Kylian Mbappe has rewritten French football history. At 27, the Real Madrid forward scored his 58th international goal in France's 3-1 World Cup victory over Senegal, overtaking Olivier Giroud to become Les Bleus' all-time leading scorer. The milestone came in just his 99th appearance for his country.
Giroud, working as a pundit for BBC One, was among the first to salute his former teammate. "Congratulations Kylian," Giroud said. "It makes sense, it was expected. He will beat every single record — the number of caps and goals. I think he can easily reach 100 goals and maybe beat Miroslav Klose's World Cup record. He's delivered great performances in World Cups and big games."
“Kylian Mbappe, 27, becomes France's all-time record scorer with his 58th goal, overtaking Olivier Giroud.”
Mbappe's two goals against Senegal also took his World Cup tally to 14, just two behind Klose's all-time tournament record of 16. His rise has been relentless: from his international debut in March 2017, it took until his fourth appearance — a 4-0 win over the Netherlands in World Cup qualifying — to score his first France goal. Since then, the goals have flowed.
French football expert Julien Laurens believes Mbappe is already among the nation's greatest. "There is still a lot more to come from him but if we are to stop it right now, Zinedine Zidane and Michel Platini certainly remain the top two French players of all time," Laurens said. "After that it is Mbappe ahead of Thierry Henry, Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud and others."
Laurens pointed to Mbappe's leadership as captain, his 2018 World Cup win and his hat-trick in the 2022 final. "I predict him to be the number one by the end of his career," he added. "He has at least one more World Cup after this and the Euros to play in."
Giroud, whose 57-goal record Mbappe broke, offered a final insight into the striker's character. "A lot of team-mates ask me about him," Giroud said. "For me it's just ambition and confidence. He knows where he wants to go, he is a leader and you could see from a young age he was very at ease. He is a good team-mate, he is an incredible talent and I think he is a proper leader on and off the pitch."