PHILADELPHIA: France star striker Kylian Mbappe on Sunday joined Argentina’s Lionel Messi in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Golden Boot race after netting his seventh goal of the tournament during his side’s clash against Paraguay.
Mbappe, 27, converted a penalty in the 70th minute in his fifth match to draw level with Messi, who also has seven goals, albeit in four matches.
Overall, the goal took Mbappé’s FIFA World Cup tally to 19, leaving him just one behind Messi, who has scored 20 goals in 30 appearances.
FIFA World Cup Golden Boot Race
Kylian Mbappé (France) — 7 goals | 5 matches
Lionel Messi (Argentina) — 7 goals | 4 matches
Erling Haaland (Norway) — 5 goals | 3 matches
Harry Kane (England) — 5 goals | 4 matches
Ousmane Dembélé (France) — 4 goals | 5 matches
In addition, the Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) striker became only the second player to score in two different editions of the FIFA World Cup. He joined Lionel Messi, who became the first player to achieve the feat a day earlier.
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Kylian Mbappe scored 8 goals in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar to win the Golden Boot.
Speaking after the match, Mbappe said France had anticipated a physical contest and were prepared to adapt their style if necessary.
He said his side had no problem playing “ugly football” and dismissed suggestions that they would approach the game with flair alone.
“We knew what kind of match we were going to have. If we have to get our hands dirty, we can do that. We can play ugly football. They thought we would turn up in tuxedos, but we were there,” said Mbappe.
“Even at that game, we were better than them. That’s their football — there is no right or wrong way to play the game. They tried to get at us that way, but we won.”
READ: France edge Paraguay to set up Morocco clash in World Cup quarter-final