There were signs against Switzerland that this World Cup might be starting to catch up with his 39-year-old body, but Messi was still Argentina\u2019s best player and created the opening goal. Does he have enough left in the tank to hold on to top spot?<\/p>\n
![\"Lionel](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285779507-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n Lionel Messi tops our rankings (David Ramos\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
2. Kylian Mbappe \u2014 France\/Real Madrid (same)<\/strong><\/p>\n Despite seeing an awful penalty saved by Yassine Bounou, Mbappe seemingly cannot be denied at this World Cup. His curler around Issa Diop was sublime and broke Morocco\u2019s resistance. Doing it against Spain would further bolster his case.<\/p>\n 3. Jude Bellingham \u2014 England\/Real Madrid (+4)<\/strong><\/p>\n Four goals in his last two knockout matches have tied Bellingham with Kane in the World Cup top-scorers chart. He is the primary reason England are in the semi-finals, and form suggests he will be the biggest threat to Argentina.<\/p>\n 4. Harry Kane \u2014 England\/Bayern Munich (-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Has taken something of a back seat to Bellingham since his DR Congo heroics, but Kane remains the smart, positional fluid fulcrum through and around which most of England\u2019s best attacks flow.<\/p>\n \n Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham have been key to England\u2019s progress (Richard Pelham\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 5. Erling Haaland \u2014 Norway\/Manchester City (-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Shut down by the England defence as he failed to score for the first time in 21 international appearances. Haaland ran out of steam, but his remarkable feats and joyful swagger at this World Cup will live long in the memory.<\/p>\n 6. Michael Olise \u2014 France\/Bayern Munich (same)<\/strong><\/p>\n Olise is still, incredibly, waiting for his first World Cup goal, but France\u2019s outrageously overpowered attack does not need him to score. His creation is enough, and with the ball at his feet, he is the most beautiful player to watch in this tournament.<\/p>\n 7. Ousmane Dembele \u2014 France\/Paris Saint-Germain (+4)<\/strong><\/p>\n Left or right foot, it matters not for Dembele, who scored his fifth goal of the World Cup to seal France\u2019s victory over Morocco. His scoring has come more in spurts than the steady stream of Mbappe, but he is looking progressively more comfortable in his supporting role.<\/p>\n \n Ousmane Dembele has made his mark (Charly Triballeau\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n 8. Achraf Hakimi \u2014 Morocco\/Paris Saint-Germain (-3)<\/strong><\/p>\n Hakimi slips after he had his most ineffective game of a very impressive tournament against France, unable to carry his customary attacking threat down the right or fully shut down Desire Doue, Mbappe or Olise when they ventured into his zone of influence.<\/p>\n 9. Vinicius Jr \u2014 Brazil\/Real Madrid (-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Vini Jr was probably the Brazilian least deserving of elimination against Norway, and would have registered a sensational assist if Endrick had not fluffed his lines in the second half. Brazil have plenty of problems but he is not among them, and he goes home with his head held high.<\/p>\n 10. Aymeric Laporte \u2014 Spain\/Athletic Club (-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Spain\u2019s formidable defence was finally breached by Charles De Ketelaere, and Laporte had to scramble to make sure it did not get worse late on against Belgium when Unai Simon made the rash decision to rush out of his goal. He kept a cool head and neutralised the danger.<\/p>\n 11. Pau Cubarsi \u2014 Spain\/Barcelona (-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Cubarsi was guilty of allowing De Ketelaere to nip in front of him to head Belgium level, but also set up Spain\u2019s winner by uncorking the long-range shot that Senne Lammens could not keep from parrying out to the advancing Mikel Merino. This was another good overall performance.<\/p>\n \n Pau Cubarsi and Aymeric Laporte have been key to Spain\u2019s solidity (Stacy Revere\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 12. Dayot Upamecano \u2014 France\/Bayern Munich (+1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Strengthened his claim to be France\u2019s best defender at this World Cup with another assured display to keep a depleted Morocco attack at arm\u2019s length. Spain will provide a much tougher and markedly different test, but Upamecano has answered every question so far.<\/p>\n 13. William Saliba \u2014 France\/Arsenal (+1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Saliba has been every bit as good as Upamecano at the heart of a France defence that has tightened up in the knockout rounds, and only ranks behind him by virtue of missing one group game. In the air and on the ground, over big and small spaces, he is as classy as they come.<\/p>\n 14. Lamine Yamal \u2014 Spain\/Barcelona (+2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Yamal is the one superstar name who has not entirely fired at this World Cup as he works his way back into peak rhythm following his injury, but he has still managed to carry a constant threat and was the focal point of much of Spain\u2019s attacking play against Belgium.<\/p>\n 15. Ismael Saibari \u2014 Morocco\/Bayern Munich (-3)<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s a huge shame that injury deprived Saibari of the chance to demonstrate his quality against France, because he had a fantastic World Cup at the tip of Morocco\u2019s attack which more than justified Bayern Munich\u2019s decision to sign him from PSV Eindhoven this summer.<\/p>\n 16. Diogo Costa \u2014 Portugal\/Porto (-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n The best goalkeeper in the tournament, Costa made a series of excellent saves against Spain before Merino managed to sneak a shot underneath him in the final minutes to end Portugal\u2019s campaign. He should get more opportunities to avenge that disappointment.<\/p>\n 17. Julian Quinones \u2014 Mexico\/Al Qadsiah (same)<\/strong><\/p>\n Quinones took his World Cup goal tally to four by lashing a loose ball into the roof of the net against England. He was Mexico\u2019s primary attacking threat from the left flank throughout the tournament and helped push one of the big contenders to the brink at the Azteca Stadium.<\/p>\n \n Mexico\u2019s Julian Quinones (Alfredo Estrella\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n 18. Rodri \u2014 Spain\/Manchester City (+3)<\/strong><\/p>\n Rodri has looked closer to his 2024 Ballon d\u2019Or-winning best at this World Cup, snuffing out opposition attacks before they can take shape and cementing Spain\u2019s control of possession. France will be his biggest challenge yet but it is one he is capable of meeting.<\/p>\n 19. Elliot Anderson \u2014 England\/Manchester City (+11)<\/strong><\/p>\n Anderson played three different midfield roles against Norway, and held the fort in the middle of the pitch pretty much alone between the withdrawal of Declan Rice and the introduction of Reece James. He also read the flight of the ball off the overhead camera cable (allegedly) perfectly to set up England\u2019s equaliser.<\/p>\n \n Elliot Anderson is on the charge in our rankings (Dan Mullan\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 20. Mikel Oyarzabal \u2014 Spain\/Real Sociedad (same)<\/strong><\/p>\n Having scored four of Spain\u2019s five goals in the group stage, Oyarzabal has struggled to find the same opportunities to be decisive in the knockout rounds and Mikel Merino has outshone him from the bench. A semi-final against France would be the perfect time to change that trend.<\/p>\n 21. Declan Rice \u2014 England\/Arsenal (-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Rice did well to even make it onto the field against Norway in humid Miami, given that England boss Thomas Tuchel revealed he had been in bed sick for most of the three days before the game. England miss him hugely whenever he is not alongside Anderson in the heart of midfield.<\/p>\n 22. Leandro Trossard \u2014 Belgium\/Arsenal (-4)<\/strong><\/p>\n Trossard was arguably Belgium\u2019s best performer against the USMNT, but he was unable to do anything significant to trouble the Spanish defence. Still, this has been a good World Cup for the Arsenal man, who is expected to join Besiktas this summer.<\/p>\n 23. Anthony Gordon \u2014 England\/Barcelona (+6)<\/strong><\/p>\n Gordon continues his rise after making another positive impact for England against Norway, cutting back from the left flank and picking out Bellingham on the edge of the box to score a brilliant equaliser. He now appears the unequivocal starter on the left ahead of Marcus Rashford.<\/p>\n \n Anthony Gordon is now England\u2019s first-choice starter on the left (Justin Setterfield\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 24. Roberto Alvarado \u2014 Mexico\/Guadalajara (-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Could not add to his three World Cup assists against England, but contributed to the waves of Mexican attacks with his tidy left-footed distribution. His form at this tournament has raised his profile outside his homeland significantly, and deservedly so.<\/p>\n 25. Pedri \u2014 Spain\/Barcelona (-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Spain\u2019s midfield continues to strangle opponents with possession, but Pedri did not even start against Belgium and was not particularly impactful when he came on. He will continue to fall in this list if that continues in the semi-final against France.<\/p>\n 26. Bruno Guimaraes \u2014 Brazil\/Newcastle (-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Will unfortunately be remembered more for his horrendous penalty miss against Norway than for the four World Cup assists that preceded it. Guimaraes was Brazil\u2019s best midfielder at the tournament and that counts for something, though not as much as it used to.<\/p>\n 27. Ismaila Sarr \u2014 Senegal\/Crystal Palace (-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Sarr\u2019s huge contribution to Senegal\u2019s showing, and his sensational goal against Belgium, still merit consideration here in the 20s. He will likely slip as the tournament progresses, but could stick in the top 50 with his body of work up to the round of 32.<\/p>\n \n Ismaila Sarr was one of the stars of Senegal\u2019s tournament (Fran Santiago\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 28. Folarin Balogun \u2014 United States\/Monaco (-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Balogun\u2019s personal World Cup ended with a relative whimper against Belgium after a political storm he had no hand in, but that should not obscure his stellar goalscoring contribution in the earlier rounds for the tournament co-hosts.<\/p>\n 29. Brahim Diaz \u2014 Morocco\/Real Madrid (-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Saibari\u2019s absence may also have limited Diaz\u2019s creativity against a far superior France side. Their chemistry in the group stage was spectacular, and played a key role in making Morocco the most successful African team at this World Cup.<\/p>\n 30. Pedro Porro \u2013 Spain\/Tottenham (+2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Porro continues to provide vital attacking thrust down the right flank for Spain, and one trademark surge and cutback cross enabled Dani Olmo to shoot and force the Thibaut Courtois parry that Fabian Ruiz followed up to tap in against Belgium. His battle with Desire Doue and Lucas Digne will be fascinating.<\/p>\n 31. Luis Diaz \u2014 Colombia\/Bayern Munich (-3)<\/strong><\/p>\n Diaz scored his penalty in a tense shootout against Switzerland, but could not provide the cutting edge that Colombia so desperately needed in their last-16 tie or in this World Cup more generally, where he was well below his Bayern best.<\/p>\n 32. Andreas Schjelderup \u2014 Norway\/Benfica (+2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Did he mean it? We may never know, but Schjelderup\u2019s cross\/shot to give Norway the lead against England was undeniably spectacular, and built upon his two assists for Haaland against Brazil. He leaves this World Cup with his reputation enhanced.<\/p>\n \n Andreas Schjelderup opened the scoring in the quarter-final against England (Justin Setterfield\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 33. Lisandro Martinez \u2014 Argentina\/Manchester United (re-entry)<\/strong><\/p>\n Martinez has been Argentina\u2019s second-best performer and second-most important player after Messi, passing the ball out of defence at a consistently high level next to Cristian Romero and scrambling impressively to protect a defence which has been more tested by inferior opposition than Lionel Scaloni would like.<\/p>\n 34. Desire Doue \u2014 France\/Paris Saint-Germain (re-entry)<\/strong><\/p>\n The starting spot on the left side of France\u2019s attack never appears entirely nailed down, but Doue appears to have edged ahead of PSG teammate Bradley Barcola in the last two matches, winning a penalty against Paraguay with a brilliant run and slipping the ball to Mbappe for the opener against Morocco.<\/p>\n 35. Marc Cucurella \u2014 Spain\/Real Madrid (-3)<\/strong><\/p>\n Cucurella\u2019s clever off-ball movement and well-timed forward runs remain very important to the success of Spain\u2019s patient attack, even if they did not ultimately provide the breakthrough against Portugal or Belgium. He was arguably culpable for allowing the cross which led to De Ketelaere\u2019s goal.<\/p>\n 36. Gregor Kobel \u2014 Switzerland\/Borussia Dortmund (-3)<\/strong><\/p>\n Kobel could do nothing about any of Argentina\u2019s goals, and he was a significant reason why Switzerland were able to hold out for so long with 10 men. His penalty shootout heroics against Colombia in the round of 16 also earn him substantial credit here.<\/p>\n 37. Martin Odegaard \u2014 Norway\/Arsenal (+2)<\/strong><\/p>\n Odegaard\u2019s composure and leadership on the ball enabled Norway to control possession for long stretches against England in the stifling heat of Miami. He has generally sent the ball where it needs to go in this World Cup, though his creativity in the final third waxed and waned.<\/p>\n \n Martin Odegaard was a key part of Norway\u2019s excellent tournament showing (Patricia de Melo Moreira\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n 38. Charles De Ketelaere \u2014 Belgium\/Atalanta (+5)<\/strong><\/p>\n De Ketelaere made his aerial ability count against Spain just as he had against USMNT, sneaking across the front of Cubarsi to nod Belgium level. He is not a natural No 9 but showed enough to suggest he can be a real option for club and country there going forward.<\/p>\n 39. Adrien Rabiot \u2014 France\/Milan (re-entry)<\/strong><\/p>\n Rabiot has been the most consistent presence doing the midfield dirty work behind France\u2019s vaunted front four. His physicality, positional intelligence and technical polish on the ball are key to ensuring that Didier Deschamps\u2019 formidable side maintain their balance.<\/p>\n 40. Alexis Mac Allister \u2014 Argentina\/Liverpool (new entry)<\/strong><\/p>\n After a season of struggle for Liverpool, Mac Allister appears to be rediscovering his mojo for Argentina, leaping brilliantly to head them in front from a Messi corner against Switzerland. His technique and tenacity are not in question, but his role in Scaloni\u2019s midfield asks a lot of him physically.<\/p>\n 41. Mikel Merino \u2014 Spain\/Arsenal (new entry)<\/strong><\/p>\n Merino has played just 136 minutes across six matches at this World Cup, but two late winners against Portugal and Belgium have strengthened his status as Spain\u2019s closer in the final third. Can he find a way to keep it up against France and potentially beyond?<\/p>\n \n Mikel Merino has scored late winners in two knockout games (Carl Recine\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 42. Bukayo Saka \u2014 England\/Arsenal (+3)<\/strong><\/p>\n Saka continues to be impactful in a reduced role for England, coming off the bench against Norway to almost set up a goal with a phenomenal jink between two defenders and low ball across the six-yard box, as well as contributing to the late pressure that resulted in Bellingham\u2019s winner.<\/p>\n 43. Youri Tielemans \u2014 Belgium\/Aston Villa (-8)<\/strong><\/p>\n Absent against Spain due to injury, Manchester United-bound Tielemans still enjoyed an impressive and memorable World Cup as Belgium\u2019s captain, punctuated by his starring role in their remarkable comeback against Senegal.<\/p>\n 44. Joshua Kimmich \u2014 Germany\/Bayern Munich (-8)<\/strong><\/p>\n Kimmich was Germany\u2019s best performer at this World Cup, not that it ultimately counted for much. Whether or not he remains captain under Julian Nagelsmann\u2019s successor-elect Jurgen Klopp, he needs to be a full-time midfielder at international level moving forward.<\/p>\n 45. Davinson Sanchez \u2014 Colombia\/Galatasaray (-8)<\/strong><\/p>\n Sanchez helped keep out a relatively limited Swiss attack to ensure that Colombia made it to penalties despite their profligacy in front of goal. Once there, he crashed his own spot kick off the crossbar, but overall he has had a good tournament.<\/p>\n 46. Enzo Fernandez \u2014 Argentina\/Chelsea (same)<\/strong><\/p>\n There are fewer opportunities for Fernandez to snatch the limelight in his deeper Argentina role, and his defensive limitations never truly go away. But he has been as good on the ball as you would expect, and still gets credit here for his late winner against Egypt.<\/p>\n \n Enzo Fernandez scored Argentina\u2019s third goal against Egypt (Justin Setterfield\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 47. Florian Wirtz \u2014 Germany\/Liverpool (-9)<\/strong><\/p>\n Wirtz sticks around (for now) in the top 50 as the most reliable source of creation for a Germany attack that proved too easy for Paraguay to stifle in the round of 32. His three assists from four games is a pretty good return, though not a superstar contribution.<\/p>\n 48. Bradley Barcola \u2014 France\/Paris Saint-Germain (-8)<\/strong><\/p>\n Barcola slips after losing his starting spot on France\u2019s left flank to Doue, who appears a better choice against low block defences. Spain are unlikely to play as Paraguay and Morocco did, however, and Barcola\u2019s lightning speed and skill could yet come in very handy for Deschamps.<\/p>\n 49. Yan Diomande \u2014 Ivory Coast\/RB Leipzig (-8)<\/strong><\/p>\n Diomande\u2019s performances with Ivory Coast have faded a little as the tournament progresses, but he carried a consistent threat that often lifted those around him. One assist and no goals, however, highlights that he is only scratching the surface of his talent.<\/p>\n 50. Julian Alvarez \u2014 Argentina\/Atletico Madrid (re-entry)<\/strong><\/p>\n Alvarez makes his first appearance in this ranking since the pre-tournament edition. He has often looked a shell of himself at this World Cup, but his sensational top-corner curler from outside the penalty area to break Swiss hearts was trademark brilliance. Argentina will need more of it if they are to retain their crown.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Four teams remain at this summer\u2019s World Cup, and that means our rankings odyssey is almost over. But…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":934012,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[45],"tags":[32299,2841,4740,110,111,291963,4214,219,2147,179321,12575,311903,32868,252300,14609,61348,9249,6026,148962,156,117,30987,8884,2842,83,4785,30656,170,18151,4732,1723,33687,59368,6576,23133,18242,1608,53137,124,220,6673,271,6313,39761,221,2241,15243,128,62,129,16997,13125,24922,67,132,66745,68,33686,101292],"class_list":["post-934011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-algeria","tag-argentina","tag-australia","tag-austria","tag-belgium","tag-bosnia-herzegovina","tag-brazil","tag-bundesliga","tag-canada","tag-cape-verde","tag-colombia","tag-congo-dr","tag-croatia","tag-curacao","tag-czech-republic","tag-ecuador","tag-egypt","tag-england","tag-fifa-mens-world-cup","tag-france","tag-germany","tag-ghana","tag-haiti","tag-international-football","tag-iran","tag-iraq","tag-ivory-coast","tag-japan","tag-jordan","tag-la-liga","tag-ligue-1","tag-mexico-mens-national-team","tag-morocco","tag-netherlands","tag-new-zealand","tag-norway","tag-panama","tag-paraguay","tag-portugal","tag-premier-league","tag-qatar","tag-saudi-arabia","tag-scotland","tag-senegal","tag-soccer","tag-south-africa","tag-south-korea","tag-spain","tag-sports","tag-sweden","tag-switzerland","tag-tunisia","tag-turkey","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-uruguay","tag-us","tag-us-mens-national-team","tag-uzbekistan"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=934011"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934011\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/934012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=934011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=934011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=934011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Harry](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285689989-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Ousmane](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284791452-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Pau](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284936078-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Mexico's](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2282660555-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Elliot](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285678089-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Anthony](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285685427-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Ismaila](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2284235744-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Andreas](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285681107-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Martin](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285100544-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Mikel](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285562778.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Enzo](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285092668-2-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n