After years of dominance by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the UEFA Champions League, their storied records are inevitably starting to fall. Tonight, Kylian Mbappe took center stage, netting a brace in Real Madrid’s commanding victory over his former club, Monaco, to surpass the Argentine and pull level with the Portuguese icon in a remarkable scoring milestone.
Real Madrid crushed Monaco 6-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu, moving within a single point of securing a direct spot in the knockout rounds. Mbappe was the undisputed star of the night, scoring twice in the first half to provide a 2-0 cushion for the Spanish side.
With his two goals against his former club, Mbappe has now tallied 11 goals in just six matches during the current Champions League opening phase. In doing so, he has matched the incredible record set by Cristiano Ronaldo during the 2015-16 campaign while also wearing the Real Madrid jersey.
By matching Ronaldo, Mbappe has officially moved past Lionel Messi, who set the previous bar for the second-most prolific group stage with 10 goals during the 2016-17 season with Barcelona. Additionally, the French forward eclipsed the marks of Sebastien Haller (2021-22) and Robert Lewandowski (2019-20), both of whom also reached the 10-goal plateau in a single opening stage.
The French striker will have the opportunity to rewrite the history books next week when Real Madrid visit Benfica on Wednesday, January 28, for the final matchday of the League Phase.
While the modern League Phase grants each team eight matches compared to the six played in the previous format, it is worth noting that Mbappe reached this mark in fewer games than allowed. He now heads into the final matchday with the chance to break Ronaldo’s record and stand alone as the most prolific scorer in the history of the competition’s opening stage.
Mbappe chases Cristiano Ronaldo’s legendary record
Following an explosive start to this Champions League campaign, Kylian Mbappe is on track to shatter one of the most iconic records of Cristiano Ronaldo’s career. The portuguese forward currently holds the record for the most goals scored in a single Champions League season, netting 17 goals for Real Madrid during the 2013-14 edition.
In a testament to his historic dominance, Cristiano also occupies the second and third spots on the all-time list, having scored 16 goals in 2015-16 and 15 in the 2017-18 campaign, with the latter mark currently shared with Karim Benzema (2021-22) and Robert Lewandowski (2019-20).