Villa look to be bagging best bet for Championship top scorer
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Being British or Irish, scoring at least 10 league goals the season prior and not dropping down from the Premier League are all trends among Championship-top-scorers past that can help whittle down the prospective winners shortlist for 2016/17.
Premier League-bound Andre Gray amassed a winning total of 25 for Burnley (and Brentford) last season, which is four more than the 12/1 second favourite in our Championship top goalscorer market managed.
Scotland international striker Ross McCormack fits all of the aforementioned brackets snugly and, for those who’ve vested any emotional interest in second-tier matters over recent seasons, formal introductions won’t be necessary.
Even if you can’t be described as a fan of Cardiff, Leeds or Fulham, the odds that the sharp-shooting Scot hasn’t ruined your Saturday in the colours of one of those three clubs are more stacked than Hulk Hogan in his WWF heyday.
Macca has terrorised Championship defences for eight seasons, scoring 116 times in 260 appearances, which is a rate of a goal every 2.2 games.
The 28 goals he racked up across the 2013/14 campaign for Leeds saw McCormack scoop the Championship’s top-scorer laurels and a continuation of his prolific ways at Craven Cottage over the last two seasons has compelled Aston Villa to make their move.
The BBC report that Fulham have accepted a £12m bid from the Villans for the 29-year-old striker, as the fallen Premier League giants plot an immediate return under Roberto Di Matteo.
Newcastle newbie Dwight Gayle is our ante-post market leader at 8/1, though he’ll have to buck a 12-season trend of leading marksmen having not plied their trade in the top flight the season prior if he’s to deliver on those odds.
Behind his new Magpies teammate at 12/1, Aleksandar Mitrovic’s chances appear damaged by the fact no winner of this prize since the league’s restructuring has hailed from anywhere other than the UK or the Emerald Isle (Ipswich’s Daryl Murphy won with 27 strikes the season before last).
This also scuppers Rudy Gestede (14/1) who may also drop down the Villa Park pecking order if McCormack’s transfer goes through.
Further down the list, Derby’s Chris Martin is probably the each-way value at 20/1, having composed totals of 20, 18 and 14 for the Rams over the last three seasons.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
