The first round of the Club World Cup group stage is in the books. Sixteen of the initial 63 matches have been played in this uniquely timed tournament, which finds some clubs at the end of their season, others in mid-season, and a few yet to begin the next campaign.

That means the competition hasn't quite reached full throttle, though given its short format, a single inspired display can cement a player's place in the tournament's hall of fame. Just ask Jamal Musiala, whose opening-day hat-trick puts him firmly in contention for the Golden Boot.

With help from BeSoccer Pro's deep statistical insights, we've identified the players already making a name for themselves across various metrics:

Shots on target: Kingsley Coman (4)

Closely followed by Musiala (3), who boasts a 100% accuracy rate. Several players managed two shots on target.

Shots inside the box: Lennart Karl, Albert Rusnak and Kingsley Coman (4)

Coman leads here too, alongside teammate Karl and Seattle's Slovenian midfielder Rusnak.

Shots from outside the box: Leo Messi (4)

Operating from range, Messi leads outright with four attempts. Rusnak and Cole Palmer (Chelsea) both had three.

Saves: Claudio Ramos, Oscar Ustari, Conor Tracey (8)

Goalkeepers for Porto, Inter Miami and Auckland City were kept extremely busy. Only Ustari kept a clean sheet, even saving a penalty. Without Tracey's efforts, Bayern's rout would've been far worse. Jan Oblak, despite conceding four against PSG, made six stops.

High claims: Mohamed El Shenawy (3)

Al Ahly's keeper used his height to good effect here. Neuer (Bayern), Ramos (Porto) and John (Botafogo) each made two.

Tackles made: Marwan Ateya (5)

Al Ahly's midfielder had his hands full with Messi and Suarez, but impressed defensively. Palacios (Boca), Seung-Beom Ko (Ulsan), Obed Vargas and Musovski (Seattle) all made two.

Fouls committed: Marwan Ateya (7)

Perhaps a result of his defensive workload, Ateya tops the fouls chart as well—two more than Luiz Araujo (Flamengo) and Gregore (Botafogo).

Marwan Ateya Al Ahly Inter Miami

Fouls suffered: Samu Omorodion, Renato Sanches, Bensebaini, Belaili, Benali (5)

Players from Porto, Benfica, Dortmund and Esperance Tunis were the most fouled on matchday 1.

Samu Omorodion Palmeiras Oporto

Ball recoveries: Jonathan Tah (21)

The Bayern new boy made a huge impact, topping this category. He was followed by Barboza (Botafogo), Cristian Roldan (Seattle) and Anibal Moreno (Palmeiras) with 18 each.

Jonathan Tah Bayern Múnich Auckland City

Recoveries in opposition half: Cristian Roldan (14)

The Californian midfielder was relentlessly high up the pitch, ahead of Moreno (12) and Pavlovic (11).

Cristian Roldán Seattle Botafogo

Own-half losses: Gregore (12)

The Botafogo midfielder had a shaky game against Seattle. Samuel Xavier (Fluminense) and Nikko Boxall (Auckland City) each lost possession 10 times.

Gregore Botafogo Seattle Sounders

Successful passes: Vitinha (111)

The PSG midfielder was dominant against Atletico Madrid. Kimmich (106), Leo Pereira (106) and Adarabioyo (101) also passed the 100-mark.

Vitinha PSG Atlético de Madrid

Successful final-third passes: Aleksandar Pavlovic (22)

Bayern's midfielder stood out in the attacking third. Vitinha (19) and Kimmich (16) were also influential.

Pavlovic Musiala Bayern Múnich Auckland City

Possession losses: Leo Messi (22)

A surprise leader in a less flattering metric, Messi lost possession 22 times against Al Ahly—one more than Bouanga (LAFC) and three more than Muller (Bayern).

Leo Messi Al Ahly Inter Miami

Successful dribbles: Leo Messi (8)

Messi balanced things out with the most successful take-ons. Doue (PSG) managed seven, Pedro Neto (Chelsea) six. Olise attempted the most (12), though only five came off.

Leo Messi Al Ahly Inter Miami

Offensive duels won: Leo Messi and Desire Doue (10)

Messi also excelled in 1v1s, tying with PSG's Doue. Pedro Neto (8) and Obed Vargas (8) followed closely.

Desire Doue PSG Atletico de Madrid

Successful ball progressions: Albert Rusnak (8)

Despite Seattle's defeat, Rusnak stood out with eight successful carries. Pedro Neto, Estevao (Palmeiras) and Canobbio (Fluminense) managed six each.

Seattle Botafogo

Aerial duels won: Thiago Silva (7)

The Chelsea veteran showed his class against Dortmund. Otamendi (Benfica) won six, with Marcano (Porto) on five.

Thiago Silva

Clearances: Adam Mitchell (9)

Auckland City's centre-back endured a torrid afternoon, leading this stat. Sule (Dortmund, 8) and Jair Paula (Botafogo, 7) followed.

Adam Mitchell Conor Tracey Bayern Munich Auckland

Successful crosses: Joaquin Piquerez (4)

The Palmeiras full-back was a constant threat against Porto, with all four crosses finding the danger area. Pedro Neto, Kimmich and Ayrton Lucas also impressed in this department.

01 Jul2022	CS Sfaxien		-	Released
03 Jan2019	Stade Tunisien		CS Sfaxien	Transfer

M. Benali

Transfer History