World Cup news LIVE: Latest updates after Kylian Mbappe closes in on Lionel Messi

Hello and invited to Sports Mole's unrecorded World Cup quality blog connected June 23!

The superstars were retired successful afloat unit erstwhile again yesterday, which volition everlastingly beryllium remembered for Lionel Messi eclipsing Miroslav Klose to go the highest men's World Cup goalscorer successful history.

However, attraction volition swiftly crook to England's 2nd Group L lucifer against Ghana, successful which a triumph volition warrant the Three Lions a spot successful the knockout rounds.

World Cup 2026: Latest quality and biggest headlines connected June 23

No penalty? No occupation for eight-time Ballon d'Or victor Messi, who rapidly enactment his spot-kick nonaccomplishment down him to animate Argentina to a 2-0 triumph implicit Austria successful their 2nd Group J battle.

Two days earlier celebrating his 39th birthday, Messi's 2 goals carried the reigning champions into the knockout rounds, wherever they volition beryllium joined by some France and Norway.

Kylian Mbappe kept Messi honorable astatine the apical of the World Cup scoring charts by bagging a brace of his ain successful France's 3-0 triumph implicit Iraq, earlier Norway ensured their spot successful the past 32 by overcoming Senegal 3-2 successful the different Group I showdown.

The 4th and last showdown connected Monday saw Algeria permission it precocious to bushed Jordan 2-1, and different debutant - Uzbekistan - volition question their archetypal triumph successful Tuesday's opener against Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal.

Three hours later, Thomas Tuchel's England conflict Ghana astatine the Gillette Stadium successful a top-of-the-table clash successful Group L, earlier zero-pointers Panama and Croatia bash conflict successful Toronto soon after.

The Mundial enactment continues into the aboriginal hours of Wednesday greeting with Colombia and DR Congo squaring disconnected successful Group K, and elsewhere, the build-up continues to Scotland's mammoth final-day brushwood with Brazil successful Group C.