Champions League

Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi, Lewandowski: Barcelona striker joins exclusive Champions League club

Barça star Lewandowski hit a UCL milestone by scoring a penalty in Tuesday’s league phase game against Brest.

Alejandro GarciaEFE

Robert Lewandowski has joined Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi an exclusive Champions League club after scoring an early penalty in Barcelona’s home game against Brest on Tuesday.

After he himself had been fouled in the penalty area, the Polish striker calmly stroke the ball past opposition goalkeeper Marco Bizot from 12 yards to score his 100th goal in UEFA’s elite club competition.

How many Champions League goals did Ronaldo and Messi score?

Only two other players have hit triple figures in the competition and there would have been no prizes for guessing who they are. Ronaldo leads the way with 140 goals in 183 appearances, followed by Messi, who netted 129 times in 163 games.

At 36, there seems to be little hope of Lewandowski catching the Argentine, although he should be safe in third spot for quite some time. Karim Benzema is next on 90 but is also 36 and now playing in Saudi Arabia, which means the stars of the younger generation have the best chance of joining the club next.

Who will join the UCL 100 club next?

Real Madrid attacker Kylian Mbappé (49 goals in 77 appearances) and Erling Haaland of Manchester City (44 goals in 43 games) are the obvious candidates, although they are a few years away from emulating Ronaldo, Messi and now Lewandowski.

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