How Messi is inspiring Mbappe and Haaland in Golden Boot race

The GOAT debate is dead. Buried.

Over two matches at this World Cup, Argentina’s Lionel Messi, who turns 39 on Wednesday, has set the kind of benchmark that has left younger super-strikers like Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland in awe of the football genius’ goal-scoring abilities, not to mention his vision and durability.

On yet another spectacular night of football on Monday, Messi scored his fourth and fifth goals at this World Cup against Austria to go past Germany’s Miroslav Klose to the top with 18 goals. And while in the first round of group matches, Messi had responded with a hat-trick after the French and Norwegian strikers scored two each, it was Mbappe and Haaland’s turn to be inspired by Messi’s heroics, with the duo scoring a brace each during their matches against Iraq and Senegal, respectively.

The 27-year-old Frenchman now has 16 World Cup goals in 16 matches, equaling the pre-tournament record held by Klose.  And in his first World Cup, 25-year-old Haaland has now scored four goals in two matches, already making him the highest scorer for Norway in World Cups.

With France and Norway playing on the same night as Argentina, it is quite natural for Mbappe and Haaland to be following Messi’s exploits. Both unabashed fans of the Argentine icon, Haaland called Messi ‘a madman’ following the latter’s hat-trick in the opener against Algeria.

Mbappe, who was Messi’s teammate in Paris Saint-Germain, said he is not in a competition with the latter, despite the race for the Golden Boot.

"There is no saga [with Messi]," Mbappe said following the match against Iraq, as quoted by ESPN. "Leo has also scored, he scores and he will always score. I don't watch what he does, otherwise I will have to do more. I only look at my team. When you score goals, you get closer to this sphere but I repeat: for me it's more important to see our progression."

Earlier, when Mbappe was asked to compare himself, Messi, Haaland and England’s Harry Kane, as per TNT Sport quoting The Guardian, he said: “Lionel is the best of the four players, it’s clear. He is the best of the best with Cristiano [Ronaldo].

“He’s shown over 15 years he has an amazing quality. For the rest, it’s a debate for journalists and fans.”

While the 41-year-old Ronaldo is a pale shadow of his former self and nowhere part of this conversation, for a man who has already won everything with his country and clubs, Messi’s heroics are truly an inspiration for the younger hotshots.

And for now, they seem to be matching him goal for goal.