Eusebio, Gerd Muller, Gary Lineker and Ronaldo have won the World Cup Golden Boot in the past... who will follow in their footsteps out in Brazil?

By Adam Shergold Follow @@adamjshergold

Published: 05:07 EST, 3 June 2014 | Updated: 05:47 EST, 3 June 2014

In any World Cup, it's about finding your best form at exactly the right time.

And that's exactly what the winner of the Golden Boot does, scoring the decisive goals to help their team advance through the tournament.

Here's a look back at the players who have claimed the accolade since the very beginning of the world's most prestigious competition.

Stars: Previous winners of the World Cup Golden Boot include (top left) Paolo Rossi, (centre) Gary Lineker, (top right) Davor Suker, (bottom right) Gerd Muller and (bottom left) Ronaldo

1930
Guillermo Stabile (Argentina) – 8 goals

Stabile was drafted in to the Argentine team for the inaugural World Cup in 1930, played four matches, scored eight goals and then never played for his country again.

The Huracan player was drafted in for Argentina’s second group match against Mexico after first-choice striker Roberto Cherro suffered an anxiety attack and he responded with a debut hat-trick.

Two goals against both Chile and the United States took Argentina to the final where, despite Stabile scoring their second goal, they lost 4-2 to hosts Uruguay. 

First winner: Argentina forward Guillermo Stabile claimed the inaugural Golden Boot prize after scoring eight goals at the 1930 tournament

1934
Oldrich Nejedly (Czechoslovakia) – 5

Sparta Prague inside-forward Nejedly scored five times to guide his country to the 1934 final, where they lost 2-1 to Italy in Rome.

His goals included the winners against Romania and Switzerland, before a hat-trick saw off Germany in the semi-final. Nejedly’s exploits earned him a place in the All-Star Team for the tournament.

He was a prolific scorer throughout his career, finding the net 162 times in 187 games for Sparta and 29 times in 44 outings for Czechoslovakia, including two in the 1938 finals.

Finalists: Nejedly (second right) scored five times to help Czechoslovakia to the final in 1934, where they lost to Italy

1938
Leonidas da Silva (Brazil) – 7

A phenomenally prolific striker, Leonidas was credited with perfecting the ‘bicycle kick’ and was nicknamed the ‘Rubber Man’ because of his agility.

The centre-forward was at Flamengo at the time of the 1938 tournament in France and in all scored 21 goals in 19 appearances for Brazil.

He scored a hat-trick in the first round against Poland as Brazil won an incredible game 6-5 after extra time, following it up with two against Czechoslovakia in the quarter-final.

Manager Adhemar Pimenta’s decision to rest him for the semi-final against Italy backfired spectacularly as Brazil lost 2-1 and Leonidas rubbed it in by scoring two more against Sweden in the third-place play-off.

'Rubber man': Brazilian great Leonidas da Silva is credited with inventing the bicycle kick and was top scorer in the 1938 World Cup finals

1950
Ademir (Brazil) – 8

The last time the World Cup was staged in Brazil, Ademir was part of a formidable forward trio alongside Zizinho and Jair that ripped opponents apart – until the final at least.

The shock 2-1 defeat to Uruguay – later dubbed the Maracanazo – is still regarded as a national tragedy in Brazil.

There is a dispute as to exactly how many Ademir scored during the 1950 tournament, but it’s somewhere between seven and nine depending on which history book you read.

We do know that he found the net against Mexico, Yugoslavia, Sweden and Spain but, crucially, not against Uruguay.

Samba feet: Ademir (left) fires towards goal during the 1950 World Cup final with Uruguay at the Maracana

1954
Sandor Kocsis (Hungary) – 11

The rampant goalscorer of the Mighty Magyars, Kocsis powered Hungary to the 1954 final with 11 goals in the tournament, including two hat-tricks.

The Honved man opened with a treble against South Korea as Hungary cruised to a 9-0 win and then went one better with four in an 8-3 rout of Germany in the second game.

Two goals against Brazil in the quarter-final and another brace against Uruguay in the semi-finals set up a clash with West Germany. Crucially, Kocsis failed to find the target and having been 2-0 up, Hungary ultimately lost 3-2.

Four-goal haul: Sandor Kocsis pictured scoring one of his four goals in Hungary's 8-3 group stage win over Germany at the 1954 finals

1958
Just Fontaine (France) – 13

It’s very unlikely Fontaine’s incredible haul of 13 goals in the 1958 finals will ever be beaten.

Three came against Paraguay, two more against Yugoslavia and another against Scotland in the group stage, before another two helped France past Northern Ireland in the quarter-finals.

He scored again in a losing cause against Brazil in the semi-finals before hammering in another four against West Germany in the play-off for good measure.

In all, he scored 30 times in 21 matches for France.

Hero: Just Fontaine is chaired off by his France teammates after scoring four goals in the 1958 third place play-off win over West Germany. His haul of 13 goals in that tournament is unlikely to ever be broken

1962
Florian Albert (Hungary), Valentin Ivanov (USSR), Garrincha (Brazil), Vava (Brazil), Drazan Jerkovic (Yugoslavia), Leonel Sanchez (Chile) – 4 each

The 1962 finals in Chile produced a remarkable six-way tie for the Golden Boot accolade.

Two of the Brazil team that beat Czechoslovakia 3-1 in the final shared the award – Garrincha and Vava – while Chile’s Leonel Sanchez and Yugoslavia’s Drazan Jerkovic helped their sides to the semi-finals with four apiece.

Shared: Brazil's Garrincha was one of six players who scored four goals at the 1962 World Cup

1966
Eusebio (Portugal) – 9

The 1966 tournament in England was a highlight of Eusebio’s career and helped cement his legendary status in football history.

Goals against Bulgaria and Brazil in the group phase were followed by one of the great individual World Cup contributions as his four goals at Goodison Park saw Portugal come from 3-0 down against North Korea.

He famously walked from the Wembley pitch in tears after Portugal were eliminated by England in the semi-finals, his late penalty not enough to end the host’s World Cup chances.

Smashed: Eusebio scores the first of his four goals in the 1966 World Cup quarter-final against North Korea at Goodison Park

1970
Gerd Muller (West Germany) – 10

‘Der Bomber’ Muller has one of the best goalscoring ratios of all time, with 487 goals in 555 club outings – the majority for Bayern Munich – and 68 in 62 for West Germany.

10 of those came in Mexico during the 1970 finals, where he hit consecutive hat-tricks against Bulgaria and Peru in the group stage.

His extra time winner in the 3-2 comeback victory over England was followed by another couple in a losing semi-final cause against Italy.

'Der Bomber': Gerd Muller was the top scorer at the 1970 World Cup, scoring 10 goals

1974
Grzegorz Lato (Poland) – 7

With a total of 45 goals, Lato is Poland’s all-time second highest goalscorer behind Wlodzimierz Lubanski and the highlight of his international career came at the 1974 World Cup.

The Poles had been drawn in a difficult Group 4 but Lato scored twice, including a seventh-minute opener, as they stunned Argentina 3-2 in the first game. He followed that up with a couple in a 7-0 win over Haiti.

In the second group phase, Lato scored winners against Sweden and Yugoslavia but an agonising 1-0 defeat to Germany in Frankfurt denied Poland a place in the final.

Flying Pole: Grzegorz Lato was the top scorer in 1974 as Poland almost made the final

1978
Mario Kempes (Argentina) – 6

The 1978 tournament belonged to Kempes. Not only was he leading goalscorer with six - including two in the final with Holland - but he claimed the Golden Ball for Player of the Tournament and, of course, a winner’s medal.

His other goals had come in the second group stage against Poland and Peru and his overall performance in the tournament earned him the South American Player of the Year award that year.

Name on the trophy: Mario Kempes (left) scored twice for Argentina against Holland to win the World Cup in 1978

1982
Paolo Rossi (Italy) – 6

Banned for two years for his role in the infamous Totonero betting scandal, Rossi returned just in time for Espana ’82. He wasn’t in shape and the Italian media and fans wrote him off after three dreadful group stage matches.

Then, in the decisive second round match with Brazil, Rossi sprung back into life, his magnificent hat-trick stunning the tournament favourites.

He then guided Italy past Poland in the last four before opening the scoring in the 3-1 final win over West Germany. What an astonishing redemption.

Redemption: Paolo Rossi came back from the shame of a betting scandal to lead Italy to the World Cup in 1982

1986
Gary Lineker (England) – 6

After losing to Portugal and drawing with Morocco, England were staring down the barrel of an embarrassing early exit at the 1986 World Cup.

Enter Gary Lineker and his first-half hat-trick - the second quickest in World Cup history - against Poland to send England through in second place.

He got two more in the last 16 clash with Paraguay but his late reply against Argentina was a mere consolation after Diego Maradona’s two immortal contributions.

Top of the world: Gary Lineker helped England recover from a sluggish start at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico

1990
Salvatore Schillaci (Italy) – 6

Italy coach Azeglio Vicini chose the comparatively inexperienced Schillaci after an impressive role in firing Juventus to the UEFA Cup in 1990 and he wouldn’t regret the decision.

Coming on for Andrea Carnevale in the first match with Austria, Schillaci broke a long and frustrating deadlock with just 12 minutes to play. He scored also in the final group game against Czechoslovakia and then found crucial goals in the knockout stages against Uruguay and Ireland.

Schillaci gave the hosts the lead in their semi-final with Argentina, but penalty heartache ensued though he did have the consolation of the Player of the Tournament award.

Big impression: Salvatore Schillaci scores Italy's opener against Argentina in the 1990 semi-final

1994
Oleg Salenko (Russia), Hristo Stoichkov (Bulgaria) – 6

For the second and final time, the Golden Boot accolade was shared. Russia were eliminated in the group stage but Salenko’s five goals against Cameroon gave him a helping hand towards the award.

Stoichkov’s Bulgaria went four games further with the striker’s goal in the comeback win over Germany in the quarter-finals the highlight of his finest tournament.

Shared: Russia's Oleg Salenko (left) and Bulgaria's Hristo Stoichkov both found the net six times in 1994

1998
Davor Suker (Croatia) – 6

There have been many Golden Boot winners in the World Cup but few are on target in every match in which their team scores.

That’s what Suker achieved in Croatia’s excellent France ’98, scoring six times in seven matches including the winners against Japan in the group stage and Romania in the round of 16.

The Real Madrid striker had Croatia on the brink of a maiden final until Lillian Thuram rescued the hosts (and eventual winners) with his only two international goals.

Flying: Croatian forward Davor Suker guided his team to third place at France '98 with six goals

2002
Ronaldo (Brazil) – 8

Only half-fit in the 1998 final, Ronaldo had waited four very long years for another shot at the top prize. Plagued by a knee problem, he had missed much of the qualifying and Brazil had barely made it to Japan and South Korea.

But there was to be a fairytale fifth World Cup, thanks largely to Ronaldo. He scored in every match apart from the quarter-final with England and his two goals settled the final with Germany.

Five star: Ronaldo scored two goals against Germany as Brazil won their fifth World Cup in 2002

2006
Miroslav Klose (Germany) – 5

The evergreen Klose is about to embark on his seventh major tournament out in Brazil, with Joachim Low clearly believing he has much still to offer for Germany at the ripe old age of 35.

Back in 2006, Klose was at his peak, propelling the hosts to the semi-finals with five goals. He opened the tournament with a double against Costa Rica and he came up with the late equaliser against Argentina in the last eight that kept Germany in contention.

Prolific: Germany's Miroslav Klose celebrates scoring against Ecuador at the 2006 World Cup

2010
Thomas Muller (Germany) - 5

In 2010, four players were locked on five goals - Muller, David Villa, Diego Forlan and Wesley Sneijder - but, with just the one Golden Boot to hand out, FIFA gave it to the German because he’d also contributed three assists to the other’s one apiece.

Muller scored twice against England in the last 16 and got the first of Germany’s four against Argentina.

Hot shot: Thomas Muller drills the ball home against England in Germany's 4-1 win in Bloemfontein

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SheikhSlaves4-Utd20, Sheik Slave Town Stockport, United Kingdom, 13 hours ago

For me 98 world cup Croatia and Suker brings me the most exciting memories.. That time Batistuta was my hero and he even got a hattrick and then Ortega's moment of madness headbutt and the genius Bergkamp goal afterwards.. Oh man just reminds me how OLD I am now haha

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