By Alfredo Echenique Lugo
Aug 29, 2024, 2:48 PM EDT
With 140 goals in 183 matches and five trophies won, Cristiano Ronaldo is the all-time top scorer in the Champions League. UEFA has decided to give him recognition for this feat.
The award ceremony took place during the draw for the new 2024/2025 edition of the Champions League to be held in Monaco. The Portuguese was present to receive the award and took the opportunity to give a few words after having played in almost 20 editions.
“It’s a pleasure to be here. Thank you for this award, it means a lot to me. The Champions League is the ultimate. The records speak for themselves, but it was an immense pleasure to play in the Champions League,” said Cristiano and recalled the special nature of the tournament, highlighting the distinctive anthem. “When you hear the music, you get fired up, it’s a very special feeling,” he said.
Ronaldo was also asked about his favourite Champions League of the five he has won, choosing the first one, which he won in 2008 against Chelsea and in Lisbon.
“It’s difficult to choose a Champions League. Maybe the first one, United’s, the first one is always special. But of course I have to name Madrid. In 2008, in Lisbon, in front of the Portuguese fans, we hadn’t won for a long time and we were under pressure. We were a team of stars,” analysed the Portuguese star.
Ronaldo is undoubtedly the lord and master of this competition, to the point that some journalists have nicknamed him “Mister Champions”. He holds several records that seem difficult to achieve and has shown in each of the 18 editions he has played in that he was born to dazzle on European nights.
The Portuguese player finished his European career with 140 goals, while his closest competitor, Lionel Messi, finished with 129. Among those who are active or still in Europe, Robert Lewandowski is on 94 and much further behind is Kylian Mbappé with 48.
Another record held by Cristiano Ronaldo is the most goals in a single edition of the Champions League. He achieved this in the 2013/2014 campaign in which he finished with 17 goals. He also holds the record for the longest scoring streak in the Champions League with 11 consecutive games scoring from June 2017 to April 2018.
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