World Cup 2022: Goalscoring records that can be broken in Qatar

The World Cup, it’s arguably the biggest stage in sports, a competition where the whole world comes together to appreciate the beautiful game and this time we’re being ‘treated’ to a Winter World Cup.

International tournaments are where legends are made.

Whether it's Bobby Moore captaining England to World Cup glory in 1966 or Zinedine Zidane putting the world on notice with France in 2000, the footballing world always remembers the standout performers in major international tournaments.

But what about the modern-day footballers: how far are they off the old legends? We all know that Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will go down as two of the best in history, but what about the rest of the crop?

As luck would have it, a bunch of records are up for grabs in this upcoming World Cup campaign, and a good campaign for some individuals could see their name etched in their nation's history. We decided we’ll take a look at some of the records that are up for grabs in Qatar...

Harry Kane to break England record

Harry Kane has been England’s go-to man for years now and he has proven over the last few seasons that he is one of the best goalscorers in the world. He has quickly managed to accumulate 194 Premier League goals in his career and he does not look like slowing down anytime soon.

Harry Kane has risen through the ranks in the England setup and has found himself as the deserved captain of the side and has become a player that the England fans can rely on. This World Cup he actually comes in as the 8/1 favourite in the Golden Boot Odds, an achievement he managed in the last World Cup where he scored six goals, two more than anyone else.

Kane will go down as one of England’s all-time greats and he can secure that legacy this World Cup where he finds himself just two goals off of Rooney’s scoring record for England:

• Wayne Rooney: 53
• Harry Kane: 51
• Sir Bobby Charlton: 49
• Gary Lineker: 48
• Jimmy Greaves: 44

I think it would be a massive shock if Harry wasn’t to break Rooney’s record here. All he needs is two goals to level the record and then another to beat it. With Kane being the early favourite for the Golden Boot, he should have no issues cementing his legacy here. 

If you fancy a solid World Cup campaign from England’s main man, he’s 4/6 with Paddy Power to be his nation’s top scorer at the tournament, a fairly decent price if you can manage to combine it with another selection.

• Back England at 10/1 to win the World Cup
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Olivier Giroud to break France record

Olivier Giroud has been a prolific goalscorer throughout all stages of his career. This man is just a human highlight reel and as prolific as it comes.

As of writing, he’s played 606 club games, scored 244 times and assisted 89 times. He’s also recently picked up a Serie A title with AC Milan; the club’s first league title since the Milan glory days in 2011. 

It’s not just club success that Giroud has had. He’s now racked up 114 appearances for Les Bleus and scored 49 goals meaning he is just two goals off Thierry Henry’s leading goalscoring record of 51.

It feels like Giroud has been criminally underrated throughout his whole career and it looks like this tournament might be the one where they realise just how good he is.

Here’s how the current French top scorer list looks;

• Thierry Henry: 51
• Olivier Giroud: 49
• Antoine Griezmann: 42
• Michel Platini: 41
• Karim Benzema: 37

What an honour it would be for Giroud to be at the top of that list and actually do it in less games than Henry. At the rate Giroud has started this season he certainly looks like breaking this record as he’s already scored once for France and nine times for AC Milan. 

The Frenchmen is also priced at 14/1 with bet365 to be France’s top scorer at the World Cup and around 100/1 to be the overall top scorer in Qatar. A good campaign from Giroud will see Henry’s record beaten and who knows, another trophy could be on the way if he is firing.

Neymar to break Brazil record

Neymar is a man that is coming into the World Cup in sensational form with 15 goals and 12 assists in 19 games for PSG this season. He’s currently on a goal involvement every 57 minutes which is exactly what Brazilians will want to be seeing.

Neymar has become a legend for Brazil ever since he burst onto the scene and captained Brazil to a Gold Medal in the 2016 Summer Olympics. He was destined to be a star early on in his career and it’s fair to say he has delivered with 26 trophies to his name. 

Neymar is another player who can etch his name into the history books with a solid World Cup campaign. As it stands here are Brazil’s all-time top scorers

• Pele: 77
• Neymar: 75
• Ronaldo: 62
• Romario: 55
• Zico: 48

A player who was often regarded as the greatest ever, Pele, could be dethroned by the end of the year by Neymar as the most prolific Brazilian of all time. It’s an achievement many would have expected Neymar to achieve but to have it wrapped up at 30 years old is seriously impressive.

Neymar is 16/1 for the Golden Boot which makes him the joint 5th favourite with Cristiano Ronaldo. Neymar will indeed be on penalties and free-kicks for Brazil which will only bolster his chances of scoring meaning Pele’s record being beaten really is just a matter of time. 

A decent bet could be Neymar to be Brazil’s top scorer at 5/4 with BetVictor. He will almost certainly be at the center of all the goals and as we mentioned earlier with the penalties and free-kicks, he will definitely be having the most chances.

Other records

There are a few other records that won’t yield any betting angles but are still worth mentioning:

• Ronaldo can become the first player to score at five World Cups
• Messi can overtake Maradona in World Cup appearances 
• Brazil and Germany will be battling for the most games played at World Cups (both tied on 109 at the moment)
• France could become the fourth team in a row to be the defending champions and be knocked out in the group stage