Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe have just proved that Lionel Messi is the undisputed GOAT | Football | Sport

Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland have both had an incredible calendar year. Mbappe lit up the Qatar World Cup and won the Golden Boot after being Ligue 1 Player of the Year last season for firing PSG to the French title. Haaland meanwhile has taken a move to the Premier League in his stride, hitting 24 goals before the New Year including three Premier League hat-tricks already.

The two are poised to succeed Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the two main Ballon d’Or contenders of the next decade. Were it not for Messi’s resurgence this season, after a disappointing year by his standards last term, some would argue Mbappe and Haaland have already assumed the joint-throne.

But Messi, even at 35, just continues to astound. If 12 goals and 14 assists in 19 PSG games this season wasn’t enough, the World Cup Golden Ball winner lit up Qatar with seven goals and three assists in seven games. With the most iconic team trophy in the game now on his CV, the Greatest of All Time (GOAT) debate with Ronaldo seems very much over.

And Mbappe and Haaland have now provided an extra underline in Messi’s favour too. The pair have been sensational in 2022, racking up a combined 77 goals and 22 assists in 75 appearances at club level for PSG, Borussia Dortmund and Manchester City.

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In fact, having turned 24 last Tuesday, Mbappe has more career goals at this point than Messi had at the same age. The PSG star – who has won the Ligue 1 Golden Boot in all of the past four seasons – is at 258 goals and 134 assists in 368 matches for club and country.

And while Messi is closing in on 800 career goals at the age of 35, when he’d just turned 24, he had only managed 197 goals and 97 assists in 326 outings for Barcelona and Argentina. Haaland, at just 22, isn’t far behind on 180 goals and 42 assists in just 235 games.

The challenge for Mbappe or Haaland will be to sustain this form for another decade, just like Messi has. Until then, there is no longer a debate between who the best is between Messi and Ronaldo. For many, no one will ever touch Messi’s greatness – nor will they touch the heights of his 2012.