Vinicius Jr surpasses Messi’s record in assists after Real Madrid’s 3-2 win over City
On Tuesday, February 12, 2025, Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr made history in the UEFA Champions League after surpassing Lionel Messi’s record for most assists in the knockout stages of the competition.
In an intense 3-2 victory over Manchester City at the Etihad, Vinicius provided a crucial assist for Jude Bellingham, who scored the equalizer in the 86th minute. This assist marked his 13th in the knockout rounds, moving him ahead of Messi, who has 12.
The match itself was filled with drama, as City’s Erling Haaland opened the scoring in the 19th minute, only for Kylian Mbappe to level things up for Madrid in the 60th minute. Haaland then gave City the lead again with a penalty in the 80th minute, before Brahim Diaz brought Madrid back into the game shortly after.
The decisive moment came when Vinicius broke through the City defense and lifted the ball over goalkeeper Ederson, allowing Bellingham to score into an open net.
Notably, Vinicius reached his 13-assist mark in just 50 Champions League knockout games, a remarkable feat. However, despite overtaking Messi in this particular category, the Brazilian still has a long way to go to match Messi’s overall Champions League assist record of 40, which places him third on the all-time assists chart.
Angel Di Maria sits second with 41 assists, while Cristiano Ronaldo leads with 42 assists.
Manchester City will now need a miracle when they travel to the Santiago Bernabeu for the second leg of their knockout tie, as they seek to overcome a 3-2 deficit.
