Lionel Messi extends Champions League scoring record to 36 teams

BARCELONA: Football legend Lionel Messi scored a historic goal during his side's 5-1 win over Ferencvaros at the Camp Nou in the ongoing Champions League.

After his goal on Tuesday night, Messi now has scored goals against 36 different teams in the Champions League. Of the 41 teams the Argentinian has faced in the competition, only Rubin Kazan, Atletico Madrid, Benfica, Udinese and Inter Milan have managed to survive unscathed.

The goal moved him three ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo and Raul Gonzalez with 33 goals each, and Karim Benzema and Zlatan Ibrahimovic with 29, according to official FC Barcelona website.

By successfully converting the penalty in the 27th minute, he also became the first player in the history of Champions League football to score in 16 back to back seasons.

The goal against a Hungarian side also meant that Messi has now netted against teams from 16 different countries, England being his greatest victim, having being on the end of 26 of his goals, while the team he has scored against most has been Arsenal, nine times, followed by AC Milan and Celtic with eight each.

His other goals have been scored against APOEL, Ajax, Basel, BATE Borisov, Bayern, Werder Bremen, Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea, Dinamo Kyiv, Juventus, Copenhagen, Leverkusen, Liverpool, Lyon, Manchester City, Manchester United, Monchengladbach, Olympiacos, Napoli, Panathinaikos, PSG, Viktoria Plzen, PSV Eindhoven, Glasgow Rangers, Real Madrid, Roma, Shakhtar, Spartak Moscow, Slavia Prague, Sporting Lisbon, Stuttgart, Tottenham and now Ferencvaros.

Meanwhile Chelsea were frustrated by a disciplined Sevilla as their opening Group E fixture in the Champions League ended in a cagey 0-0 draw at Stamford Bridge in Fulham on Tuesday.

Europa League winners Sevilla, who have been a thorn in the side of English clubs in Europe, contained Chelsea's attacking threats in a game of few clear chances. Sevilla dominated possession in the first half with Nemanja Gudelj's header forcing a save from Edouard Mendy.

Chelsea's most productive spell came after the restart when Kurt Zouma and Ben Chilwell both headed good chances straight at Sevilla keeper Yassine Bounou. Yet it was a night of defensive superiority as Chelsea manager Frank Lampard experienced his first 0-0 draw since taking over before the start of last season. (IANS)

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