Kylian Mbappe insists lifting the FIFA World Cup trophy remains his only priority, even as he closes in on Lionel Messi’s all-time tournament scoring record.
The France captain scored twice in Les Bleus’ comfortable 3-0 win over Sweden in the Round of 32 on Tuesday, taking his World Cup tally to 18 goals in just 18 appearances. The brace also moved him to six goals at the 2026 World Cup, level with Messi in the race for the Golden Boot and just one goal behind the Argentine’s all-time World Cup record of 19.
Despite the milestone within touching distanceMbappe made it clear that individual records are secondary to France’s pursuit of another world title.
“I think the goal, as I said, is to go as far as possible, to make it to July 19 and come back here,” Mbappe told reporters, referring to the World Cup final in New York.
“We’re trying to win; we’re taking it one step at a time. Of course, the more goals you score, the higher you climb in the rankings. But I’m also convinced that Leo is going to score more goals, so I don’t focus too much on that.”
“I’m more focused on the opponents we might face and how close we’re getting to our goal: the final.”
Messi will have the opportunity to extend his record when defending champions Argentina take on Cape Verde in their Round of 32 fixture on Friday.
France, meanwhile, will meet Paraguay in the last 16 after the South Americans stunned Germany in a penalty shoot-out following a disciplined defensive display. Mbappe expects another difficult test and believes France still have areas to improve despite their convincing victory over Sweden.
“I think we’ll keep working between now and the Paraguay match to see what we can improve, because there are still some sequences that aren’t quite clear enough,” he said.
“Still, I think it’s positive overall, and our ability to score goals means we always have the chance to take the lead in matches.”
France will start as favourites against Paraguay in Philadelphia, with the winners set to face either co-hosts Canada or Morocco in the quarter-finals. While Mbappe continues to rewrite the World Cup record books, the 27-year-old remains firmly focused on adding another winners’ medal rather than overtaking Messi’s scoring mark.
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