Mbappé remains in Golden Boot race despite France's exit

ARLINGTON, Texas, July 15 (Agencies): Kylian Mbappé won't get a third consecutive trip to the World Cup final, but he remains tied for first with Argentina legend Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot four years after he won it.
Mbappé and Messi have eight goals each. Messi and defending champion Argentina will play in the other semifinal match against England on Wednesday (3 p.m., Fox29).
France will still play in Sunday's (July 19 at 3:00 am as per BST) third-place match, and any goals scored in that game count toward the Golden Boot standings. Spain will take on the winner at MetLife Stadium on Monday (July 20 at 1:00am as per BST).
As things stand, Mbappé and Lionel Messi are tied for the tournament lead with eight goals apiece. If they finish level on goals, the Golden Boot will be decided by FIFA's tiebreakers:
Mbappé currently holds the edge with three assists compared to Messi's two.
Mbappé has logged 609 minutes through seven matches, while Messi has played 531 minutes through six. If Messi plays at least 79 minutes against England on Wednesday, he will overtake Mbappé in total minutes played, meaning the minutes tiebreaker would also favor the French star.
So what does Mbappé need to do to win a second straight Golden Boot?
Right now, his clearest path is for the standings to remain exactly as they are. If Messi does not score or record another assist in Argentina's remaining matches, Mbappé would win the award on the assists tiebreaker if both finish with eight goals. Of course, England's Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham or Spain's Mikel Oyarzabal surpass them both.
However, if Messi adds either a goal or an assist in Wednesday's semifinal, Mbappé would likely need to respond in France's third-place match to keep his repeat Golden Boot hopes alive.
However, Mbappé was unable to generate many chances in France's 2-0 loss to Spain in the World Cup semifinals on Tuesday.
Mbappé had the fewest touches of any forward in the first half with 15. Perhaps his most prominent moment was trying to persuade referee Ivan Barton that the penalty resulting in Spain's first goal shouldn't have been called.
Mbappé's best chance came in the 67th minute when his shot deflected off Spain defender Marc Cucurella and went just wide.