Robert Lewandowski Reaches 100 Champions League Goals

Robert Lewandowski, who joined Barcelona in 2022, has become the third player in history to surpass the 100-goal mark in the Champions League. The Barcelona forward achieved this milestone by converting a first-half penalty, which also gave his team the lead in their group-phase match against Brest. He subsequently added his 101st goal as the hosts secured a 3-0 victory on Tuesday. At 36 years old, Lewandowski now stands alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi as players who have scored a century of goals in the European Cup competition. “I’m very content, very happy,” he told Movistar. “Sometimes I didn’t believe I would reach this impressive figure in the Champions League. Now I’m in good company with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.” Cristiano Ronaldo’s record includes 140 goals across 183 appearances for Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus. Meanwhile, Lionel Messi has accumulated 129 goals in 163 games playing for Barcelona and Paris St-Germain. Lewandowski achieved this milestone in his 125th match, which is a slower pace than Messi (who reached it in his 123rd game) but quicker than Ronaldo (who did so in his 137th). Nevertheless, the Polish forward’s current scoring efficiency, at 0.8 goals per game, marginally surpasses the career averages of both Ronaldo and Messi. Lewandowski has participated in every Champions League season since 2011-12. A significant portion of his goals in the tournament, specifically 97, have been scored from inside the penalty area. This figure includes 17 penalties, following the one he converted against Brest. Only Ronaldo (with 19) and Messi (with 18) have converted more penalty kicks. His initial 17 goals in the competition were scored while playing for Borussia Dortmund. He then contributed 69 goals during his time at Bayern Munich and has, to date, registered 15 goals for Barcelona. This season, Lewandowski has accumulated 22 goals in 19 appearances across all competitions. This tally is nine goals higher than any other player in La Liga, with 15 of those goals coming in 14 league matches. Furthermore, Lewandowski is just four goals away from matching his total from the previous season, during which he netted 26 goals in 49 games for the Catalan club. His performance across Europe’s top five leagues presents a comparable narrative to his Champions League achievements. Since his transfer to Dortmund from Lech Poznan in 2010, he ranks as the third-highest goalscorer across La Liga, the Bundesliga, Premier League, Serie A, and Ligue 1. He trails only Messi, who has 408 goals, and Ronaldo, with 385. With 368 goals, Lewandowski holds a lead of over 100 goals ahead of the fourth-placed player, Bayern Munich’s English striker Harry Kane, who has 263. Following Kane is former Liverpool and Barcelona forward Luis Suarez, currently playing alongside Messi at Inter Miami, with 248 goals. Lewandowski exhibits no indications of a decline in performance. Indeed, since his 30th birthday on August 21, 2018, he has been the leading goalscorer across Europe’s top five leagues, having netted 188 goals. Kylian Mbappe, currently with Real Madrid, follows with 166 goals, predominantly scored for PSG. Kane, Erling Haaland, and Mohamed Salah round out the top five. Of Lewandowski’s Champions League goals, 55 have been scored after he turned 30. Only Ronaldo, with 68 goals, has a higher tally in the competition after reaching the age of 30.