The top ten active goalscorers at the World Cup
There might not be a prouder feeling in football than scoring a World Cup goal. Whether it's a player's first or 16th tournament goal, that pride will never dissipate.
It's the biggest stage in all of sports; where legacies are crafted, chiselled and cemented.
The 2022 World Cup in Qatar feels like a generation-defining one given the talent we may never see on this stage again. Each of these superstars is trying their utmost to conjure up one final bit of magic and work their way up the World Cup scoring charts.
Here are the top ten active goalscorers at the World Cup.
10. Ivan Perisic - 6 goals
Croatia's clutch maestro was at it again as he thumped home an emphatic header to restore parity in their round of 16 tie against Japan.
Perisic has delivered time and time again for the national team, scoring in the semi-final and final in 2018. His sixth World Cup goal drew him level with Davor Suker in Croatia's all-time scoring charts at the tournament.
9. James Rodriguez - 6 goals
Colombia may not be competing at the 2022 World Cup, but James Rodriguez is still an active player - now plying his trade with Olympiacos.
The former wonderkid embarked on a magical 2014 campaign in Brazil which culminated in a Golden Boot triumph. Rodriguez was the star of that World Cup, earning a move to Real Madrid off the back of it.
8. Enner Valencia - 6 goals
After scoring three times in three group games back in 2014, Valencia returned to the grandest stage in Qatar where he continued his prolific World Cup form.
The Ecuador captain scored twice in the tournament opener against Qatar before scoring in the draw with the Netherlands to take his overall scoring tally up to six.
Very few boast a superior strike rate to Valencia.
7. Luis Suarez - 7 goals
Suarez has been scoring World Cup goals since 2010, but he failed to add to his haul in Qatar as Uruguay crashed out in the group stages.
His seven goals are evenly spread out across three tournaments (2010, 2014 and 2018), with his most memorable strike arriving in 2014 as he knocked England out with a late winner in the group stages.
6. Harry Kane - 7 goals
Sure, it wasn't the prettiest of Golden Boot victories, but a World Cup Golden Boot is a World Cup Golden Boot, okay. How many have you got?
Kane scored six times in Russia before scoring his seventh against Senegal in the 2022 round of 16. The England hitman still has plenty of time to add to his haul before he calls it a career.
5. Neymar - 8 goals
With the weight of a devoted nation on his shoulders, Neymar delivered for hosts Brazil back in 2014 as he scored braces in group victories over Croatia and Cameroon before his tournament ended in devastating fashion against Colombia in the last eight.
Injuries have compromised Neymar's World Cup proficiency, but he did score twice in 2018 and then netted in Brazil's 4-1 thumping of South Korea.
Time will tell if his strike before the penalty shootout defeat to Croatia will be his final World Cup goal.
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - 8 goals
Over a third of Ronaldo's World Cup goals came in one game as he netted a superb hat-trick against Spain in Portugal's first game of the 2018 World Cup.
The all-time great, however, is yet to score a knockout stage goal at the tournament.
3. Kylian Mbappe - 9 goals
Mbappe has nine goals in 11 World Cup games. He's 23 years old. Miroslav Klose's all-time scoring record is just seven strikes away.
It's a matter of when, not if, the French superstar usurps the German forward.
2. Lionel Messi - 10 goals
It's the fairytale the footballing world is desperate to see manifest into reality. This is Messi's last World Cup, and the little genius is trying his utmost to lead Argentina to glory.
Messi has scored at five World Cups, but he only recently notched his first knockout stage goal at the tournament. Hopefully, more are on the horizon.
1. Thomas Muller - 10 goals
20-year-old Muller announced himself to the world in 2010 as he won the Golden Boot in South Africa with five goals, beating out Wesley Sneijder and David Villa due to his superior assists haul.
Muller matched his five-goal tally in 2014 as Die Mannschaft went all the way in Brazil, but Bayern's raumdeuter has failed to score in Germany's last two disastrous World Cup campaigns.