After scoring twice against Austria, Messi has 5 goals at this World Cup. Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappé each scored 4 times. After a disappointing performance against Congo, Cristiano Ronaldo has a chance to get in the race for the Golden Boot against Uzbekistan
Messi's five goals came in two bursts: a hat-trick against Algeria to open the tournament, then a brace against Austria that also made him the men's competition's all-time top scorer. Messi had a chance to score a second hat-trick in Dallas, but he missed a penalty in the 9th minute.
Haaland and Mbappé are in hot pursuit. Erling scored twice as Norway beat Iraq 4-1 in Foxborough. He slid in to meet David Wolfe's cross at the far post in the 29th minute, then pressed the Iraq goalkeeper into a rushed clearance that went back into his own net before the break.
The brace carried weight beyond the result. Haaland missed Qatar 2022 after Norway failed to qualify, and he had not hidden how that felt.
"To watch other people score & win games in the World Cup, it triggers, motivates & irritates me," Haaland said. He is now only the second Norwegian to score more than once in a single World Cup match, and already the country's all-time leading goal-scorer.
Hours before, Mbappé had already done his part. The France captain struck twice in a 3-1 win over Senegal, taking his international tally to 58 and moving past Olivier Giroud as his country's all-time leading scorer.
The draw has set up a head-to-head. France and Norway both topped their opening fixtures in Group I, which puts Mbappé and Haaland on track to meet on the final matchday.
