With only three weeks remaining in the 2015 season, the MLS Golden Boot Race is poised for a photo finish. Barring an otherworldly run by third-place contenders Robbie Keane (17 goals) and David Villa (17 goals), either Columbus Crew SC’s Kei Kamara (22 goals) or Toronto FC’s Sebastian Giovinco (21 goals) will hoist their club’s first ever scoring crown.
On paper, Giovinco appears to have an edge. Toronto FC has a game in hand on Columbus and the Reds’ remaining three matches include a pair of home games followed by a quick road trip to Montreal for a 401 Derby. The Atomic Ant has five multi-goal performances this season, has looked utterly unstoppable creating countless chances this season, and has been remarkably efficient scoring from outside of the box. Giovinco’s debut season in MLS already includes the league’s single-season points record, two call-ups to the Italian National Team, and possibly the first playoff berth in Toronto FC history. A Golden Boot win would be the icing on the cake.
On paper, Giovinco appears to have an edge. Toronto FC has a game in hand on Columbus and the Reds’ remaining three matches include a pair of home games followed by a quick road trip to Montreal for a 401 Derby. The Atomic Ant has five multi-goal performances this season, has looked utterly unstoppable creating countless chances this season, and has been remarkably efficient scoring from outside of the box. Giovinco’s debut season in MLS already includes the league’s single-season points record, two call-ups to the Italian National Team, and possibly the first playoff berth in Toronto FC history. A Golden Boot win would be the icing on the cake.
However, one extra game is no reason to discount Kamara, who has also exhibited an affinity for lighting up the scoreboard by turning in six braces in his first season back from stints with English sides Norwich City and Middlesbrough. He might need another multi-goal performance to secure the scoring championship, but with a one-goal lead on Giovinco and upcoming matches versus Toronto FC and D.C. United on the docket, he has every chance to steal the newcomer’s thunder. Whether Kamara wins the Golden Boot or not, his 2015 campaign will go down as one of the greatest pure goal-scoring efforts in MLS history, having yet to score a penalty kick this season. Only Stern John (Columbus Crew, 1998, 26 goals) and Mamadou Diallo (Tampa Bay Mutiny, 2000, 26 goals) have recorded more non-penalty goals than Kamara. Perhaps even more impressively, Kamara had never scored more than 11 goals in his eight prior MLS seasons.
By: Editor
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