Although the official response from Lionel Messi when Argentina take on Spain in the World Cup Final has yet to be registered, French national team striker Kylian Mbappe pulled into first in this year's Golden Boot race with a second half brace against England in the third place game, a 6-4 loss to Jude Bellingham and the Three Lions.
Mbappe and Messi entered the final games of the World Cup with eight goals each, though Messi owned the tiebreaker on assists after nabbing two of them in Argentina's semifinal victory over England.
But Mbappe owns first place for himself now, and after winning the Pichichi trophy as La Liga's top goal scorer for two years in a row and the European Golden Boot at the club level in the previous season, the Frenchman is about to pick up an even more prestigious goal scoring record this summer.
Reality is starting to settle for Mbappe
Real Madrid fans have seen this scene play out twice already, and they are at a point where they could care less about how many goals Mbappe scores or which individual awards he wins. Because despite taking home Pichichi honors in both seasons, Real Madrid have gone from winning La Liga and the Champions League in the 2023/24 season to winning literally no meaningful trophies in the two seasons with Mbappe.
And finally, Mbappe admitted to the world after France's loss to England that the World Cup Golden Boot and these types of awards do not matter one lick. Mbappe told reporters after the loss to th Three Lions, via the Madrid Zone, “I would have preferred to not be top scorer and play in the final tomorrow.”
Now that is the sort of honest reflection and team first attitude that Real Madrid fans have been waiting for Kylian Mbappe to express. He has never made these kinds of statements as a Madridista, which has been frustrating, but this summer for France, a more mature Mbappe and one who acts more like a leader has emerged, even despite his disappointing performance in the 2-0 loss to Spain in the semifinals.
Mbappe did his job scoring two goals for France against England, but his all around game and security on the ball could have been much better, especially for a player of his caliber. But the larger point is that football is about winning and losing as a team, and maybe Mbappe is starting to realize that all his individual accolades mean nothing without winning. Finally.
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