Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) star Kylian Mbappe scored his 40th Champions League goal against Juventus, becoming the youngest player to reach the milestone surpassing his teammate and legendary Argentinian forward Lionel Messi.
There's no doubt that Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) star and legendary Argentinian forward Lionel Messi was a special player from an early age. However, his teammate Kylian Mbappe may give the 35-year-old icon a run for his money. The Frenchman opened the scoring when PSG took on Juventus in their final Champions League group-stage clash on Wednesday.
Also read: Revealed: Why Messi might ditch Barcelona, Inter Miami and extend stay at PSG
The goal was Mbappe's 40th in the European competition's history, and he reached the milestone in under six months, quicker than Messi did a decade ago. The France international scored 6 Champions League goals for Monaco and 34 for the Parisian club.
🔝 Youngest to 40 goals in competition history:
🇫🇷 Kylian Mbappé: 23 years, 317 days
🇦🇷 Lionel Messi: 24 years, 130 days
🇪🇸 Raúl González: 25 years, 258 days
🇫🇷 Karim Benzema: 26 years, 307 days
🇵🇹 Cristiano Ronaldo: 27 years, 241 days pic.twitter.com/bJCZKs62j3
At 23 years 316 days old, Paris Saint-Germain forward is the youngest player to hit the 40-goal mark in the , a record previously set by Lionel Messi at 24 years 130 days. 🙌❤️💙 pic.twitter.com/IYVXCKpmgl
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English)At 23 years and 317 days, Mbappe is now the youngest player to reach the 40-goal milestone in Champions League history. Messi reached the mark at the age of 24 years and 130 days, followed by Raul Gonzalez, who scored 40 goals in 25 years and 258 days. Real Madrid's icon Karim Benzema is 4th on the list, reaching the milestone in 26 years and 307 days, while legendary Manchester United striker Cristiano Ronaldo achieved the feat in 27 years and 241 days. Nevertheless, the Portuguese talisman has a Champions League record 140 goals in his career because of his consistent excellence throughout his 30s.
Despite a 2-1 win at Juventus, PSG's quest for its maiden Champions League title got potentially challenging because the Ligue 1 side is now unseeded for the round of 16 draws. A stoppage-time goal for Benfica in a 6-1 win at Maccabi Haifa displaced the Ligue 1 champions from Group H's top spot on a seventh-tier tiebreaker rule, i.e. overall goals scored away from home.
While PSG fans await to learn the fate of their team in the Champions League last-16 draw on Monday, Mbappe's supporters cannot stop going gaga over the Frenchman's brilliance. Some fans even suggested that the 23-year-old forward will go and break several more records held by Messi and Ronaldo across competitions. Some even argued that Manchester City's sensational striker Erling Haaland would break Mbappe's 40-goal mark by next year to become the youngest player to do so.
Here's a look at fan reactions to Mbappe becoming youngest player to reach 40 goals in Champions League history:
The future is bright https://t.co/NfurrAv40k
— ₲Ɇ₦₮ⱠɆ ɎɆ₦ĐØ🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬 (@UtuurDavid3)Next: Haaland https://t.co/5VdvB4e9N5
— Saviour (@Keane_Dylan_)Mbappe with Messi this season then for another season and a fit Neymar for 3 seasons might break all goal records. https://t.co/Qt1Catg5Qr
— GunnerKe (@Gooner_254)All for Haaland to break it like next yr https://t.co/tBAhre22m2
— Local Fumbling Man (@DavidJohnWill8)Wow!!!.. Messi assisted Mbappe to break his own record👏🏽 https://t.co/cJgWrNLE0D
— K_Jaleel ⓘ (@K_jaleell)Future is bright ✨ https://t.co/u0oNQTm9Ho
— DatOshaBhoi (@iamorjiemmanuel)He’s seriously gonna be an all timer fucking hell man https://t.co/sxmfTK9R8h
— Patricia🐸🇺🇦💙💛 (@BestBoyPatrick)he’s insane. https://t.co/2Xb7OEaUnb
— Gustavo. (@__Readone)4yrs younger than mr ucl btw he's going places✍ https://t.co/hRjJcWAcUY
— 🌿🇫🇷 (@_mkvbi_)Haaland is coming 💙 https://t.co/cJH9eWue75
— Conceited. (@AlexanderKing4L)Wallahi PSG fans dey enjoy sha, you have Mbappe, Messi and Neymar in one team, definitely there will be alot og records to create or break. https://t.co/A16J4pLZiw
— Andah!🍀 (@TheAndahSZN)We been watching greatness https://t.co/X5H2pUXaYu
— Dre Sinatra (@DRESINATRA)That’s my boy https://t.co/n0ncejrppl
— DT (Dylan) (@ParisianDT)