Golden Shoe 2015-16: Updated Standings, Latest Points, Top Goalscorers in Europe

It was a busy weekend in the race for the European Golden Shoe, as Napoli's Gonzalo Higuain pulled level with Cristiano Ronaldo on 54 points, while Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski, Neymar and Zlatan Ibrahimovic made further gains, as they each got on the scoresheet in their matches.

Higuain netted the decisive goal as the Partenopei beat Palermo 1-0 in Sicily, while Lewandowski made a late cameo in Bayern Munich's 5-0 thrashing of Werder Bremen and got in on the act with his 24th Bundesliga goal of the campaign.

Barcelona's Messi produced a breathtaking performance, as he orchestrated a 6-0 rout of Getafe, scoring once and assisting three times, as Neymar bagged a brace.

Ibrahimovic roared into the top 10 with a four-goal haul in a 9-0 destruction of Troyes, as Paris Saint-Germain secured the Ligue 1 title.

Here are the current standings:

Position	Player	Team	Goals x Factor	Overall
T1.	Cristiano Ronaldo	Real Madrid	27 x 2.0	54.0
T1.	Gonzalo Higuain	Napoli	27 x 2.0	54.0
T3.	Luis Suarez	Barcelona	26 x 2.0	52.0
T3.	Jonas	Benfica	26 x 2.0	52.0
5.	Robert Lewandowski	Bayern Munich	24 x 2.0	48.0
T6.	Lionel Messi	Barcelona	22 x 2.0	44.0
T6.	Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	Borussia Dortmund	22 x 2.0	44.0
8.	Zlatan Ibrahimovic	Paris Saint-Germain	27 x 1.5	40.5
T9.	Neymar	Barcelona	20 x 2.0	40.0
T9.	Eran Zahavi	Maccabi Tel Aviv	26 x 1.5	39.0

Rules: Each league is attributed a difficulty constant between one and two, and that is multiplied by the number of goals scored to calculate their points tally.

For example, Messi's goals are doubled because La Liga has a multiplier of two, while Ibrahimovic's goals are multiplied by 1.5 because that is Ligue 1's rating.

Barcelona Duo Shine

Messi's match did not get off to a good start, as he missed a penalty after 10 minutes—his low spot-kick comfortably stopped by Vicente Guaita down to his left.

The Argentinian has an unwanted record from the spot that mirrors his side's this season, per Sky Sports Statto:

He quickly set about pulling the strings, however, and after assisting Munir El Haddadi, he slipped Neymar through with a slide-rule through ball, and the Brazilian swept home with ease to notch the 50th La Liga goal of his career:

Messi got in on the act himself shortly before half-time, as he rolled an opponent just outside the area before lashing a vicious strike into the bottom corner.

Football journalist Rafael Hernandez summed up the reaction on social media:

Early in the second half, Messi picked out Neymar on the edge of the area, and the Brazilian expertly took the ball forward before slotting home.

Here are the full highlights from the match:

Messi and Neymar now sit on 22 and 20 league goals, respectively, for the campaign.

Had Messi not missed five La Liga matches in October and November due to injury, he may well be contesting the top places with Ronaldo and Higuain. After bagging seven goals in his last four games, though, they may still have to look over their shoulder.

Ibrahimovic Hits Four

Because of Ligue 1's difficulty constant of 1.5, Ibrahimovic isn't likely to trouble the top places in the standings come the end of the season despite enjoying another fine and prolific campaign.

As only he can do, Ibrahimovic entered the top 10 in incredible style, hitting a hat-trick in just nine minutes before adding a fourth in the closing stages of the game.

Thibault Camus/Associated Press

He bagged his first just seconds after the restart, firing in a low effort from 18 yards before expertly volleying in a magnificent cross from Angel Di Maria for his brace. The striker had his hat-trick minutes later, passing the ball into the top corner from the edge of the area.

French football writer Andrew Gibney believes PSG cannot afford to lose him this summer:

Ibrahimovic completed his haul racing on to a through ball, expertly holding off a defender and applying a cool finish. Here are all the highlights, via BT Sport Football:

His performance earned him a 10/10 rating from French football journalist Jonathan Johnson—the first he's ever given out:

As Bleacher Report UK noted, the Swede was in top form off the pitch as well:

Ibrahimovic needs nine more goals just to pull level with Ronaldo and Higuain. On his current form, that tally isn't an unrealistic total for him to finish the season on, but it's unlikely those above him won't continue to score also.