With five months left until the start of World Cup 2026 which will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, there are some records that can be broken, such as the one held by the German, now retired, Miroslav Klosecurrently the leader in the historical scorers table of the FIFA World Cup.
However, the emergence of other stars such as Lionel Messi y Kylian Mbappé they have put in check the registration of 16 points held by the world champion with Germany in Brazil 2014. His own Klose He admitted that his record could fall very soon, since both the Argentine and the Frenchman are just a few goals away from snatching that privileged place. The particularities of the modern game, including kicks from the penalty spot, seem to tip the balance in favor of the new contenders. This was stated by the 47-year-old former striker in an interview with the newspaper Bild.
“I am sure that my scorer record in World Cups will be broken soon. Either Lionel Messi achieves it in this World Cup, or at the latest, Kylian Mbappé in the next one.”“, the former attacker born in Poland but naturalized German expressed sincerely.
Currently, Messi addition 13 goals y Mbappé 12 in the highest international football competition, distances that shorten the margin with the record of Klose. Below the German’s historical mark are the retired Brazilian Ronaldo (15) and the deceased Gerd Müller (14).
Klose stressed that, unlike Messi and MbappéDuring his career in the German national team, he was not assigned the responsibility of taking penalties, a circumstance that, according to the former footballer, could have increased his number of goals in the final score.
Beyond the scorer code, Klose He recalled his other personal exploits in the world championships: “I think I still have the most wins in a World Cup and I am the only player to have played in four semi-finals.“, highlighted the former international, who is currently working as coach of the Nuremberga team that plays in the second division of German football.
Looking at the expectations of the German team in the 2026 World Cupthe now technician identified Nick Woltemade —currently at Newcastle, England— as his main option to lead the German attack. “He has a very complete profile”Klose assessed in the conversation with Bildconsidering that this attribute gives it a certain advantage over its rivals in internal competition.
On the other hand, the former forward also regretted the recent injury of Niclas Füllkrugtoday a player on loan to Milan from Italy after passing through West Ham Unitedwho seeks to gain playing time after his recovery. For Klose, the competition for the forward position will be one of the determining factors in the near future of the German team, which will share the Group E of the World Cup with Curacao, Ecuador y Ivory Coast.
As to Messi y Mbappétheir contenders in this area, both should be present in the World Cup if there are no inconveniences. The Rosario from Inter Miami, 37 years oldwould play his last major competition with the Argentina team, with which he won the World Cup in Qatar in 2022. The Real Madrid forward, who also knows how much the cup weighs after winning Russia 2018, will be one of the leaders of the team that Didier Deschamps will lead again.
