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Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior equaled Cristiano Ronaldo's UEFA Champions League record with his goal against Manchester City on Tuesday, May 9. The Brazilian ace scored a stunner in the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals at the Santiago Bernabeu.
He has now contributed in 11 consecutive Champions League starts, a competition record, held by the tournament's all-time top goalscorer Cristiano Ronaldo.
Vinicius ran at the Manchester City defense before blasting a shot at the City goal to beat Ederson in the 36th minute. It was a strike of the highest quality by the 22-year-old. He has now scored 23 goals and has provided 21 assists in 51 matches across competitions for Los Blancos.
The Brazilian scored the winner for Real Madrid in the Champions League final against Liverpool last season. He is once again proving pivotal for the team's charge to win their 15th UCL trophy this season.
Real Madrid attacker Rodrygo copied Cristiano Ronaldo's celebration after scoring against Chelsea
Rodrygo Goes scored twice for Real Madrid in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. After scoring his second, the Brazilian celebrated by performing Cristiano Ronaldo's 'Siuuu' celebration. Los Blancos won the game 2-0 and won the tie 4-0 on aggregate.
Speaking to the media after the game, Rodrygo explained that while he initially thought of performing the knee slide celebration, he decided to show respect to Ronaldo. He said (via GOAL);
"When I scored, my immediate reaction was to think about doing one of those knee slides but I've got a slightly tender knee when I flex,. So it popped into my mind to copy my idol, Cristiano, and copy what he does."
Ronaldo has inspired many young players across the globe throughout his legendary career. His record in the Champions League will be hard to match for anybody as he is the tournament's record goalscorer with 140 goals.
He has won the trophy five times, including four with Los Blancos and once with Manchester United. He helped the club win three consecutive UCL's before his 2018 departure for Juventus.
