Across three continents, three men have defined the path to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Different regions. Different pressures. Same outcome.
Jordan Ayew. Lionel Messi. Erling Haaland: Three forwards, separated by style and geography, yet united by one number: 11 goal involvements each in the ongoing qualifiers.
CAF. CONMEBOL. UEFA: Three continents. Three stories of dominance.
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Eight rounds into the CAF qualifiers, Jordan Ayew has emerged as Africa’s most productive attacker, six goals and five assists in eight appearances.
At 34, few saw this coming. Once viewed as a tireless worker rather than a match-winner, the former Crystal Palace forward has reinvented himself as Ghana’s difference-maker.
His defining moment came in Kumasi, where his hat-trick against the Central African Republic turned a chaotic 4–3 thriller into a national celebration.
Before that, he’d scored a late winner away to Mali, and has since set up crucial goals for Mohammed Kudus and Thomas Partey.
In a campaign where Ghana have often had to grind for results, Ayew has been their pulse, the one player capable of changing a game from either end of the field.
Eight rounds gone, two to play, and Ayew sits tied at the very top of the global charts, alongside football’s biggest names.
Lionel Messi
Eighteen games deep into South America’s gruelling marathon, Lionel Messi remains Argentina’s heartbeat.
The numbers say eight goals and three assists, but the story runs deeper.
There was the hat-trick in La Paz that silenced Bolivia’s altitude and a brace versus Venezuela that reminded the continent who still rules it.
Messi, now 38, has equaled Ivan Hurtado’s record for most appearances in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers (72), and still, no one dictates rhythm and tempo like him.
For Argentina, his goals haven’t just been about qualification, they’ve been about sustaining dominance, keeping the world champions sharp and unrelenting.
In a zone where travel, altitude, and hostility test every player, Messi’s consistency is the calm that steadies the storm.
Erling Haaland
Europe’s qualifiers are only five rounds in, but Erling Haaland has already racked up nine goals and two assists, all in just five games.
He started with a goal against Moldova and Israel, five-goal massacre against Moldova, followed by a solitary strike in a 1–0 win over Estonia.
In each match, Haaland looked like he was playing on a different frequency, a predator living off half-chances, a finisher whose timing borders on mechanical perfection.
At 25, the Norwegian striker’s dominance is statistical poetry: one goal every 47 minutes of qualifying football.
As the qualifiers return in October 2025, fresh contenders may rise, but the leading trio will be hungry to stretch their numbers even further.
FKA/EB
