As if he was born to play for Real Madrid. England playmaker Jude Bellingham continued his exceptional run in his debut season for Los Blancos as the Real Madrid star was on target in the recently concluded UEFA Champions League match between the La Liga giants and Napoli. Record-time winners Real Madrid defeated the Serie A holders 4-2 in their Group C fixture on Thursday at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Bellingham-starrer Real Madrid are set to finish atop Group C following their win over the Serie A side at home. Former Borussia Dortmund midfielder Bellingham netted Madrid’s second goal against Napoli to take his goal tally to four goals in Europe’s biggest competition at the club level – the Champions League. Donning the No. 5 jersey of French legend Zinedine Zidane, Bellingham has scored 15 goals in his first 16 matches for Los Blancos.
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Bellingham rewrites Real Madrid history
The Real Madrid superstar is also the third youngest player to score 10 Champions League goals at 20 years and 153 days. The Englishman is the third youngest after Kylian Mbappe (18y, 350d) and Erling Haaland (19y, 212d) to achieve the special feat in the celebrated tournament. Bellingham is also the first Real Madrid player to find the back of the net in his first four Champions League matches for the fourteen-time winners.
Haaland breaks Nistelrooy’s record
On a night when European royalties Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan struggled to get going, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City recorded a come-from-behind win over RB Leipzig in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League. Superstar Haaland opened the scoring for the defending champions in the 54th minute against RB Leipzig at the Etihad Stadium. At the age of 23, Haaland has already scored 40 goals in the Champions League.
The Man City goal machine shattered Ruud van Nistelrooy’s record for fewest games to net 40 Champions League goals. The Man City striker secured the famous feat in 35 matches while ex-Manchetser United forward Van Nistelrooy scored 40 goals in 45 games. Haaland has also joined icons Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, Sergio Aguero, Didier Drogba and Mohamed Salah in a special club. Haaland is one of the seven players to have scored at least 50 Premier League goals and 40 Champions League goals.