Lionel Messi has trodden new ground in world football on plenty of occasions in the past.
Most recently, he established himself as the all-time leading goalscorer in World Cup history, surpassing the Miroslav Klose's previous record haul of 14.
The Argentinean maestro's brace against Austria in the group stages of the Stateside showpiece moved him clear of the revered German, and astonishingly extended his tally to five in two matches, after bagging a brace in the world champions' curtain-raiser with Algeria.
His goals per game ratio this summer means he's well on track to make yet more history in the coming weeks, threatening to break Just Fontaine's 13 goal blitz at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden.
Messi isn't the only player eyeing up that record though, with plenty of other global football heavyweights flexing their muscle in the early stages of this year's event.
Like the revered South American, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and England's Harry Kane have each bagged twice in all of their appearances to date, teeing up the possibility of more than one player hitting double-figures in a single World Cup for the first time ever.
Most goals scored by a player in a World Cup campaign
- Just Fontaine (France), 1958 - 13 Goals
- Sandor Kocsis (Hungary), 1954 - 11 Goals
- Gerd Muller (West Germany), 1970 - 10 Goals
- Ademir (Brazil), 1950 - 9 Goals
- Eusebio (Portugal), 1966 - 9 Goals
- Guillermo Stábile (Argentina), 1930 - 8 Goals
- Ronaldo (Brazil), 2002 - 8 Goals
- Kylian Mbappe (France), 2022 - 8 Goals
- Leonidas (Brazil), 1938 - 7 Goals
- Jairzinho (Brazil), 1970 - 7 Goals
- Grzegorz Lato (Poland), 1974 - 7 Goals
Just Fontaine's record of 13 goals in a single World Cup has proven to have stood both the test of time and greatness.
Plenty of goalscoring sensations have taken to the hallowed field in World Cups since 1958, but nobody has, as of yet, managed to equal or surpass his 13-goal haul.
The Frenchman set a new tournament record 68 years ago when his 13 goals bettered the previous record of 11, which was achieved by Hungarian frontman Sandor Kocsis just four years earlier.
West Germany linchpin Gerd Muller is the only other player to have hit double-digits, bagging 10 in 1970, although there appears to be every chance that at least one player will hit 10 or more this time around.
Most goals ever scored by an England player at a World Cup
Harry Kane netted six times for England at Russia 2018, a tally that no other former Three Lions star has matched on the World Cup stage.
The then-Tottenham Hotspur ace's tally helped England reach the semi-finals of the competition, before they were beaten 2-1 by Croatia in a tense and dramatic affair in Moscow.
Of course, Kane has since overtaken Gary Lineker as England's all-time record World Cup goalscorer, and he will be confident of further extending his spot at the summit of the list between now and the end of the 2026 campaign in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Prior to Kane's goal-laden run in Russia, Sir Geoff Hurst held the record thanks to the five goals he scored, three of which famously came in the final, at the triumphant 1966 World Cup on home soil.
