Raphinha makes Lionel Messi proud – But Robert Lewandowski creates UEFA Champions League history at Cristiano Ronaldo’s expense
At a club as steeped in greatness as Barcelona, the bar is always high. Yet even by the standards of Camp Nou — or, for this season, the Montjuic — something extraordinary happened under the floodlights against Borussia Dortmund. A 4-0 first-leg demolition in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal was impressive enough. But the deeper story belonged to a veteran striker whose name already resides in the pantheon of modern soccer.
Robert Lewandowski, in a performance both clinical and cold-blooded, scored twice to give Barca an emphatic lead going into the second leg. At 36, he’s already accomplished more than most could dream of. And yet, on this night, he quietly wrote himself into Champions League folklore—surpassing even Cristiano Ronaldo in a unique record no one had touched before.
It was a night when the Catalans flexed their continental muscle, extending their unbeaten run in 2025 and placing one foot firmly in the semi-finals. Hansi Flick’s side was relentless, their front three electric. Raphinha broke the deadlock in the 25th minute, with assists later going to Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal, before the young Spaniard scored the fourth to cap a dominant display.
The former’s first came just after the break, a header assisted by Raphinha, and the second followed in the 66th minute. The brace marked his 11th goal in this season’s competition, just one behind the Brazilian’s 12, and brought his season tally to 40 in all competitions.
The record that even Ronaldo couldn’t reach
It wasn’t just another Lewandowski performance — it was a historic one. With his goals on Wednesday, the veteran became the first player in UEFA Champions League history to score 10 or more goals in a single season for three different clubs. “This is turning out to be his best season yet at Barca,” commented the club in a celebratory statement.
He had previously reached double digits in the Champions League with Borussia Dortmund in 2012-13, and Bayern Munich in both 2019-20 and 2021-22. Now, in his third season at Barcelona, he has finally completed the trifecta — an achievement even Cristiano Ronaldo never managed, despite his time with Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus.
While the Pole dominated the headlines, his Brazilian teammate Raphinha had a night of his own. Scoring once and assisting twice, he now sits atop the Champions League goal involvement charts for the 2024/25 campaign with 19 — including 12 goals and seven assists. These numbers equal Lionel Messi’s best return in a single Champions League season with Barcelona (2011-12), putting Raphinha in the same breath as the Argentine legend.
Crushing old friends, climbing the charts
The goals against Dortmund weren’t just symbolic; they were personal. Lewandowski has now scored 29 goals in 28 games against his former club, the most he’s netted against any opponent. This was the first time he’d scored against them in a Champions League match, adding another layer to his haunting legacy over the club that launched his European career.
With 99 goals in a Blaugrana shirt, he’s also on the verge of entering the club’s top 20 all-time goalscorers, just one goal shy of that milestone.