Whether it be Ronaldo, Thomas Muller, Mario Kempes, Gary Lineker or Harry Kane – the FIFA World Cup Golden Boot is an award that has been won by some of the game’s best players. Awarded to the individual with the most goals at the tournament, it’s Just Fontaine’s 13 at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden which currently stands above the rest.
While is it highly unlikely that anyone will surpass the Frenchman’s feat at this year’s renewal, there are already a number of players who are looking promising to take out the prestigious gong in Qatar. With that in mind, read on as we dissect who are currently the favourites in the world cup golden boot odds (at the time of writing) as the group games come to a close.
Kylian Mbappe
This man needs no introduction. The 23-year-old maestro has gotten off to a flyer at his second World Cup, scoring once in their win over Australia before bagging a brace in their 2-1 victory against Denmark. It hasn’t only been Mbappe’s ability to find the back of the net that has been so impressive, with his involvement in France’s lead-up play equally as important – which was evidenced by his beautiful assist to set up Olivier Giroud’s second goal against the Socceroos.
As it stands, Mbappe is the shortest price to take home the World Cup Golden Boot, garnering a price of 5/2.
Lionel Messi
Arguably the greatest footballer of all time, Argentina’s Lionel Messi has kicked off his campaign in Qatar rather well, notching up two goals in two games. While his first goal in his team’s shock loss to Saudi Arabia was a straight-forward penalty from the spot, it was his long-range attempt in La Albiceleste’s 2-0 triumph against Mexico that had fans in awe.
With scores deadlocked at 0-0 after more than an hour of play in the books, Argentina needed a spark. Enter Messi. After the 5’6 magician was fed the ball 30 yards out from goal, he took a little left-footed touch to create some room and struck the ball beautifully along the ground and found the bottom corner.
Not only was the goal crucial in helping Argentina win and get back into the round of 16 race, it could very well catapult Messi into form as the knockout stages approach. If he can produce similar moments to that as the tournament progresses, the World Cup Golden Boot could be yet another award that Messi adds to his laundry list of individual accomplishments.
Richarlison
When Brazil’s manager Tite made the decision to pick Richarlison as the Selecao’s main striker ahead of the in-form Gabriel Jesus at this year’s World Cup – there were some fans and pundits left scratching their heads. However, Richarlison’s performances in the yellow, green and blue speaks for itself, with the Tottenham Hotspur super sub scoring on 17 occasions in 38 appearances for his country prior to Qatar.
He continued to add to his tally in Brazil’s first group game against Serbia, scoring both of his team’s goals en route to a 2-0 victory. It included an absolute peach of a finish in which the 25-year-old showed plenty of acrobatics and skill to beat the goalkeeper.
He’s tipped to continue his goal scoring form, with Richarlison currently sitting as the third favourite to win the World Cup Golden Boot award at 15/2.
