Mbappe, Haaland break two Champions League records held by Messi

Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland have each eclipsed a Champions League record long held by Lionel Messi, with the Real Madrid forward becoming the youngest player to make 100 appearances in the competition and the Manchester City striker reaching 60 goals in far fewer matches.

Mbappé reached his century of appearances in Real Madrid’s match against Roma on Wednesday night, scoring the opening goal. Moreover, Real mounted a remarkable comeback after trailing 3-1 until the 82nd minute. Messi had previously become the youngest player to make 100 Champions League appearances, at the age of 28 in September 2015, also against Roma, while representing Barcelona.

Meanwhile, Haaland struck twice in Manchester City’s 4-2 victory over Paris Saint-Germain, lifting his Champions League tally to 61 goals in just 60 appearances. According to UEFA, the Norwegian reached 60 goals at 26 years and 85 days, surpassing Messi’s benchmark of 80 matches by a margin of 20 games. Furthermore, he became Manchester City’s all-time leading scorer in the competition, overtaking Sergio Agüero, having netted 37 goals in 41 appearances for the club compared with the Argentine’s 36 in 64.

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Taken together, these milestones underscore the extraordinary attacking prowess of both forwards, as Mbappé sets a new benchmark for longevity at the highest level and Haaland establishes a scoring pace in Europe’s premier club competition that few have ever approached.