Kylian Mbappe wins Golden Boot, plus top stats from 2022 World Cup
Kylian Mbappe ended the Qatar World Cup with the Golden Boot after a sensational hat-trick in an ultimately losing effort in the final.
Thirty-two teams started out on the path to hopeful World Cup glory, but that was whittled down to Argentina and France in the final.
Mbappe scored eight goals, one better than the seven scored by Lionel Messi – who scored a brace in what was one of the greatest finals of all time.
Here is the Qatar World Cup in numbers.
Most team goals scored
As would be expected, it is finalists France and Argentina leading the way in this battle. England, who scored six against Iran in their opening match, are third with 13 goals scored.
Golden Boot winner
France’s Kylian Mbappé ends the tournament as its top scorer, with eight goals after his hat-trick in the final. Lionel Messi, who scored two of his own in the final, finishes in second place with seven goals.
Olivier Giroud, who became France’s record goalscorer with his strike against Poland, and Julian Alvarez finish behind that pair on four.
Previous winners of the Golden Boot
Germany and Brazil have produced the most players who have won the Golden Boot award. Other countries like Argentina, England and France have also had winners.
Harry Kane became only the second Englishman to finish with the Golden Boot, scoring six goals in 2018 putting him two clear of Antoine Griezmann.
History maker Gary Lineker was the first English player to ever win the accolade in 1986, with a hat-trick against Poland, a brace against Uruguay and his sixth in the quarter-final defeat to Argentina. A match which saw Maradona score the infamous “Hand of God” goal.
Other notable winners include French player Just Fontaine who remains the only player in the history of the World Cup with the highest number of goals in a single tournament at thirteen.
Gerd Müller became the first German to win the Golden Boot in 1970 with ten goals and Ronaldo who won the award in 2002 for Brazil, scoring eight.
Golden Glove winner
Emiliano Martinez won the Golden Glove in Qatar after keeping three clean sheets on Argentina’s route to glory, while also playing a crucial role in their shoot-out wins in the quarter-final and final.
Silver Boot
Lionel Messi netted seven goals in Qatar and was awarded the Silver Boot, a goal behind Mbappe, with Olivier Giroud awarded the Bronze Boot for third top goalscorer.
Fastest goal
Alphonso Davies took the honours in Qatar, scoring after just one minute and eight seconds in Canada’s 4-1 defeat to Croatia.
The next fastest goal came over two minutes later, a Hakim Ziyech 35-yard chip for Morocco against Canada on three minutes 31 seconds, while Theo Hernandez was also quick off the mark in France’s semi-final against Morocco, scoring within five minutes.
Most assists
England’s Harry Kane, Portugal’s Bruno Fernandes, Argentina’s Lionel Messi, France’s Antoine Griezmann, and Croatia’s Ivan Perisic all share top-spot with three assists apiece.
Most clean sheets
Morocco are the surprise takers for the most clean sheets achieved in Qatar, reaching the semi-finals, before eventually losing the third-place play-off match.
Most yellow and red cards
South Korea’s Paulo Bento became the first coach ever to be shown a red card at a World Cup match, during his team’s clash with Uruguay.
Wales’s Wayne Hennessey became the first player to be sent off in Qatar, during his side’s 2-0 defeat to Iran, while Cameroon’s Vincent Aboubakar scored the winner in their shock victory over Brazil, but was sent off after picking up a second yellow card for his celebration.
Morocco’s Walid Cheddira got two yellow cards in a matter of minutes in their 1-0 quarter-final victory over Portugal, leaving the north African side defending for their lives in the closing moments of the match.
Spanish referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz brandished 15 yellow cards (one short of the record) and a red for Denzel Dumfries in Argentina’s win over the Netherlands.
Most penalties conceded
France conceded another penalty in the final, having done so twice in their quarter-final win over England – Kane scored the first, but skied the second. They also conceded a penalty in their round of 16 clash with Poland. Japan were also poor in the penalty department, similarly conceding four spot-kicks.
Golden Ball, Silver Ball and Bronze Ball winners
Lionel Messi was named as player of the tournament – winning the Golden Ball – with Kylian Mbappe awarded the Silver Ball and Luka Modric handed the Bronze Ball for third best performer.