Robert Lewandowski (35 years old) eagerly anticipates the Champions League anthem. The Polish striker is the third all-time top scorer in the competition (91 goals). He’s trailing only behind Leo Messi (129 goals) and Cristiano Ronaldo (140 goals). Karim Benzema (90 goals) departed from Real Madrid to join Al-Ittihad, leaving Barcelona’s marksman with the challenging task of catching up to the Argentine and the Portuguese.
Since his Champions League debut in the 2011-12 season with Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona’s prolific goal-scorer has been a true force in Europe’s premier club competition. Between Dortmund, Bayern Munich, and FC Barcelona, Lewandowski has netted 91 goals in 111 matches and continues his quest to pad these statistics.
While he is not the only active player on the list of top scorers, only the Barcelona man and Müller (Bayern) will feature in this season’s Champions League. Cristiano made his Champions League debut in the 2003-04 season, Messi did the same in the 2004-05 season, and Benzema played in the competition in the 2005-06 season. For the first time since the 2002-03 season, none of these three superstars will participate in Europe’s premier club competition.
Furthermore, Lewandowski clinched the Champions League title in the 2019-20 season with Bayern Munich, where he scored 15 goals in 10 matches. He was also a finalist with Dortmund in the 2012-13 season but lost to Bayern Munich in the final. In that same year, he scored four goals against Madrid at Signal Iduna Park in a historic night for the Polish striker. He also reached the semifinals in consecutive years during the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons.
Lewandowski’s Champions League Seasons:
- 2011-12 / Borussia Dortmund – 6 matches, 1 goal
- 2012-13 / Borussia Dortmund – 13 matches, 10 goals (runner-up)
- 2013-14 / Borussia Dortmund – 9 matches, 6 goals
- 2014-15 / Bayern Munich – 12 matches, 6 goals
- 2015-16 / Bayern Munich – 12 matches, 9 goals
- 2016-17 / Bayern Munich – 9 matches, 8 goals
- 2017-18 / Bayern Munich – 11 matches, 5 goals
- 2018-19 / Bayern Munich – 8 matches, 8 goals
- 2019-20 / Bayern Munich – 10 matches, 15 goals (champion)
- 2020-21 / Bayern Munich – 6 matches, 5 goals
- 2021-22 / Bayern Munich – 10 matches, 13 goals
- 2022-23 / FC Barcelona – 5 matches, 5 goals
Total: 12 seasons, 111 matches, 91 goals
In an era of legendary goal-scorers, Lewandowski’s prowess in the Champions League places him among the very best, and he continues to make his mark on the competition. Barcelona fans eagerly anticipate more memorable moments from this incredible striker as he pursues further success in Europe.
