One might think that every story in the success story of Robert Lewandowski has already been told. 5 goals in 9 minutes against Wolfsburg, a record 41 goals in a Bundesliga season, The Best FIFA Men's Player- surely every chapter has been written. But with the 7-1 thumping victory in the last 16 second leg in the Champions League over Salzburg, RL9 history has been enriched by one more episode:
Earliest hat-trick in Champions League history
His two penalties (12'/21') - both won by the Pole himself - and his unusual third goal (23), in which the ball first hit the post after a collision with Salzburg keeper Philipp Köhn before the 33-year-old then put the follow-up into the net, secured Lewy's next record. His hat-trick in just 11 minutes makes him the first UCL player to score a hat-trick in the first 23 minutes of a game.
40-goal mark hit for the seventh time
"He took both penalties, he made a great move before the first one," praised his coach Julian Nagelsmann after the final whistle. "I was particularly pleased with the third goal. He attacks with a lot of aggression and shields the ball. We all know that he is incredibly dangerous in the eighteen-yard box. Overall, he played very well, serviced the team well, made many assists and runs. He coached the others well. It was a very good game from him."
Lewy's fabulous record: thanks to his goals against the Austrians, LewanGOALski now has 42 goals in all competitions this season - the seventh year in a row that the exceptional striker has broken the 40-goal-a-season barrier. But that's not all: Lewy is now where he belongs in the Champions League goalscoring charts - in top spot. With 12 goals (three assists), he's now surpassed Ajax's Sébastien Haller.
Alongside Messi and Ronaldo
FC Bayern and Robert Lewandowski - the pair has stood for goalscoring prowess for years, which is also reflected in the figures. The centre-forward now has 68 UCL goals to his name for Bayern, with only Cristiano Ronaldo (105 for Real Madrid) and Lionel Messi (120 for Barcelona) haing found the net more often for a single club. In addition, the two are the only players who have ended more UCL seasons with double-digit hauls (Ronaldo 7, Messi 5, Lewy 3). "Obviously I'm happy that I scored three goals in the first half," summarised Lewy afterwards. "But it was just important that we put the game to bed early on. I always want to attack and score goals. It's important that everyone on the pitch does their job." Incidentally, the three-goal haul against Salzburg was the Pole's first in a Bayern jersey in the knockout phase of the Champions League. Next up? The competition's last eight.
Read more in our match report:
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