Kylian Mbappe scores eighth goal to equal Lionel Messi at the top of the FIFA World Cup Golden Boot charts

Kylian Mbappe hit his eighth goal to equal Lionel Messi at the top of the World Cup Golden Boot standings. (AP photo) The thrilling race for the 2026 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot is heating up as France talisman Kylian Mbappe successfully overtook Argentina maestro Lionel Messi at the top of the goalscoring charts and guided defending champions France into the semi-finals with a clinical 2-0 win over Morocco on Thursday.The Real Madrid superstar had a rollercoaster night at Gillette Stadium. Mbappé first missed a golden opportunity to give his team the lead in the 28th minute when he fouled Moroccan defender Noussair Mazraoui in the box. However, Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou read the penalty perfectly and dived low to his left to deny the French captain.The French forward, who was not deterred even by the penalty shootout in the first half, created a moment of absolute magic in the 60th minute. Mbappé dribbled deep into the penalty area and fired a typical rocket that flew past the goalkeeper and went just under the bar. The spectacular strike marked his eighth goal of the edition, leveling Messi and moving him one goal ahead of Norwegian goalscorer Erling Haaland. Mbappe has claimed the top spot in the goalscoring charts from Messi as he has three assists, two more than the Argentine legend.The North African resistance completely crumbled just six minutes later when winger Ousmane Dembélé got in front to double the lead. With the match safely secured, coach Didier Deschamps substituted his star striker in the 77th minute, allowing Mbappé to receive a standing ovation from the packed stadium.Apart from the Golden Boot race, Mbappé continues to rewrite the football history books. The strike was his 20th career World Cup goal in just 20 tournament appearances. He now sits just one goal behind Messi in all-time World Cup scoring. The Argentine legend currently leads with 21 goals in 31 games in six editions.The pressure is now shifting back to the rival camps. Haaland will lead the line for Norway against England in their quarter-final on Saturday, while Messi will look to reclaim outright lead when Argentina take on Switzerland later in the night.