The 2026 FIFA World Cup has been nothing short of miraculous thus far, especially when you look at what the superstars of the tournament have been doing on the pitch.
Monday’s slate of games, which featured three of the game’s premier goalscorers, was perhaps the peak of the tournament thus far.
The story of the day had to be Argentina’s Lionel Messi, who set the all-time World Cup goals record, surpassing Germany’s Miroslav Klose for the lead as his illustrious career accolades continue.
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Messi not only notched his 17th World Cup goal in the first half of Argentina’s win over Austria, but he added an 18th goal late in the second half to put a cherry on top of yet another wonderful performance.
Through just two matches in the World Cup, Messi already has five goals to his name, scoring a hat trick in Argentina’s first tournament win against Algeria. And he’s doing this at 38 years old, showcasing the same skill he had in his prime for country and club while furthering his case as the best soccer player to ever wear a pair of boots.
But Messi wasn’t the only superstar to show out on Monday. In fact, he wasn’t even the only one to score two goals in a victory.
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France’s Kylian Mbappe and Norway’s Erling Haaland, two of the game’s best strikers, took advantage in their matches against Iraq and Senegal, respectively.
Early in the first half in Philadelphia, Mbappe found the ball just outside Iraq’s 18-yard box when he drilled a left-foot strike toward goal, and it was too much juice for the keeper as it found the back of the net. France was all over Iraq, as expected, and they made sure to press with their 27-year-old superstar leading the way.
After a lengthy weather delay, play finally resumed on the pitch, where Iraq made a costly mistake on a goal kick that the keeper was not prepared to handle, and Ousmane Dembele served an easy pass to Mbappe to set up his second goal of the evening.
While Messi broke the record for all-time World Cup goals, Mbappe is not too far behind him, as those were his 15th and 16th of his career. Mbappe is only 27 but is playing in his third World Cup for a France squad looking for revenge after falling to Argentina in the 2022 World Cup Final.
Finally, not too far from Philadelphia, Haaland and Norway were playing in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in a pivotal Group I match against Senegal. France is also in Group I and had the lead with two wins to start their tournament.
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Thus, Haaland would be counted on for his goal-scoring ways, and he didn’t disappoint. Haaland scored in the 48th and 58th minutes of the match on the way to a 3-2 victory over Senegal to tie France at the top of Group I, leading into a decisive final group stage match later this week.
Haaland may even have had three goals if not for a missed opportunity when Senegal’s goalkeeper fumbled the ball and a wide open net was in front of him at the end of the first half. But Haaland put it off the right post, leaving the 6-foot-5 Norwegian in disbelief.
However, Haaland made up for it quickly in the second half, and the crowd in New Jersey went ballistic for the Manchester City product.
With players like Spain’s Lamine Yamal making history with his first-ever World Cup goal on Sunday, and Team USA making statement wins in their first two matches in Group D, this tournament has had it all from top to bottom.
The best part is this is only the group stages. The knockout rounds are to come next week, when players like Messi, Mbappe and Haaland will have more at stake.
But there’s no doubt this tournament has been tremendous to watch for every fan across the globe, and Monday’s “Big Three” made it even more special.
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