Mbappé chooses Messi
Kylian Mbappé has been making more World Cup history of his own, but the France captain still placed Lionel Messi above the rest when asked to compare the tournament’s biggest names.
According to USA Today’s report, Mbappé was asked to assess himself alongside Messi, Erling Haaland and Harry Kane after all four had started the tournament in prolific form.
“The best of the four players? Lionel Messi. It’s clear,” Mbappé said. “He’s the best in the world with Cristiano, it’s clear.”
It was a typically direct answer from Mbappé, who played with Messi at Paris Saint-Germain and has shared some of the defining World Cup moments of the modern era with him, most notably the 2022 final between France and Argentina.
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France captain makes his own history
Mbappé’s admiration for Messi has come during another remarkable tournament for the French forward.
As FIFA’s match report described, Mbappé scored twice in France’s 3-1 win over Senegal at MetLife Stadium, becoming France’s all-time leading scorer with 58 international goals.
That brace also made him France’s leading scorer in World Cup history, moving him past Just Fontaine’s national tournament record.
Mbappé did not slow down in France’s next match. According to ESPN’s match summary, he scored twice again in a 3-0 win over Iraq, moving to 16 career World Cup goals and into a tie for second on the men’s all-time list.
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Messi moves the record on
The record Mbappé is chasing has already shifted during this tournament.
Messi began the 2026 World Cup level with Miroslav Klose after scoring a hat-trick against Algeria. He then moved clear of the German by scoring twice in Argentina’s 2-0 win over Austria.
As Yahoo Sports reported, Messi now has 18 World Cup goals, putting him alone at the top of the men’s all-time scoring list.
Mbappé is close behind, but his comments suggest the race is not what occupies him most. His answer was less about personal rivalry than respect for a player whose longevity still sets the standard.
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A debate for everyone else
Mbappé made clear that he does not see the argument over football’s best player as something he needs to win in interviews.
“The rest is a debate for the people, a debate for the journalists, and a debate for the fans of football,” he said. “I think it’s good to debate about the players to see who is the best and who performs better, but for me, it’s not a question in my head.”
For France, that focus is useful. Didier Deschamps’ side have already secured their place in the next round after wins over Senegal and Iraq, while Mbappé has scored four goals in two matches.
The individual records will follow him throughout the tournament. So will comparisons with Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and the next generation of forwards. But Mbappé’s message was simple enough: the debate can belong to everyone else, while he concentrates on trying to bring the World Cup back to France.
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