Lionel Messi is five goals clear at the top of the standings; can his old rival Cristiano Ronaldo close the gap this autumn?
Most UEFA Champions League group stage goals*
66: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
61: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus)
43: Karim Benzema (Lyon, Real Madrid)
39: Ruud van Nistelrooy (PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Hamburg)
37: Raúl González (Real Madrid, Schalke)
36: Zlatan Ibrahimović (Ajax, Juventus, Internazionale Milano, Barcelona, AC Milan, Paris, Manchester United)
34: Robert Lewandowski (Borussia Dortmund, Bayern München)
31: Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus)
30: Didier Drogba (Marseille, Chelsea, Galatasaray)
29: Thierry Henry (Monaco, Arsenal, Barcelona)
29: Filippo Inzaghi (Juventus, AC Milan)
• Six goals in 2018/19 enabled Messi to move clear of Cristiano Ronaldo at the top of the group stage scorers chart.
Best goals per game ratio (minimum 20 scored)
0.99: Lionel Messi (Barcelona) – 66 goals in 67 games
0.76: Ruud van Nistelrooy (PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Hamburg) – 39 goals in 51 games
0.73: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus) – 61 goals in 83 games
0.72: Robert Lewandowski (Borussia Dortmund, Bayern München) – 34 goals in 47 games
0.72: Roy Makaay (Deportivo La Coruña, Bayern München) – 23 goals in 32 games
0.68: Karim Benzema (Lyon, Real Madrid) – 43 goals in 63 games
0.68: Edinson Cavani (Napoli, Paris Saint-Germain) – 28 goals in 41 games
0.64: Didier Drogba (Marseille, Chelsea, Galatasaray) – 30 goals in 47 games
0.62: Filippo Inzaghi (Juventus, AC Milan) – 29 goals in 47 games
0.57: Sergio Agüero (Atlético Madrid, Manchester City) – 28 goals in 49 games
• Messi's close to a goal-a-game strike rate is astounding, while Ronaldo's early years as a winger rather than out-and-out forward might explain why he lags behind the Argentinian.
• Edinson Cavani would seem a more realistic contender for Messi's place at the top of this particular table; if the Uruguayan hit a hat-trick in each of his next five games, he would overtake Messi at the summit.
