Lionel Messi has quite a climb to catch Kylian Mbappe For the Golden Boot.
argentina superstar He has won almost everything in football, apart from the World Cup top scorer award, and with 10 goals in a game, the French striker is now just two points behind Mbappé. Wild 3rd place match.
Even if Messi doesn’t get there, a third Golden Ball to extend his record as the competition’s best player seems well within reach. Sunday’s World Cup final against Spain Located in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
He is already the only player to have won the award more than once since it was first presented in 1978, and being the driving force behind Argentina’s second successive final appearance at the age of 39 gives him a strong case for further accolades.
Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni said, “He is history. A legend.”
Other awards to be presented on Sunday for performances at the World Cup are the Golden Glove Award, which goes to the top goalkeeper, and the Best Young Player Award, which goes to the top player under the age of 21.
Spain is in good shape to win at least one, if not both. Unai Simon has conceded just one goal in seven games and 19-year-old Yamine Lamar has shone up front, showing why he is already considered one of the world’s most promising players.
Messi is at the end of a career in which he won the Ballon d’Or, the award given to soccer’s best player of the year, a record eight times.
Although they missed out on winning the Golden Boot, they held the lead in the final two games of this year’s tournament. Messi and Mbappé scored eight goals in the semi-finals, but Messi also provided one assist to win the tie-break.
Mbappe then scored twice in France’s 6-4 loss to England on Saturday, becoming the first player to score 10 goals in a World Cup since German great Gerd Muller did in 1970.
Mbappe also won the Golden Boot award four years ago in Qatar, when France lost to Argentina in the final. This time, he could join the likes of Italy’s Salvatore Schillaci in 1990, Croatia’s Davor Šuker in 1998 and Germany’s Thomas Müller in 2010, all of whom won the Golden Boot for their goal in the third-place match.
If Messi defeats Mbappe against Argentina, he will become the first Golden Boot winner to play for the champions since Ronaldo scored eight goals when Brazil won the title in 2002.
A goal may not be necessary to win another Golden Ball.
Messi first won that trophy in 2014, when Argentina finished as runners-up, and again in 2022, scoring seven goals in seven games to lead his country to its third title.
The Golden Ball, Golden Glove and Young Player of the Year awards are chosen by media members from a list of players compiled by the FIFA Technical Study Group.
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