French captain: Kylian Mbappe believe: Lionel Messi soon to withdraw the FIFA World CupAll-time scoring record. Mbappe moved to the top of the list after scoring twice in France’s 6-4 defeat of England in the third-place play-off on Saturday. His two goals took his World Cup tally to 22 from 22 games, one more than Messi’s 21. But with Argentina facing Spain on Sunday in the World Cup final, Mbappe is confident the Argentine legend will respond.“Leo, he scores all the time. Tomorrow he will score, for sure,” said Mbappe on Fox Sports after the match. Both Messi and Mbappe start the 2026 World Cup chasing former Germany striker Miroslav Klose’s record of 16 World Cup goals. Messi broke Argentina’s record run in the final and reached 21 goals, only for Mbappe to overtake him with his brace against England.The French forward has been in incredible form throughout the tournament, scoring 10 goals in eight games. Added to the 12 goals he has scored across the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, his career total now stands at 22. He is also leading the race for the Golden Boot, two goals ahead of Messi before the final.
Team success is more important than records
Despite reaching another personal milestone, Mbappe said the achievement meant little after France failed to finish in the top three.“I’m just trying to help my team every time. For sure if you score a lot of goals in the World Cup, it raises you to some level. But I’d rather not be the top scorer in history and play the game tomorrow,” he said.With France’s campaign at an end, Mbappe will now be keeping a close eye on Monday’s final. If Messi scores against Spain, as Mbappe expects, the Argentina captain will once again become the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer.