Kylian Mbappé pushed France through to the World Cup quarterfinals. Erling Haaland and Norway will be there, too.
So will Harry Kane after England’s epic 3-2 win over Mexico.
The stars are shining in this World Cup and it’s about to get brighter, even after Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo bowed out for the last time.
The last two round of 16 games are Tuesday, including Switzerland against Colombia in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Topping the marquee is a showdown between Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Egypt’s Mohamed Salah in Atlanta.
One star will move on and add to his legacy. The other will head home from the World Cup, maybe for the final time.
Messi added the one thing missing from his resume by leading Argentina to the World Cup title four years ago and has shown he’s still one of the world’s best players at age 39.
Messi has scored seven goals in four matches, matching Mbappé and Haaland in a star-studded Golden Boot race. Messi has scored in a record eight straight World Cup matches, dating to the 2022 title run, and keeps adding to his record career total of 20 goals.
Salah has been the face of Egyptian soccer, a four-time Premier League Golden Boot winner and the league’s all-time leading foreign-born scorer.
The 34-year-old “Egyptian King” has an Egypt-record three World Cup goals and is one behind national team coach Hossam Hassan’s record of 69 international goals.
Perhaps Salah’s biggest accomplishment is pushing Egypt deeper into the World Cup than it’s ever been.
The Pharaohs earned their first World Cup victory by beating New Zealand 3-1 in the group stage and earned their first knockout stage win by outlasting Australia in a penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw.
Neither star has decided on his national team plans after the World Cup.
One will be a step closer to a decision after Tuesday’s match.
Colombia’s long World Cup road takes it to Canada to face Switzerland
Colombia’s North American World Cup tour is headed to Canada.
With stops already in Mexico and the United States, Los Cafeteros will become the only team to play in all three host nations when they play Switzerland in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Tuesday.
Colombia opened with a 3-1 win over Uzbekistan in Mexico City, beat Congo 1-0 in Guadalajara, Mexico, and played Portugal to a scoreless draw in Miami Gardens, Florida. The Colombians opened the knockout stage with a 1-0 win over Ghana in Kansas City, Missouri, and now have the chance to clinch their first quarterfinal berth since 2014.
Switzerland beat Algeria 2-0 for its first knockout-round win since 1938 to earn the trip to Vancouver.
The Swiss could be short-handed for the match.
Breakout star Johan Manzambi, Rubén Vargas and Djibril Sow all cut training short on Monday, leaving their availability in doubt.
“If they might not play tomorrow, it can be a huge issue for us,” coach Murat Yakin said.
Reigning champion Argentina will not underestimate Egypt
In a World Cup that has seen powers like Germany and Brazil eliminated by underdogs, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said there was danger of his team underestimating Egypt. After all, the defending champion was given a scare by Cape Verde in the last round, needing extra time to come through with a 3-2 win.
“I think this World Cup has been, is very tricky for everyone. It seems there is no clear favorite,” Scaloni said Monday. “I am convinced that if we didn’t resort to our character in the last match we would be out as Cape Verde was giving us a very hard day.”
Egypt is confident it can test Argentina as well and produce the tournament’s latest upset — especially because it has Salah.
“My dreams have no limits. My ambitions have no limits. I promise that we will do everything to live up to the expectations (of fans),” Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said. “We’re no underdogs. We’re big in every respect. We are a civilization that is 7,000 years old, even more than 7,000 years.”
Round of 16 schedule
Tuesday, July 7:
— Argentina vs. Egypt, noon EDT in Atlanta (Fox/Telemundo/Peacock)
— Switzerland vs. Colombia, 4 p.m. EDT in Vancouver, British Columbia (Fox/Telemundo/Peacock)
Quarterfinals schedule
Thursday, July 9:
— Morocco vs. France, 4 p.m. EDT in Foxborough, Massachusetts (Fox/Telemundo/Peacock)
Friday, July 10:
— Spain vs. Belgium, 3 p.m. EDT in Inglewood, California (Fox/Telemundo/Peacock)
Saturday, July 11:
— Norway vs. England, 5 p.m. EDT in Miami Gardens, Florida (Fox/Telemundo/Peacock)
— Argentina-Egypt winner vs. Switzerland-Colombia winner, 9 p.m. EDT in Kansas City, Missouri (Fox/Telemundo/Peacock)
More World Cup news
— Belgium beats US 4-1 to reach World Cup quarterfinals, taking advantage of defensive lapses
— US star Christian Pulisic exits World Cup match against Belgium with foot injury
— Integrity of World Cup is questioned as Trump, FIFA defend actions surrounding Balogun suspension
— A stoic Cristiano Ronaldo exits his final World Cup as Portugal falls 1-0 to Spain
— Spain sets World Cup record with 6th clean sheet in a row and keeper Simón extends scoreless mark
— US-Bosnia World Cup match sets US viewership records in English and Spanish
— Erling Haaland-led World Cup run is stirring up soccer pride for Norway fans at home and abroad
— Carlos Queiroz quits as Ghana coach after the team’s World Cup exit
— Day 26 of the World Cup in photos
Stat of the day
Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, who played his final World Cup game in a 1-0 loss to Spain, is one of three players to be both the youngest and oldest goal scorer in his country’s World Cup history, joining Denmark’s Michael Laudrup and Argentina’s Lionel Messi. Ronaldo scored his first goal as a 21-year-old against Iran in 2006 and his last against Croatia at 41 in the group stage this year.
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AP Sports Writer James Robson contributed to this report.
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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here
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