Raised up by Girona, Dovbyk stands alone at the top to claim the Pichichi | Sid Lowe
Artem Dovbyk netted a hat-trick to pip Alexander Sørloth and become La Liga’s top scorer but this is a story of the collective
Sometimes the least important things matter most, small moments that make sense of it all. A last-minute penalty in a 7-0 win on the final day, scored against the worst team around – long since relegated, reduced to 10 men, with a reserve keeper in goal and coach that’s leaving – elevated Artem Dovbyk above everyone. The last shot of the final Friday of the season took the Girona striker to the top of the Pichichi charts.
Dovbyk’s 77th shot of the season, more than anyone, was simple enough. Left footed from the spot, it sent Marc Martínez – the Granada goalkeeper playing his third top flight game aged 34 – the wrong way; it also took the Ukrainian to 24 goals, one above Villarreal striker Alexander Sørloth in the only thing still in play on the final weekend. The following day as the final Saturday kicked off Girona’s players met for lunch, still nursing a hangover and watched together as Sørloth took his last shot, pulling up injured to leave Dovbyk as top scorer, their teammate marking a historic season for all of them.
