- 3 hours ago
Mbappe has ALREADY had a better career than Messi and Ronaldo
Carlo Garganese
- Updated: 10 Jan 2023 17:57 GMT
- 4 min read
Kylian Mbappe has already had a better World Cup career than both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, despite this only being his second tournament.
Mbappe was at his brilliant best on Sunday as he single-handedly destroyed Poland in a 3-1 win for France in the last-16.
The 23-year-old made Olivier Giroud’s opener with a fantastic assist. This was Mbappe’s second assist of the tournament.
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And Mbappe then scored twice himself in the second half, both brilliant strikes. The first was lashed into the roof of the net from just outside the area, while the second saw him curl into the top corner from the left angle of the area.
Mbappe is now the top scorer at World Cup 2022 with five goals from four games.
Having scored four goals at World Cup 2018, he now already has nine goals in the competition overall.
These nine goals come from just 11 matches.
This is the same number of goals that Messi has managed in five tournaments, with the Argentine having found the back of the net nine times also but from 25 matches dating back to 2006.
Messi’s goal against Australia on Saturday was also the only time he has scored in the knockout stage of the competition. Mbappe now has three knockout goals in the World Cup. Ronaldo has no goals at all in the knockout stage.
Ronaldo has eight goals in World Cup history – one less than Mbappe – from 20 matches played in 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022.
Mbappe, unlike Messi and Ronaldo, has also already won the World Cup having played a starring role in the success in Russia four years ago.
The attacker scored in the final against Croatia and also delivered one of the best individual performances ever in a World Cup in the last-16 victory over Argentina.
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It is an astonishing record from Mbappe give he is still only 23. Indeed he will be 27 and at his peak when the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico comes around in four years’ time.
And he still has three more possible games in this tournament to add to his goal tally and his growing World Cup legacy.
Indeed, it is looking highly possible that he could soon challenge Miroslav Klose’s all-time World Cup scoring record of 16 goals for Germany.
Mbappe will next be in action next week in the quarter-finals when France play the winner of England or Senegal.
