{"id":123142,"date":"2026-06-17T13:04:31","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T13:04:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/17\/lionel-messi-ties-all-time-world-cup-goals-record-u-s-open-expert-picks-player-rankings\/"},"modified":"2026-06-17T13:04:31","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T13:04:31","slug":"lionel-messi-ties-all-time-world-cup-goals-record-u-s-open-expert-picks-player-rankings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/17\/lionel-messi-ties-all-time-world-cup-goals-record-u-s-open-expert-picks-player-rankings\/","title":{"rendered":"Lionel Messi ties all-time World Cup goals record; U.S. Open expert picks, player rankings"},"content":{"rendered":"

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This is an article version of the CBS Sports HQ AM Newsletter, the ultimate guide to every day in sports. <\/em>You can sign up to get it in your inbox every weekday morning here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n

\u26bd Five things to know Wednesday <\/h2>\n
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  1. Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbapp\u00e9 and Erling Haaland put on a show in their World Cup openers. <\/strong><\/strong>You couldn’t have asked for anything more from three of the biggest stars on the planet. Messi tied the record for most career World Cup goals<\/a><\/span> with a hat trick in Argentina’s 3-0 group stage debut win over Algeria, Mbapp\u00e9 became the all-time leading scorer in French history<\/a><\/span> with his brace in the 3-1 win over Senegal, and Haaland found the back of the net twice in Norway’s 4-1 rout of Iraq. Want to know what it’s like to witness Mbapp\u00e9’s brilliance in person? Our Matt Norlander was on hand in New Jersey and said the French legend set the tone for a potential run to the World Cup title<\/a><\/span>. It’s safe to say soccer is in good hands<\/a><\/span> with Mbapp\u00e9 and Haaland succeeding Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as two faces of the sport’s next generation.<\/li>\n
  2. Cameron Jordan will play one more year with the Saints.<\/strong><\/strong> The franchise great will spend the entirety of his career in New Orleans. Jordan inked a one-year deal to return to the squad in 2026<\/a><\/span> and immediately announced that he will retire at the end of the season. Even at 37, Jordan remains an integral part of the Saints’ defensive front and will have another chance to boost his Hall of Fame chances, which are already quite strong. His signing leaves just nine of the top 100 free agents still available<\/a><\/span>.<\/li>\n
  3. Fallout from Brendan Sorsby’s supplemental draft entrance continues.<\/strong><\/strong>\u00a0The dust is still settling after Sorsby formally turned his attention to the NFL. The league will have a difficult decision to make regarding his eligibility, as there is\u00a0precedent for a suspension due to his gambling history<\/a><\/span>. Someone will take a chance on him in the supplemental draft, so what kind of player is that team going to get? NFL Draft analyst Ryan Wilson says Sorsby\u00a0would have ranked second at the quarterback position<\/a><\/span>\u00a0if he was on the board in April. On the college side, Sorsby’s departure leaves Texas Tech with Will Hammond\u00a0as its likely replacement<\/a><\/span>\u00a0and casts a shadow on a program that is suddenly\u00a0the sport’s new biggest villain<\/a><\/span>.\u00a0<\/li>\n
  4. Justin Gaethje cracked our ranking of the top 25 American fighters in UFC history.<\/strong><\/strong>\u00a0You argued for it, and we listened. After he narrowly missed the cut in the initial rankings, Gaethje moved into the top 25<\/a><\/span> thanks to his colossal upset win over Ilia Topuria at UFC Freedom 250. Speaking of Topuria,\u00a0he broke his silence following the shocking loss<\/a><\/span> while other prominent fighters celebrated his humbling. And in the wake of the co-main event, Alex Pereira\u00a0wants punishment for referee Herb Dean<\/a><\/span>, whom he called a “coward” for allowing possible illegal strikes from Cyril Gane.<\/li>\n
  5. No. 3 Georgia and No. 16 West Virginia pitched shutouts in their College World Series elimination games.<\/strong> <\/strong>Tuesday was a fun day to be a pitcher in Omaha — at least for those on the Bulldogs’ and Mountaineers’ rosters. Both teams will live to see one more day thanks to their 2-0 and 12-0 victories<\/a><\/span> over No. 6 Texas and Troy, respectively. Georgia now needs to beat Oklahoma twice in two games in order to reach the championship series, and West Virginia must do the same against No. 5 North Carolina. All four of those teams will be in action today starting at 2 p.m. ET.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \u26f3 Do not miss this: U.S. Open picks, predictions and player rankings <\/h2>\n

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    Welcome to the third major championship of the season. The 2026 U.S. Open tees off Thursday at Shinnecock Hills, in Southampton, New York, where 156 players will compete for glory and where Scottie Scheffler<\/strong> has a chance to complete the career grand slam. Here is the complete schedule and all the groupings<\/a><\/span> for Thursday’s Round 1. <\/p>\n

    Scheffler clearly has the most at stake of any player<\/a><\/span> in the USGA’s massive field. He can join an elite club of only three golfers to complete the career grand slam in their first opportunity. The world No. 1 has not been in his best form this year, though, and last won a tournament all the way back in January. <\/p>\n

    While Scheffler enters the U.S. Open as the best player on the course, the gap between him and the rest might get even slimmer if he crumbles under the immense pressure. A number of players farther down our top-26 rankings<\/a><\/span> have won this tournament in the past and could climb closer to his spot at the top if they add another major to their r\u00e9sum\u00e9. These stars outside the top 10 already have one U.S. Open victory under their belt: <\/p>\n

    11. Justin Rose<\/strong> (won 2013)
    12. Bryson DeChambeau<\/strong> (won 2020, 2024)
    14. J.J. Spaun<\/strong> (won 2025)
    16. Wyndham Clark <\/strong>(won 2023)
    20. Brooks Koepka<\/strong> (won 2017, 2018) <\/p>\n

    Using the process of elimination, only eight players have a realistic chance of winning the tournament<\/a><\/span>. Our experts both picked winners from that shortlist<\/a><\/span>, but they do not fully agree on some of their other predictions. While Patrick McDonald says Scheffler is a lock to make the top 10, Robby Kalland argues that he is the biggest star who definitely will not win. <\/p>\n