The 2014 World Cup in Brazil has reached the quarter-final round, which kicks off on Friday.
32 nations entered the competition but only eight remain. Host nation Brazil take on fellow South American country Colombia, followed by the France-Germany encounter. Netherlands lock horns with Costa Rica on Saturday with Argentina and Belgium facing off later in the day.
Just as the competition is getting tighter, inching closer to the much anticipated final match on July 13, another race has the world excited, the race for the World Cup Golden Boot.
Four players lead the goalscoring charts with only a goal separating the number one position from the remaining three.
Ahead of the last 8 matches, let us take a look at how the race for the Golden Boot has shaped up, and what will be the key factors that will influence the player to walk away with the trophy.
Rampant Rodriguez
Colombian sensation James Rodriguez has come of age just in time for Los Cafeteros' campaign.
After news of Radamel Falcao's World Cup absence hit the South American nation, many wondered who would step up and lead Colombia at the tournament.
The 22-year-old Monaco ace is currently leading the race for the Golden Boot with 5 goals in total, scoring three in the group stages with his brace against Uruguay in the round of 16 being the latest.
The leading goalscorers of the 2014 World Cup [graphic via @InfostradaLive] #BRAvsCOL pic.twitter.com/U1BiFWRo53
— James Stats (@James_Stats) July 4, 2014
5 - James Rodriguez has already been involved in more goals than any other #COL player in World Cup history (5). Schemer.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 28, 2014
4 - James Rodriguez is the first player to score in the first four games of a World Cup since Ronaldo and Rivaldo in 2002. Impact.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 28, 2014
4 - @jamesdrodriguez is the first player to score in each of his 4 first World Cup games since Christian Vieri in 1998. Rookie.
— OptaJean (@OptaJean) June 28, 2014
Rodriguez has not been alone on his campaign, though, as the Colombian has had help in the form of Fiorentina attacker Juan Cuadrado who has registered four assists in the tournament, the highest tally so far.
4 - Juan Guillermo Cuadrado has the most assists at the 2014 World Cup. Provider. #COL
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 2, 2014
The former Porto attacker has a great chance of finishing the tournament as top scorer if his side overcome the tough task of facing host nation Brazil.
The defensive nuisance that is Neymar
Brazil ace Neymar entered the tournament with much weight on his shoulders. Many debated as to whether the Selecao ace could carry his nation to World Cup glory on home soil after experiencing a below par season with La Liga side Barcelona.
However, the 22-year-old did not disappoint, shining through the group stages, picking up two Man of the Match awards, scoring 4 goals on the way.
Injury scares and bad form did not hold the ex-Santos star back as he has been the driving force behind Brazil's attack.
With Fred, Hulk, and Oscar only managing two goals between them, the Blaugrana ace will be key in the clash against Colombia.
Muller's Mayhem
Germany's sneaky Bayern Munich attacker Thomas Mueller has a habit of scoring goals at World Cups.
The 2010 Golden Boot winner started off his campaign with a blast, scoring three past Paulo Bento's Portugal side, putting him on track for a consecutive top scorer award.
However, since that game, the Bavarians ace has only managed one other netting, in the encounter with USA, but is still tied for second in the Golden Boot race.
The Die Roten always an attacking threat for any teams defense so more goals from the German can be expected.
And nine goals in two World Cup tournaments for a player who is only 24 is both a stat to fear and admire.
Magical Messi:
Arguably one of the biggest names in the Golden Boot race is Argentine captain and four-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi.
The Barcelona superstar suffered a poor season with his Catalan side, missing out on a portion of the season with injuries, and failed to guide his side to a trophy, albeit taking the Super Cup title.
However, the 27-year-old has returned to his best form just in time for La Albiceleste as he has been involved in all but two of Argentina's 7 goals along the competition.
The South American side's skipper broke his goalscoring curse, which saw him leave South Africa without a single goal to his name, and has set this tournament alight, netting four and collecting four Man of the Match awards, a World Cup record.
4 - After failing to score in 7 successive World Cup appearances, Lionel Messi has netted 4 goals in his 3 appearances in 2014. Reliant.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 1, 2014
#WC2014: Most Goals: James 5 Assists: Cuadrado 4 Passes: Kroos 394 Dribbles: MESSI 24 Key passes: MESSI 18 [via @whoscored & @barcastat]
— MESSISTATS (@MessiStats) July 3, 2014
Messi is the player who created most chances (18) and completed most dribbles (24) so far this World Cup [via @barcastat & @culestats]
— MESSISTATS (@MessiStats) July 3, 2014
Messi: 4 in a row... [pic via @8TrollFootball] pic.twitter.com/pUIFZQsvZe
— MESSISTATS (@MessiStats) July 1, 2014
Unfortunately for the Argentine, his team face a difficult Belgium side, and given the fact that he has lost attacking partner Sergio Aguero, Messi will need his team-mates to carry the goalscoring load with him.
Gonzalo Higuain and Ezequiel Lavezzi have not scored a single goal, whilst Angel Di Maria has only managed one so far, an extra time winner against Switzerland.
NOTE: Infographic from before Argentina's 1-0 win over Switzerland, where Messi collected an assist
And with Lionel Messi going up against Red Devils' shot-stopper Thibaut Courtois, one that the Argentine has not had good luck against, this could be the end of the road for Barcelona's all-time leading goalscorer.
