Final 2022/23 Champions League top scorer standings
By Euan Burns
The 2022/23 Champions League has come to a close.
Heading into the final between Manchester City and Inter, it was already clear who would be crowned the top scorer of the 2022/23 Champions League. It is the striker who has shocked absolutely everyone with his output in all competitions this season; Manchester City's Erling Haaland.
He has made it look extremely easy, beating the likes of Karim Benzema, Mohamed Salah, Robert Lewandowski, Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe to the award.
Here are the top ten scorers in the 2022/23 Champions League tournament.
Final 2022/23 Champions League top scorer standings
10. Rafa Silva (Benfica)
Appearances: 10
Goals: 5
Rafa Silva has been something of a late bloomer. He is one of Europe's best under-the-radar attacking players at 30 and was very impressive for Benfica in 2022/23, grabbing five goals and two assists. He scored a brace against Juventus.
9. Rodrygo (Real Madrid)
Appearances: 12
Goals: 5
Despite sometimes being in the shadow of other attackers at Real Madrid, Rodrygo is a very important player for Los Blancos in his own right. He grabbed five Champions League goals, two of which came in the quarter-final second leg against Chelsea.
8. Victor Osimhen (Napoli)
Appearances: 6
Goals: 5
If not for a particularly poorly timed injury, Victor Osimhen could have been higher on this list. The Nigerian striker enjoyed a wonderful season and grabbed five Champions League goals, but he was injured for the first leg of the quarter-final which Napoli lost to Milan. He played and scored in the second leg but was clearly not fully fit.
7. Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona)
Appearances: 5
Goals: 5
Averaging a goal a game, Robert Lewandowski can't really be held responsible for Barcelona failing to make it out of a group that contained Bayern Munich and Inter. Perhaps he needed to spread his goals better, with three coming against Viktoria Plzen in one game and the other two in one match against Inter.
6. Oliver Giroud (Milan)
Appearances: 12
Goals: 5
Olivier Giroud is a striker who has aged like a fine wine. Milan have been heavily reliant on him and he delivered a very good Champions League campaign, netting five times, including a crucial quarter-final goal against Napoli.
5. Joao Mario (Benfica)
Appearances: 10
Goals: 6
Inter fans somewhat celebrated the departure of Joao Mario to Benfica but the Portugal international has proved he isn't past his best just yet. He had a superb season, scoring against the likes of PSG and Juventus as Benfica reached the quarter-finals.
4. Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain)
Appearances: 8
Goals: 7
In what was ultimately still a very disappointing Champions League campaign for Kylian Mbappe and PSG, the Frenchman was among the top scorers with seven goals. He will not be satisfied with that though as he knows he has the ability to be at the top of the list with Haaland, had they not gone out in the last 16.
3. Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid)
Appearances: 12
Goals: 7
Vinicius Junior has endured an extremely tough season on a personal level with a torrent of racist abuse against him from fans in Spain across the campaign. Despite that, he has been one of the best players in Europe and grabbed seven goals and five assists in the Champions League as Real Madrid reached the semi-finals.
2. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Appearances: 8
Goals: 8
Considering Liverpool were knocked out of the Champions League in the last 16 by Real Madrid, second place is impressive for Salah. The Egyptian scored in all but one of Liverpool's group games, with a hat-trick coming against Rangers. He also netted in the 5-2 loss against Real Madrid.
1. Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
Appearances: 11
Goals: 12
Haaland started the group stage of the tournament he loves most with the sort of vigour and aggression that you would expect. He netted five times in the first three games but then only played another 45 minutes of the group stage.
He responded by sticking five past RB Leipzig in one last 16 game before also scoring a couple against old foes Bayern Munich.
Recent Champions League top scorers
Season | Player | Goals |
---|---|---|
2022/23 | Erling Haaland | 12 |
2021/22 | Karim Benzema | 15 |
2020/21 | Erling Haaland | 10 |
2019/20 | Robert Lewandowski | 15 |
2018/19 | Lionel Messi | 12 |
2017/18 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 15 |
2016/17 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 12 |
2015/16 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 16 |
2014/15 | Neymar, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo | 10 |
2013/14 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 17 |
Who has been Champions League top scorer the most?
Rank | Player | Total top scorer awards | Seasons won |
---|---|---|---|
1. | Cristiano Ronaldo | 7 | 2007/08, 2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15, 2015/16, 2016/17, 2017/18 |
2. | Lionel Messi | 6 | 2008/09, 2009/10, 2010/11, 2011/12, 2014/15, 2018/19 |
3. | Gerd Muller | 4 | 1972/73, 1973/74, 1974/75, 1976/77 |
4= | Eusebio | 3 | 1964/65, 1965/66, 1967/68 |
4= | Jean-Pierre Papin | 3 | 1989/90, 1990/91, 1991/92 |
4= | Ruud van Nistelrooy | 3 | 2001/02, 2002/03, 2004/05 |
4= | Ferenc Puskas | 3 | 1959/60, 1961/62, 1963/64 |