The race for the World Cup Golden Boot has turned into one of the tightest in the tournament’s history.
Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland are all level on seven goals apiece heading into the quarter-finals, with barely a shot separating three of the greatest forwards of their generation.
Mbappe took the outright lead first, converting a penalty in France’s 1-0 Round of 16 win over Paraguay to move to seven goals.
Messi had set the pace a day earlier with a strike against Cape Verde in Argentina’s dramatic extra-time win, a goal that also extended his own record as the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer.
Haaland was the last of the trio to arrive at seven, scoring twice in Norway’s stunning 2-1 victory over five-time champions Brazil to book his side’s place in the last eight.
It is the first time in World Cup history that three players have reached seven or more goals through the same stage of a tournament.
Should the deadlock persist to the final, the tiebreaker rules favour assists first, then minutes played, and Mbappe currently holds the edge on that count.
Kane sits one behind on six, having powered England’s fightback from a goal down against Mexico with a penalty in a 3-2 win that sent the Three Lions into the quarter-finals.
The England captain, who won the Golden Boot in 2018 with six goals in total, has already matched that tally with three rounds still to play, and remains the closest challenger to the leading pack.
A chasing group of players are on four goals apiece: Jude Bellingham, whose brace against Mexico proved decisive; Ousmane Dembele, whose blistering first-half hat-trick against Norway in the group stage vaulted him up the charts; and Spain’s Mikel Oyarzabal.
Golden Glove race just as open
While the Golden Boot battle dominates headlines, the fight for the tournament’s best goalkeeper is shaping into an equally open contest.
Mike Maignan currently heads the bookmakers’ list, having conceded only twice in France’s first five matches, with only Senegal and Norway managing to beat him.
Argentina’s Emiliano Martinez, the reigning Golden Glove holder, remains a strong contender as he chases a first-ever repeat win, while Spain’s Unai Simon has barely been tested, facing just six shots on target across four matches.
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