WORLD CUP RECORDS (Part 35) - TOP LONG RANGE GOAL SCORER
Picture : Roberto Rivellino the "magician" of Brazil !
Top long range goal-scorer: Roberto Rivellino
Lionel Messi has scored vs Mexico his 4th goal from outside the penalty area in his World Cup career. The previous three came at 2014 edition: vs Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran and Nigeria (free kick).
The total number of Messi goals in World Cup at the moment is 8, so his percentage of such goals is exactly 50%.
In the historical ranking of the tournament’s long range goal-scorers Messi shares 2nd place with Lothar Matthäus and Diego Forlán.
The record holder is Roberto Rivellino. He scored 6 goals for Brazil in total, and 5 of them were launched from outside the penalty area: vs Czechoslovakia (free kick) and Uruguay in 1970, Zaire, East Germany (free kick) and Argentina in 1974.
Rivellino was very close to 100% long range ratio: while scoring his remaining goal (vs Peru in 1970), he barely crossed the boundary of the penalty area.
| PLAYERS WITH MOST | LONG RANGE | GOALS | AT WORLD CUPS | |
| Player | Country | LR Goals | Breakdown | Total Goals |
| Roberto Rivellino | Brazil | 5 | 1970(2), 1974(3) | 6 |
| Lothar Matthäus | Germany | 4 | 1986(1), 1990(3) | 6 |
| Diego Forlán | Uruguay | 4 | 2002(1), 2010(3) | 6 |
| Lionel Messi | Argentina | 4 | 2014(3), 2022(1) | 8 |