Which team relies on superstars?

Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland, Vinicius Junior, Lamine Yamal, Harry Kane, Cristiano Ronaldo… are all top goalscorers in any tournament. However, since the 2022 World Cup, the impact of these superstars on their national teams has varied.

Lionel Messi has scored 6 of Argentina's 8 goals at the 2026 World Cup. In 2022, Argentina won the World Cup for the first time since 1986, and Messi was their inspiration. It's hard to imagine Lionel Scaloni's team winning in Qatar without Messi's contribution. But even though the 39-year-old superstar is in incredibly impressive form, surprisingly, Argentina's win rate without Messi is comparable to when he is. Since the last World Cup, the world champions have won 83% of their matches with Messi and 83% of their matches without him. In terms of goals, since 2022, with Messi's participation, the Argentine team has scored a total of 58 goals. Meanwhile, without their captain, the Argentine players have only scored 35 goals. Individually, Messi has scored 25 goals and provided 9 assists in 30 appearances, accounting for 27% of Argentina's total goals.

Argentina desperately needs Messi. Photo: AP

That means Argentina desperately needs Messi. But, even without him, Argentina is still a formidable team.

At the 2026 World Cup, the French national team boasts an outstanding attack. Dembele, Michael Olise, Desire Doue, and Bradley Barcola are all top scorers, but Kylian Mbappe is number one. When Mbappe is not playing, France's win rate is only 50%. But when he is on the field, Les Bleus win 71% of their matches. However, France can still score even without Mbappe. The French star has scored a total of 24 goals, equivalent to 24% of the team's total goals.

France can still score goals even without Mbappe. Photo: AP

Striker Vinicius Junior is a shining star for Real Madrid. However, the 25-year-old has a disappointing record with the Brazilian national team, scoring only 13 goals in 52 appearances. Therefore, it's not surprising that Brazil doesn't struggle too much when Vinicius is absent. Since 2022, Brazil has won 63% of their matches without Vinicius and only 44% when he is playing.

Brazil wouldn't face too many difficulties if Vinicius were absent. Photo: AP

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Lamine Yamal is only 18 years old, but the Barcelona striker has already achieved numerous international successes with the Spanish national team, particularly at Euro 2024. However, Spain is a team that doesn't rely heavily on a single prolific goalscorer, so it's difficult to quantify the extent to which Luis de la Fuente's squad depends on Yamal. Spain's win rate without Yamal is 75%, dropping to 71% when he plays. Yamal has only scored 7 goals, equivalent to 6% of Spain's total goals since 2022.

It's difficult to quantify the extent to which Luis de la Fuente's team relies on Yamal. Photo: AP

The data suggests that, although Yamal is a crucial part of Spain's attacking strength, they can still perform quite well without him.

There's no need to guess which team relies most heavily on its star striker. For Norway, "no Haaland, no party." Coach Solbakken's team showed a glimpse of life without the Manchester City striker when Norway lost 4-1 to France. With Haaland, the Norwegian national team is completely different, winning 69% of their matches. Without him, Norway only won 25% of their matches. When Haaland has played, since 2022, the Norwegian national team has scored 74 goals. Conversely, they have only scored 21 goals without him.

"Without Haaland, there are no parties." Photo: AP

Erling Haaland has scored 38 goals, accounting for 40% of Norway's total goals. No one is more important than Haaland to the Norwegian national team at this World Cup. If Haaland stays in good shape, Norway can go far in the tournament. But without him, they will have to go home.

England captain Harry Kane is the club's all-time leading scorer with 82 goals in 117 appearances – 29 more than second-placed Wayne Rooney. And it's undeniable that Thomas Tuchel's team relies heavily on the Bayern Munich striker's goals: England have only won 29% of their matches without Kane since 2022, while their win rate has skyrocketed to 76% when he's on the pitch. Kane has scored 29 goals, accounting for 32% of England's total goals since 2022, a figure far higher than Messi and Ronaldo.

Harry Kane is the highest goalscorer in the history of the England national team. Photo: AP

Kane's presence on the pitch makes England more dangerous. Since 2022, the Three Lions have scored 73 goals when Kane has been on the pitch, compared to just 19 when he hasn't.

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Anyone who witnessed Cristiano Ronaldo's underwhelming performance in Portugal's 0-0 draw with Colombia will wonder why coach Roberto Martinez hasn't replaced the Al Nassr striker. Since 2022, Portugal's win rate with Ronaldo is 67%, compared to 63% without him. That's a fairly similar ratio. In terms of goals scored, the ratio is 68/40, meaning Portugal scores more goals when Ronaldo is in the team. However, 75% of Portugal's goals have been scored by players other than Ronaldo.

75% of Portugal's goals were scored by players other than Ronaldo. Photo: AP

In terms of data, the impact of Messi and Ronaldo on their respective national teams is not significantly different. However, the difference is that, for Messi, Argentina is the reigning champion.

Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/the-thao/worldcup-2026/doi-nao-dua-vao-nhung-sieu-sao-1046836