Raphinha reaches Lionel Messi’s heights in UEFA Champions League: How close is Barcelona’s star to Cristiano Ronaldo’s record?
Barcelona took a massive stride toward the UEFA Champions League semi-finals with a dominant 4-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their quarter-final clash. But beyond the scoreline and Barcelona’s ruthless attacking performance, a deeper narrative emerged — Brazilian winger Raphinha equaling a legendary Lionel Messi record, and now chasing down Cristiano Ronaldo’s iconic Champions League milestone.
The Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys bore witness to a vintage European night as Hansi Flick’s Barcelona tore through a vulnerable Dortmund side. Goals from Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski (twice), and Lamine Yamal put the tie firmly in the Spanish side’s hands ahead of the second leg in Germany.
The Brazilian winger opened the scoring by nudging in a flick from Pau Cubarsi — stealing what would have been a first Champions League goal for the young defender. But the Brazilian more than made up for it with a sparkling performance that included two assists, setting up Lewandowski’s towering header early in the second half, and sliding a perfectly weighted pass for Yamal to finish off the rout.
That goal — and the two assists that followed — took Raphinha to 19 direct goal involvements in the Champions League this season, a tally that matches the best ever by a Barcelona player: Lionel Messi in 2011-12.
Raphinha’s record run: The numbers behind it
Messi’s record — 14 goals and five assists in the 2011-12 campaign — stood unmatched at the club for over a decade. Now, the Brazil star has equaled it with 12 goals and seven assists, and potentially still three more matches to play.
While Messi’s name remains etched in Barcelona’s history, Raphinha now has Cristiano Ronaldo’s all-time Champions League single-season record of 21 goal involvements squarely in his sights. The Portuguese reached that milestone in 2013-14, scoring 17 goals and adding four assists for Real Madrid in a campaign that ended in European glory.
With the Blaugrana potentially having up to four matches left, the 28-year-old would need just three more direct goal contributions to equal Ronaldo, and four to surpass him.
It’s a breathtaking run from a player whose rise from Leeds to European stardom has been nothing short of spectacular. Across all competitions this season, he now has 28 goals and 22 assists — figures that place him firmly in Ballon d’Or contention.