Cristiano Ronaldo equalled all-time Champions League records held by Iker Casillas and Lionel Messi during Manchester United's game against Young Boys.
Ronaldo made his first appearance for Man Utd in the competition since 2009 on Tuesday as he started in the club's group-stage opener.
And in his joint-record 177th appearance in the competition, he marked the event in typical fashion with an early goal to match another milestone held by Messi.
Ronaldo's records
With his start against Young Boys, Ronaldo matched Casillas with a record 177 appearances in the competition.
It took the Portugal star just 13 minutes to open the scoring in Switzerland to put United 1-0 ahead, sealing in the process a share of another record.
That would prove to be the best it got for United on the night, however, as the Swiss side scored twice in the second half to stun the Red Devils 2-1.
Young Boys became the 36th different club he's scored a Champions League goal against, with only Messi matching that mark.
36 - Young Boys are the 36th different team Cristiano Ronaldo has scored against in the UEFA Champions League, with no player scoring against more (also Lionel Messi on 36). Collection. pic.twitter.com/xVk4EDZnnC
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 14, 2021
Of course, those are far from the only records that Ronaldo has earned in the Champions League.
He's the competition's all-time top goalscorer with 135 finishes, including 17 in 2013-14, the most in a single campaign.
Ronaldo also has more knockout-round goals than any other player with a total of 67 outside of the group stage.
In addition, the Portuguese star is the only player to score in three Champions League finals, the only player to score in all six games in a Champions League group and the only player to score in 11 straight Champions League games.
177 - Cristiano Ronaldo is set to make his 177th UEFA Champions League appearance, equalling Iker Casillas as the player the with the most appearances in the competition's history. Staple. pic.twitter.com/mGgoZX14Hq
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 14, 2021
Restarting life at Man Utd
Ronaldo made his second debut for the club this past weekend as he returned to Old Trafford 12 years after leaving for Real Madrid.
He scored twice in that match, helping lead Man Utd to a 4-1 win over Newcastle.
Further reading
- Ronaldo's back but are Man Utd any closer to winning the Champions League?
- FIFA 22 ratings: Ronaldo, Kane and De Bruyne headline Premier League's best players
- 'Ronaldo outscored Lukaku last season!' - Doubters get 'different stratosphere' response from Ferdinand