Miroslav Klose would not mind Lionel Messi breaking his record

German football legend Miroslav Klose expects his historic FIFA World Cup goalscoring record to be broken in the near future. The former striker believes that the expansion of the tournament format and the increase in the number of matches will provide stars like Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe with a great opportunity to surpass his tally. This is reported by Goal.com .

Currently, former Bayern Munich and Germany national team member Miroslav Klose remains the top scorer in World Cup history with 16 goals. However, starting from the 2026 tournament, the increase in the number of participants makes the breaking of the record inevitable. The 48-year-old manager, currently in charge of FC Nurnberg, shared his thoughts on the matter.

"I expect my record to be broken in this tournament. As the number of teams increases, so do the matches and the opportunities to score goals. I believe Argentina and France will go far. The record had to be broken eventually, and if Lionel Messi does it, I will only be happy. I have always been a huge fan of his," Klose said in an interview with Suddeutsche Zeitung.

Klose also noted that he has a close relationship with Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni. They played together for Lazio in the past. For the record, Lionel Messi currently has 13 goals in World Cup tournaments. France's Kylian Mbappe has already scored 12 goals in just 14 matches and is considered one of the main contenders for the record.