Sportsupdated 1h ago2 min read
Lamine Yamal Levels Kylian Mbappé’s Teen Record as Barcelona Beat Paris Saint-Germain
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Lamine Yamal equalled Mbappé’s Champions League teenage goals record. Barcelona beat Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League clash.
Yamal matches Mbappe
Lamine Yamal levelled Kylian Mbappé’s record for the most UEFA Champions League goals by a teenager with his goal for Barcelona against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, October 20. Yamal scored Barcelona’s second in the 79th minute, drifting behind the PSG backline and firing past goalkeeper Matvey Safonov to score his 13th Champions League goal. The Spanish winger’s goal came in his 35th appearance in the competition, while Mbappé’s 13 goals came in 23 appearances, with Erling Haaland listed third on the list with 10 goals.
"The 187 goals scored so far have come at an average of 4.16 per game." Last Wednesday saw the third highest-scoring day in Champions League history (46 goals).
Barcelona defense under strain
Barcelona entered Tuesday’s heavyweight Champions League clash against Paris Saint-Germain having failed to keep a clean sheet in their previous 17 games in the competition, extending a run that Diario AS described as the longest in the club’s history. Désiré Doué put the defending European champions ahead in the 37th minute at the Parc des Princes, and the goal made it 18 consecutive Champions League games without a clean sheet for Barcelona. Diario AS said Barcelona’s wait for a European clean sheet would stretch to at least 19 months by the time they next took the field in the competition.
"The lack of jeopardy, why would PSG and Barcelona play for a draw, why not go for it?" "I think the entertainment has gone up, although I'm not sure the quality has gone up."
Records, format, and stakes
UEFA’s profile of Harry Kane placed him tenth in the all-time Champions League scorers ranking with 55 goals, and it said he had 34 more in 39 appearances since joining Bayern in 2023. Kane was 23 when he made his Champions League debut for Tottenham against Monaco at White Hart Lane in 2016/17. The current Champions League format was introduced at the start of the 2024-25 season, and the 187 goals so far were the highest in Champions League history.
“The lack of jeopardy early on does deliver entertainment.”
The BBC’s format discussion included the idea that the league phase creates margin for teams, with Tom Arnott saying, "If you need five wins from the eight games you know you've got some margin there." The lack of jeopardy early on does deliver entertainment.