The fight for the World Cup scoring throne added a new chapter. Hours after Lionel Messi became the top scorer in the tournament's history, Kylian Mbappé responded with a double against Iraq to stay in the race for the top.

The France attacker scored in the 14th and 54th minutes of the match corresponding to the second day of Group I and reached 16 goals in World Cups, the same number with which the German Miroslav Klose closed his World Cup career.

With this, Mbappé was only two goals behind Messi, who earlier had raised his tally to 18 goals after scoring twice against Austria.

Mbappé catches up with Klose and enters the World Cup elite

Before the match against Iraq, the French striker shared fourth place with Gerd Müller among the top scorers in World Cup history with 14 goals.

His first goal of the afternoon allowed him to reach 15 goals and equal the Brazilian Ronaldo Nazário, another of the great offensive references of the tournament.

Later, with his second score, Mbappé reached 16 goals, catching up with Klose and becoming the second highest active scorer in the history of the competition.

Messi continues to lead, but Mbappé maintains the pressure

The day left important movements in the historical classification of World Cup scorers.

Hours earlier, Messi had surpassed Klose's 16 goals thanks to a double against Austria, becoming the absolute leader of the table with 18 goals.

However, Mbappé's response was immediate. The Frenchman not only maintained his impressive scoring average in the World Cup, but also reduced the gap over the Argentine captain to just two goals.

Age plays in favor of the French forward

One of the most striking aspects of this career is the generational difference between both footballers.

While Messi will turn 39 on June 24, Mbappé is 27 and still has room to play in future editions of the World Cup.

This situation makes the Real Madrid attacker one of the main candidates to challenge the scoring leadership currently held by the Argentine.

France finds its great reference in Mbappé

Beyond the individual figures, the double against Iraq once again confirmed the importance of Mbappé for the French team.

The attacker reached the figure of 100 international matches with “Les Bleus” and responded with a decisive performance that brought France closer to its goals in the tournament.

With each game he plays, Mbappé continues to accumulate goals and climb positions among the best scorers of all time. Now, after matching Klose, the next target has a first and last name: Lionel Messi.