at the start of the month? Read on to find out.
#10 Iago Aspas (Spain, Celta de Vigo)
Goals Scored - 10
The Spaniard last scored on 1st of December 2018, but Aspas still makes the cut among the top 10 contenders by virtue of better goals per game ratio.
Aspas missed the month of January due to a calf injury. He returned to the team at the start of February, when he came off the bench against Getafe. But he failed to inspire his team as Celta Vigo lost 3-1. He was an unused substitute in the following game - a home defeat to Levante, but since then, Aspas has been sidelined again with a recurring calf injury.
The Spaniard has 10 goals from 18 games right now, the same as Jorge Molina, Roger Marti and Raul de Tomas, but all of them have at least 22 appearances under their belt. Aspas is averaging a goal every 146 minutes played and at the start of March, is 10th among the top contenders for the La Liga Golden Boot.
#9 Borja Iglesias (Spain, Espanyol)
Goals Scored - 11
The Spaniard just makes the cut among the top ten contenders thanks to a relatively better performance in recent times. Iglesias scored just 1 goal in 4 games in February – against Rayo Vallecano in a 2-1 win at home – to ignite a huge scramble for the last two spots. He scored another goal this weekend against Real Valladolid, helping his club earn a valuable 3-1 win at home.
Iglesias now has 11 goals from 26 games – the same as Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema - but he is ranked lower due to slightly inferior minutes per goal ratio. The Spaniard is averaging a goal every 194 minutes played and has registered 53 shots on goal, 27 of which have been on target.
At the start of March, Borja Iglesias is 9th among the top contenders for the La Liga Golden Boot.
#8 Karim Benzema (France, Real Madrid)
Goals Scored - 11
Real Madrid finally has a contender in the race to the Golden Boot, however, Benzema is a long way off the top. The Frenchman has had an inconsistent season so far, even though he has managed to stay amongst goals.
He started the month by scoring against Alaves at home as Real Madrid won 3-0. Benzema then failed to score in the next two games - a win against Atletico Madrid and a defeat at the hands of Girona. However, he ended the month with a goal against Levante, inspiring his club to a 2-1 win.
This weekend, Benzema drew a blank once again as Real Madrid lost the El Clasico at home by a 1-0 margin. The Frenchman has now scored 11 goals from 26 games in La Liga and is averaging a goal every 189 minutes played. He has registered 55 shots on goal, 27 of which have been on target.
At the start of March, Benzema is 8th among the top contenders for the La Liga Golden Boot.
#7 Jaime Mata (Spain, Getafe)
Goals Scored - 11
The Spaniard is the new man in this list and a fantastic recent form has seen him make his mark among the big boys of the league at the start of March. Mata started the month with a 0-0 draw against Levante, a game where he failed to find the back of the net. However, he was in fantastic touch in the next game, scoring a brace and setting up another as Getafe won 3-1 against Celta da Vigo at home. He scored a goal in each of his next two games against Rayo Vallecano and SD Eibar, with both those matches ending in 2-2 draws.
Mata continued his goal scoring form this weekend as his team beat Real Betis 2-1. The Spaniard now has 11 goals from 23 games and has scored 5 goals in his last 4 games! He has registered 31 shots, 19 of which have been on target and is averaging a goal every 137 minutes played. At the start of March, Jaime Mata is 7th in the race to the La Liga Golden Boot.
#6 Antoine Griezmann (France, Atletico Madrid)
Goals Scored - 12
The Frenchman continues to be in the 6th place at the start of March, thanks to his decent form in the month of February. He scored 2 goals from 4 games as his club won 2 and lost 2 in the month.
Griezmann started the month with a loss away to Real Betis. He started the game but failed to score. In the following game against Real Madrid at home, he managed to find the back of the net, however, it was not enough as his team succumbed to their second loss in 2 games.
The Frenchman successfully turned things around in the following game against Rayo Vallecano, scoring the only goal of the tie. Even though he failed to find the back of the net in the next two games against Villareal at the end of last month and against Real Sociedad this weekend, Atletico Madrid won both games.
Griezmann now has 12 goals from 26 games and is averaging a goal every 189 minutes played. He has recorded 61 shots in La Liga so far, 32 of which have been on target.
#5 Wissam Ben Yedder (France, Sevilla FC)
Goals Scored - 12
The Frenchman scored 1 goal from 4 games in the month of February and is still among the top contenders for the big prize. Ben Yedder started the month with a defeat away to Celta Vigo, a game he failed to score in. He was back among the goals in the following game though, scoring once as his team drew 2-2 against SD Eibar. However, he could not find the net in the next two games, away to Villareal and at home against Barcelona and his team were defeated in both.
This weekend, he regained his goalscoring form against SD Huesca, scoring once. Unfortunately, his team lost the game 2-1. Ben Yedder has now scored 12 goals from 23 games and is averaging a goal every 147 minutes played. He has registered 43 shots, 23 of which have been on target. At the start of March, the Frenchman is 5th in the race to the La Liga Golden Boot.
#4 Charles (Brazil, SD Eibar)
Goals Scored - 12
The Brazilian had a fantastic month, which has seen him included in this list for the first time. Charles scored 5 goals from 4 games and was vital as his club secured 2 draws and a win in that time.
In the first game of the month, Charles scored a brace as SD Eibar won 3-0 at home against Girona. In the very next game against Sevilla away from home, he scored his club’s second goal to give them a 2-0 advantage, only for the home side to mount a late comeback and draw the game.
The Brazilian was at it again against Getafe in the next match. He scored a fantastic brace to secure a 2-2 draw at home. He has since failed to score in his last two games.
Charles has scored 12 goals from 23 games in La Liga so far and is averaging a goal every 101 minutes played. He has registered 39 shots on goal, 20 of which have been on target.
#3 Cristhian Stuani (Uruguay, Girona)
Goals Scored - 15
The Uruguayan continues to pile the pressure on his countryman on second and Stuani has now made significant advances in the race since our last assessment.
He started the month with 2 back-to-back defeats, first away from home against SD Eibar and next at home against HD Huesca. His team failed to score in both of those games. However, Stuani made up for it in the very next game against Real Madrid, where his goal from the spot initiated a 2-1 comeback win at the Bernabeu.
Stuani failed to find the back of the net in the following game, a 0-0 draw at home against Real Sociedad but scored a brace this weekend to inspire his team to a 2-0 win away against Rayo Vallecano.
The Uruguayan now has 15 goals from 23 games and is averaging a goal every 128 minutes played. He has registered 46 shots, 29 of which have been on target. At the start of March, Stuani is 3rd in the race to the La Liga Golden Boot.
#2 Luis Suarez (Uruguay, Barcelona)
Goals Scored - 16
Suarez did not have the best of months in February but is still firmly among the contenders. He appeared in all of the 4 games, starting in 3 of them, but could score only one goal. After failing to score in both draws against Valencia and Athletic Bilbao, the Uruguayan was on the bench against Real Valladolid. He came on for the last 30 minutes but could not make an impact as Barcelona won thanks to Messi's lone goal.
He returned to the starting eleven against Sevilla and was back among the goals too. He converted brilliantly from a superb Messi lob to make the score 4-2. This weekend, he drew a blank in the El Clasico, but Barcelona still won thanks to Ivan Rakitic's fine finish.
The Uruguayan has 16 goals from 25 games so far in La Liga and is averaging a goal every 132 minutes played. He has registered 68 shots, 41 of which have been on target. At the start of March, Suarez is second in the race to the La Liga Golden Boot.
#1 Lionel Messi (Argentina, Barcelona)
Goals Scored - 25
The Argentinean shows no signs of stopping of late. Messi enjoyed another fruitful month, where he scored 6 goals from 4 games and created a huge gap from the competition around him.
Messi started the month with a brace against Valencia, securing a 2-2 draw for his team at home. He failed to score in the following game against Athletic Bilbao and the game ended in a 0-0 draw. But he was back among the goals in the very next game, against Real Valladolid, where he scored the only goal of the game at home.
The Argentinean followed that up with a fantastic hattrick against Sevilla, and also set up Suarez to score another as the Catalans ran riot away from home, winning 4-2. This weekend against Real Madrid in the El Clasico, Messi was lively, but could not score.
He has 25 goals from 24 games in La Liga so far and is averaging a goal every 79 minutes played right now. He has registered a league-high 103 shots on goal, 63 of which have been on target. At the start of March, Lionel Messi is still the No. 1 Contender for the La Liga Golden Boot.
