The final matchday of the Champions League group stage between Barcelona and Copenhagen will have added significance: Robert Lewandowski could equal Lionel Messi’s important record.
This would not only see Hansi Flick’s team enter the Top 8 and avoid the playoff round, but if the Polish player scores a goal in Wednesday’s match, he could strip the Argentine idol of his record for the number of opponents defeated in the tournament.
Lewandowski wants to catch up with Messi
During his time in Europe, Leo has played in the Champions League with both Barcelona and PSG and has officially scored against 40 different teams.
This is the number that ‘Lewy’ is looking to reach, having just surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo’s 38 goals after scoring against Slavia Prague.
With his goals against 39 teams, the 37-year-old Pole is looking to take his name to the top of the competition in his 15th consecutive season, in which he is the third highest scorer in history, behind Leo’s 129 and CR7’s 140.
With 20 goals, Robert is the sixth highest scorer for Barça in the tournament, alongside Luis Enrique. Neymar and Patrick Kluivert are in 4th and 5th place with 21 goals, and Luis Suárez and Rivaldo are in 2nd and 3rd place with 25.
In addition, Lewandowski will be looking to bounce back from the heavy blow he suffered last season when he had to miss the first leg against Inter due to injury. He returned for the second leg, but Davide Frattesi’s goal (100′) knocked him and the team out of the final.
As if that weren’t enough, Barça last won the Champions League in 2015, so the Blaugrana team will be looking to end their decade-long drought.
Meanwhile, the match will be played at Spotify Camp Nou at 21:00 CET. For fans in the United Kingdom, the matches begin at 20:00 GMT. In the United States, they will get underway at 15:00 ET / 12:00 PT. on Paramount+. And it already promises to be historic.
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