8 Champions League Players Who Always Keep Their Foot on the Pedal
The Champions League has been home to the greatest players on Earth for many years; it is the pinnacle of club football. A competition that, along with the World Cup, every player dreams of winning.
With great ability comes great responsibility. As every world class player currently playing in the competition knows, you cannot take your foot off the gas if you want to be holding the big-eared trophy aloft in May.
Let's take a look at eight players who always keep their foot on the pedal in the Champions League...
Harry Kane
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He may have only played 12 games in the competition, and he may not have a winner's medal just yet, but Harry Kane's form in the Champions League is consistently brilliant.
The World Cup Golden Boot winner has hit 10 goals in his 12 games in Europe's greatest club competition. Interestingly, it took Lionel Messi, currently the scorer of 105 Champions League goals, twice the amount of games to hit double figures.
Spurs' academy graduate is an extremely driven footballer; he most certainly won't take his foot off the pedal.
Karim Benzema
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For years, Karim Benzema has been driven out of the spotlight at Real Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo's greatness has left the Frenchman in the shadows for over a decade, so too has Gareth Bale's arrival in the Spanish capital.
However, it must not go unnoticed just how consistently influential Benzema has been in the Champions League throughout his career.
Whilst not at the peak of his powers, the Frenchman scored twice against Bayern Munich in the semi finals last season to help his side into the final, where he then netted the opener against Liverpool.
The 30-year-old sits fourth on the list of the competition's all time top scorers with 56 goals in 106 games.
Robert Lewandowski
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Amazingly, the 30-year-old Pole has never won the Champions League throughout his prolific career, despite finishing in the Squad of the Season consecutively in 2015/16 and 2016/17.
Lewandowski finished as a runner up with Borussia Dortmund, when they fell to a 2-1 defeat to the Polish international's current side Bayern at Wembley in 2013.
To get them into that final, however, Lewandowski scored four times in one game against Real Madrid in the semi finals, becoming the first and only player to achieve the feat at that stage of the competition.
Despite never receiving a winner's medal, his form has never let up, and he sits in tenth on the all time top scorers list with 46 goals in 74 games.
Sergio Ramos
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As an avid viewer of the Champions League as well as La Liga, it really does seem like Sergio Ramos brings his A game especially for those European nights. The captain of the Spain national team is obsessed with the competition, winning it on four occasions in his career.
He has also scored in two of those finals; the first being a 93rd minute equaliser against Atletico Madrid, in which Los Blancos went on to win, whilst the second was the opening goal against the same side a year later.
The 32-year-old was voted UEFA Defender of the Season in both 2017 and 2018.
Mohamed Salah
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It was hard to miss the dominance of a certain curly haired Egyptian in Liverpool's remarkable run to the Champions League final last season.
The Reds proved to be a force of nature as they roared their way past the likes of Porto, Manchester City and AS Roma to set up a finale against the holders Real Madrid.
Mohamed Salah spearheaded the journey with some breathtaking performances, his extraordinary raw speed and touch coupled with his ability to finish elevated him to the upper echelons of footballing excellence.
His game is played at breakneck speed and as a defender, don't expect any respite.
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Neymar Jr
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Neymar's record in the UEFA Champions League is simply incredible.
If we're talking about consistency, the Brazilian's numbers are impeccable. He has scored 30 goals in just 49 games in Europe's greatest club competition.
The 26-year-old's hat-trick against Red Star Belgrade saw him move level with Kaka, Wayne Rooney and Samuel Eto'o on 30 Champions League strikes; although Neymar managed the feat in significantly less games.
Neymar won the competition back in 2015 with Barcelona, where he scored in the final against Juventus.
Lionel Messi
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Somehow, Lionel Messi's 105 goals don't quite make him the leading goalscorer in Champions League history, but he is still one of – if not the best – players ever seen in the competition.
The five time Ballon d'Or winner has won the competition on four occasions, netting in two finals. His five goals in one game against Bayer Leverkusen is the highest amount scored in one match, whilst his seven Champions League hat-tricks are matched only by Cristiano Ronaldo.
Messi was also the youngest player to make 100 appearances in the competition. His five goals in just two games already in this season's edition of the Champions League prove he has no intention of slowing down.
Cristiano Ronaldo
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Cristiano Ronaldo's numbers in the UEFA Champions League are unprecedented and absurdly spectacular; the competition has never seen a player like him in its entire history.
From his debut with Sporting back in 2002 up until now, the five time Ballon d'Or winner has been relentless in his goalscoring for Manchester United and Real Madrid – and now Juventus.
Ronaldo, who has five Champions League winners medals, has found the back of the net on 121 occasions in just 159 games. Unbelievably, his record for Real Madrid in Europe stands at 105 goals in 101 games. He will deservedly go down as one of the competition's greatest ever players, if not the greatest.
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