Highlights

• Manchester City and Real Madrid are contenders in the upcoming Champions League, making for an exciting and intense competition.
• Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland are emerging as the new rivalry in European football, showcasing their goal-scoring skills.
• The all-time top goal contributors in the Champions League include legends like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, with Ronaldo earning the title of "Mr. Champions League."

Clear any plans on the upcoming Tuesday's and Wednesday's - Champions League football is finally back. Manchester City are looking to retain their status as champions, while Real Madrid will be looking to snatch the title back from them. It's certainly poised to be a nail-biter with.

The dangerous duo of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have both vacated the European scene following the latter's summer switch to Inter Miami - a changing of the guard, if you will. Paris Saint-Germain talent Kylian Mbappé and Manchester City's Erling Haaland are poised to become the newfound rivalry as the two youngsters made the refined art of goalscoring look like second nature.

At the age of just 24, Mbappé has already broken into the top 20 of footballers with the most goals and assists combined in the Champions League since it was rebranded in 1992/93, whereas Haaland still has a work to do in order to reach the levels of the Frenchman having accrued just 39 goal involvements in his Champions League career thus far. So who is currently ahead of the former Monaco man in the standings you ask?

Well, that question and many others are answered in our 20-man list below of the players with the highest number of goal contributions in the Champions League era, with all the statistics sourced from the folks over at Transfermarkt.

20 Kaka - 55 (30 goals, 25 assists)

With 30 goals and a further 25 Champions League assists under his belt, Kaka – who predominantly played for European heavyweight duo Real Madrid and AC Milan – creeps into the top 20. There is one assist that sticks specifically springs to mind – his defence-splitting, pinpoint ball to Hernan Crespo in the 2005 Champions League final. Granted, the evening didn’t end in the Brazilian’s favour, but he did produce one of the best assists in the history of the competition.

19 Arjen Robben - 55 (31 goals, 24 assists)

Cut inside, left foot, top corner. That was Robben’s routine technique as he swarmed down the right-hand side of the pitch in the red of Bayern Munich. The Dutchman was inevitable and, unfortunately for opposing defenders, there was little you could do to stop it happening. Across four different clubs, the former Munich wide man recorded 31 goals and 24 assists.

18 Luis Figo - 59 (24 goals, 35 assists)

Best known for his acrimonious switch that crossed the El Clasico divide from Barcelona to Real Madrid, Figo was – more importantly – a phenomenal footballer. Not an out-and-out scorer by no means, but his Champions League longevity, highlighted by his 103 games in the competition, meant he had ample time to rack up 24 goals and 35 assists.

17 Mohamed Salah - 59 (44 goals, 15 assists)

Known for his repetitive potency in front of goal in the Premier League, the Liverpool ace has scored 44 goals and notched a further 15 assists for his teammates in the Champions League, too. He’s just one of those players that scores goal no matter what competition it’s in. Salah will be plying his trade in the Europa League this campaign, however, thanks to Liverpool’s subpar 2022/23 finish and will therefore have to wait to up his tally any further.

16 Didier Drogba - 59 (44 goals, 15 assists)

A scorer of one of the most iconic Champions League goals of all time, his glanced header against Bayern Munich etched itself competition history as it caressed the roof of the net. That was not his only one in the European top tier, however, as he notched a further 43 across his three-club stint, while popping up with 15 assists along the way, too.

15 Ángel Di María - 61 (22 goals, 39 assists)

The now-Benfica man has been blessed to have lined up alongside both Messi and Ronaldo during his career, but his goalscoring exploits should not be overlooked, though it typically does. Especially seeing as – like a host of others on the list – he was primarily utilised on the wing; his 22 goals and 39 Champions League assists is very impressive.

Read More: The all-time Champions League table

14 Andriy Shevchenko - 64 (48 goals, 16 assists)

The Ukrainian centre-forward plundered a century of appearances in Europe’s biggest club competition during his playing career and picked up 64 goal involvements in that sequence. Best known for his clinical nature, 48 of his contributions were in the form of him hitting the back of the net. Textbook Shevchenko.

13 Alessandro Del Piero - 65 (42 goals, 23 assists)

An Old Lady asset through and through, the seasoned Italian was often Juventus’ shining light on those Champions League evenings. Del Piero, across 89 competition appearances, racked up 42 goals and turned his hand to assisting on 14 occasions, too.

12 Kylian Mbappé - 66 (40 goals, 26 assists)

Mbappé is already ahead of the likes of Rooney, Suarez, Aguero and Eto'o, which is seriously impressive for someone that is 24 years of age. At this rate, the PSG man is nailed on to become the sixth member of the 100-club, although it'll take something special from him to match either Messi or Ronaldo's superhuman-like numbers. Now, with the two Ballon d'Or hoarders plying their trade outside of Europe, the door has been left ajar for the coveted Frenchman.

11 Thierry Henry – 72 (50 goals, 22 assists)

Arguably the greatest striker in the history of the Premier League since its inception in 1992, Henry was a crucial part of everything that Arsenal achieved during their most successful period as a football club. It was at Barcelona, however, where the imperious marksman picked up his sole Champions League title – a competition where he scored 50 goals and provided an additional 22 assists for teammates.

10 Ryan Giggs - 74 (28 goals, 46 assists)

Having played the entirety of his career at Manchester United, the veteran Wales wide man enjoyed many seasons in the Champions League thanks to the Red Devils’ domestic prowess. During Giggs’ time at the Manchester-based outfit, he played 145 games in the competition and plundered 28 goals and 46 assists.

9 Ruud van Nistelrooy – 74 (56 goals, 18 assists)

The Dutchman was a sharpshooter. Instinctive as they come, it's no surprise to see him boast a respectable ninth spot. Accruing 74 goal involvements in 73 games is no easy feat but van Nistelrooy made it look simple. Primarily for Manchester United and Real Madrid, the striker just oozed pure brilliance.

8 Zlatan Ibrahimovic – 77 (48 goals, 29 assists)

The charismatic centre-forward may never have won the prestigious trophy, but he certainly cemented himself as one of the best finishers and his numbers across his seven-club Champions League career highlight that. Ibrahimovic, now 41, will no doubt hope to aid AC Milan’s hunt for glory in 2023/24 and also build on his tally of 77 goal involvements.

7 Neymar – 79 (46 goals, 33 assists)

Unless he returns to Europe before pulling the curtains on his glittering career, Neymar’s record in the Champions League will end not increase from the 43 goals and 36 assists he managed while representing Barcelona and PSG. However, at just 31 years of age, there is every chance that Brazil’s all-time top goalscorer’s time playing in the coveted competition is far from done.

6 Thomas Muller – 85 (53 goals, 32 assists)

Perhaps a surprise inclusion so high up the list, Muller’s extensive stint on the biggest stage of football has allowed him to run up his record in front of goal to 53 goals and 32 assists. For much of his Bayern Munich career, he had Robert Lewandowski ahead of him to conclude attacking patterns of play and hence why his assist record is so impressive.

5 Raul – 103 (71 goals, 32 assists)

A Los Blancos icon, Raul donned the famous white strip of Madrid a grand total of 142 times in the Champions League. During that period, the forward notched 71 goals and 32 assists as he asserted himself as one of his club’s greatest ever talents.

4 Robert Lewandowski – 116 (91 goals, 25 assists)

The enigmatic Pole is gunning down on the top four of this list and is just four goal involvements shy of creeping in. During his respective stints at Bayern Munich and now Barcelona, Lewandowski has been held in high regard as one of the sport’s best performers in a goalscoring sense. Across 111 Champions League games, he has netted on 91 occasions and provided a further 25 assists.

3 Karim Benzema – 120 (90 goals, 30 assists)

Often overshadowed by Ronaldo, the Frenchman has ensured to show the world of football how clinical he was in front of goal. At 35 years old, Benzema made the decision to enjoy the riches of the Middle East and move to Al-Ittihad which may mean that his time in the Champions League is a thing of the past. At least we have his 90 goals and 30 assists to look back on in awe.

2 Lionel Messi – 174 (129 goals, 45 assists)

The 2023/24 Champions League season will – sadly - not be blessed with the presence of the diminutive Argentine seeing as he is exploring pastures new at Inter Miami. Despite playing 20 fewer games than Ronaldo, the pint-sized forward notched just 14 less goal contributions. If only he stayed for a couple of more years!

1 Cristiano Ronaldo – 188 (140 goals, 48 assists)

You don’t earn the moniker of ‘Mr. Champions League’ without scoring heaps and heaps of goals, do you? In his 183-game Champions League career, he has registered an emphatic return of 140 goals and 48 assists while plying his trade for three of Europe’s elite: Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus. He will undoubtedly go down in Champions League lore as its greatest ever goalscorer unless Mbappé or Haaland have other plans.

You can view the full 20-man table below.