On 10 March 2009 the number 25 lit up in green on the subs board and Thomas Müller stepped onto Champions League ground for the first time in a last 16 clash against Sporting Lisbon. 4,169 days later, another chapter of his European successes is written: in the 4-1 win in the second leg of the last 16 tie against Chelsea, the 30-year-old recorded his 112th appearance in Europe's premier competition. This puts him on a par with Philipp Lahm and makes him a German record-holder – no other fellow countryman has played more often in the Champions League. Müller has achieved this mark as a one-club man; always in the jersey of the German record champions.
A marksman from the off
👏 The UCL debut and Thomas Müller's first goal again for you to enjoy. ⚽
On his debut, Müller was involved straight away and proved his scoring ability. A perfect debut, prescient of how his journey was to unfold. With a total of 44 Champions League goals, he now leads the German goalscoring charts by some distance – ten ahead of 'Der Bomber', Gerd Müller, who lies in second place with 34 goals. In the second leg against Chelsea, Müller did not add to his tally, but next week in the quarter-finals against FC Barcelona he has his next chance to extend his lead at the top.
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