PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kylian Mbappé of France scored his 19th career World Cup goal, finding the net on a penalty kick in the Round of 16 against Paraguay on Saturday and moving within one of record holder Lionel Messi of Argentina.
Mbappé stutter-stepped on his way to his 19th goal in 19 World Cup appearances, beating Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill in the 70th minute to break a scoreless tie. Mbappé was awarded the penalty when Diego Gomez was called
for tripping after a video review.
It was the seventh goal of this tournament for Mbappé, matching Messi in the race for the Golden Boot for the World Cup's top scorer. Mbappé won that award four years ago in Qatar, but Messi and Argentina beat France in the final.
Messi scored his 20th career World Cup goal in Argentina's 3-2 win over Cape Verde on Friday night. The 39-year-old great also has goals in a record eight consecutive World Cup games.
Norway's Erling Haaland and England's Harry Kane are next in the Golden Boot race with five goals each.
If there’s a tie in the Golden Boot standings when the tournament ends, FIFA will use assists as the first tiebreaker and fewest minutes played as the second tiebreaker. Mbappé has a 2-0 lead over Messi in assists.
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