15 g/a takes top spot
©TM/IMAGO
The Champions League is the pinnacle of club football and it’s the trophy that every elite player dreams of winning at the start of the season. It’s the greatest stage for emerging talents to announce themselves to the masses and various superstars have enjoyed their greatest moments in the competition.
Wayne Rooney famously scored a hat-trick on his debut for Manchester United in the Champions League and Karim Benzema also netted in his first start in the competition for Lyon. Kylian Mbappé truly made his name in the Champions League on Monaco’s incredible run to the semi-final in the 2016/17 campaign. Mbappe boasted the most goal contributions from players aged 18 or younger (U18) at the start of the season but Lamine Yamal has eclipsed the French superstar.
The most Champions League goal contributions from U18 players
Yamal assisted Jules Koundé’s winning goal in Barcelona’s hard-fought 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Tuesday night. It was the Spanish international’s eight assist in the competition and he’s also scored seven goals with his goal contribution tally at 15. That’s two more than Mbappe managed by his 19th birthday with the Frenchman registering for both Monaco and PSG.
As the graphic above illustrates, Real Madrid legend Raul occupies third place after netting six goals and providing two assists for the Spanish giants before turning 18. Five players have registered five goal contributions in the Champions League before their 19th birthday; Zoran Filipovic, Bojan Krkic, Rodrygo, Theo Walcott and Jude Bellingham.
