Lautaro Martinez becomes only second Argentine star to match Lionel Messi in Champions League feat

Inter Milan and FC Barcelona delivered one of the most unforgettable UEFA Champions League ties in recent memory. After a dramatic 3-3 draw in the first leg in Spain, Inter secured a thrilling 4-3 win in Italy to advance to the final. Lautaro Martinez was one of the standout performers, reaching a feat only two other Argentine players had accomplished before—one of them being Lionel Messi.

Martinez opened the scoring for Inter Milan in the 21st minute of the first half, finishing smoothly inside the box after receiving an assist from Marcus Thuram. Minutes later, he played a crucial role in his team’s second goal, drawing a foul from Pau Cubarsi inside the box that led to a penalty goal by Hakan Calhanoglu.

With that goal, Lautaro became just the third Argentine player in history to score at least nine goals in a single Champions League campaign. The first to hit that mark was Hernan Crespo, followed—of course—by Lionel Messi.

Throughout this season, Martinez has scored in every stage of the competition: five goals in the group stage (three against AC Monaco, one against Red Star Belgrade, and one against Sparta Prague), one in the round of 16 against Feyenoord, two in the quarterfinals against Bayern Munich, and one in the semifinals against Barcelona.

Lautaro Martinez scored 9 goals for Inter Milan this Champions League season

Hernan Crespo’s Champions League milestone

Hernan Crespo had an accomplished professional career that included stints at AC Milan and Chelsea. However, his most prolific Champions League season came with Inter Milan in 2002-03. That year, the Italian side reached the semifinals, where they were eliminated by their city rivals.

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The striker was a key figure for that squad, tallying 9 goals and 3 assists in 12 matches for Inter Milan during that European campaign. In doing so, he became the first Argentine to reach those numbers—until Lionel Messi came along.

The numbers of Lionel Messi in Champions League

In the later years of his playing career, Hernan Crespo was a teammate of Lionel Messi on the Argentina national team. And it was Leo who ultimately surpassed Crespo’s historic mark, doing so multiple times over his career.

Messi first reached the 9-goal mark in a single Champions League season in 2008-09, when he led Barcelona to the title with a win over Cristiano Ronaldo’s Manchester United in the final. The Argentine superstar repeated the feat five more times, with his most remarkable performance coming in the 2011-12 season, when he scored 14 goals.