Football
Top 15 Players with Most Appearances in UEFA Champions League Round of 16: Icons Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo Star
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Get to know Sushan Chakraborty betterPublished03 Mar 2025
After eight drama-filled play-offs, the stage is set for the Round of 16 of the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League season.
Before we turn all our attention to the fascinating action that is guaranteed to unfold in the coming weeks, let’s take a look at some of the rockstars of this round. Continue reading to meet the top 15 players who have played the most matches in the Champions League Round of 16.
Stats: UEFA and Transfermarkt
#15 Arjen Robben (Chelsea, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich): 23 appearances
Kicking off the list is legendary Dutch winger Arjen Robben. The former right-winger played 23 Round-of-16 matches across Chelsea, Real Madrid, and Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League. Robben recorded one goal and one assist in four games for the Blues and seven goals and three assists for the Bavarians in 16 games. Robben, however, could not score or assist in the three Round-of-16 matches he played for Real Madrid.
Before calling time on his career, Robben played 110 matches in the Champions League, scoring 31 goals and providing 24 assists. His sole Champions League triumph came with Bayern in 2013. Robben scored the winning goal in the final against Borussia Dortmund.
#14 Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Juventus, Inter, Barcelona, AC Milan, PSG): 23 appearances
Legendary striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic played 23 matches in the Round of 16 across Juventus, Inter Milan, Barcelona, AC Milan, and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). He recorded one assist in four games for Juve, one goal and an assist in two games for Barca, one goal and two assists in four games for Milan, and finally, scored four goals and provided an assist in seven games for PSG. Surprisingly, the Swede drew a blank in six games for the Nerazzurri.
Across seven European clubs — Manchester United and Ajax in addition to the five above — Ibrahimovic played 124 UCL games. He scored 48 goals and provided 29 assists but never won the competition.
#13 Sergio Busquets (Barcelona): 23 appearances
Arguably the greatest defensive midfielder of the 21st century, Sergio Busquets played 23 Round-of-16 matches for Barcelona during his European run. The Inter Miami star only claimed one assist, but Barca would not have been nearly as dominant had the Spaniard not run the show from deep.
Busquets, 36, played 129 games in the Champions League before ing Lionel Messi in Miami. He scored four goals and provided seven assists, helping the club to three European crowns.
#12 Dani Alves (Sevilla, Barcelona, Juventus, PSG): 23 appearances
Former right-back Dani Alves is in 12th place with 23 appearances in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League. Alves scored one goal and provided two assists in two games for Sevilla, recorded two goals and four assists in 15 matches for Barcelona, and notched one goal in two games for Juventus. The Brazilian, however, could not do anything of note in his four Ro16 games for Paris Saint-Germain.
Across four clubs, Alves played 111 Champions League games, scoring 12 goals and providing 26 assists. He helped Barca win three UCL trophies.
#11 Manuel Neuer (Schalke, Bayern Munich): 24 appearances*
Legendary German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer has played 24 games in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League. The 38-year-old goalkeeper kept one clean sheet in four Ro16 games for Schalke before pledging allegiance to Bayern Munich. Since ing the Bavarians, he has kept seven clean sheets in 20 matches. He will look to extend his impressive record against Bayer Leverkusen this week.
Neuer has played 149 UEFA Champions League games so far, keeping 61 clean sheets and conceding 138 goals. He has helped Bayern to two UCL titles.
#10 David Alaba (Bayern Munich, Real Madrid): 24 appearances*
The epitome of versatility, David Alaba, has taken part in 24 Champions League Round of 16 games across Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. The left-back-turned-centre-back played 21 R016 games for Bayern before ing Madrid, recording six clean sheets and three assists. Since his move to the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, Alaba has played three pre-quarterfinal games. He is still looking for his first clean sheet and goal involvement in this round.
Alaba, who is likely to feature in Los Blancos’ clash with Atletico Madrid, has played 120 UCL games so far. He has scored six goals and provided 18 assists, winning the competition four times — two times each with Bayern and Real Madrid.
#9 Andres Iniesta (Barcelona): 25 appearances
The pride and joy of Barcelona’s legendary La Masia academy, Andres Iniesta has secured the ninth spot. The scorer of the 2010 FIFA World Cup-winning goal played 25 matches in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16. Since he only represented Barcelona in Europe, all of his Ro16 appearances came for the Blaugrana. The former central midfielder provided six assists in the pre-quarterfinals.
Iniesta, who hung up his legendary boots in October 2024, played 130 games in the UEFA Champions League. He scored 11 goals and provided 29 assists, helping the Catalans win the competition four times.
#8 Pepe (Porto, Real Madrid, Besiktas): 26 appearances
One of the most accomplished but controversial defenders in history, Pepe played 26 Champions League Round-of-16 games in his career. The former Portugal international kept one clean sheet in 10 games for Porto and three in 15 matches for Real Madrid. His worst defeat came in his sole Ro16 appearance for Besiktas, as Bayern Munich claimed a 5-0 win.
Pepe, who retired in August 2024, played 120 UCL games, scoring five goals. The 2016 UEFA Euro winner lifted the Champions League three times with Los Blancos.
#7 Toni Kroos (Bayern Munich, Real Madrid): 26 appearances
In seventh place, we have midfielder extraordinaire Toni Kroos. The German icon, who hung up his boots long before football left him, appeared in 26 Round-of-16 matches in the Champions League. Kroos scored two goals and provided an assist in seven appearances for Bayern Munich. Meanwhile, for Real Madrid, he scored one goal and provided three assists in 19 outings.
With six UEFA Champions Leagues in his trophy cabinet — 1 with Bayern and 5 with Madrid — Kroos is the t-most decorated player in the competition’s history. Between the Bavarians and Los Blancos, Kroos played 151 games, recording 11 goals and 31 assists.
#6 Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid, PSG): 27 appearances
Worshipped by fans and loathed by rivals, Real Madrid icon Sergio Ramos is a Champions League legend. The former Spain international took part in 27 games in the Round of 16, 25 times for Madrid and twice for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). The Monterrey centre-back scored two goals and kept four clean sheets in this round.
Ramos played 142 Champions League matches across Real Madrid (129), PSG (8), and Sevilla (5) before exiting Europe. Ramos scored 17 goals between clubs, winning the trophy four times with Real Madrid.
#5 Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich): 27 appearances*
One-club man, Thomas Muller, has featured in 27 Round-of-16 games for Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League over the years. The 35-year-old has an excellent track record in this round, having found the netting an impressive 15 times. Muller will look to extend his impressive run when Bayern take on Bayer Leverkusen in this season’s R016 clash.
Muller has made his mark in 160 UEFA Champions League games so far. He has scored 56 goals for the Bavarians, helping them to two UCL titles.
#4 Iker Casillas (Real Madrid, Porto): 27 appearances
One of the finest goalkeepers the game has ever seen, Iker Casillas guarded the net 27 times in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16. The Spaniard played 22 games for Real Madrid, keeping five clean sheets. His other five appearances came for FC Porto. The former Madrid captain kept one Round-of-16 clean sheet for Porto.
Casillas played 177 Champions League games — 150 for Real Madrid and 27 for Porto — throughout his illustrious career, keeping 59 clean sheets. The 2010 FIFA World Cup winner lifted the ‘Old Big Ears’ thrice with Los Merengues.
#3 Karim Benzema (Lyon, Real Madrid): 28 appearances
Karim Benzema, one of the most versatile centre-forwards in history, appeared in 28 Round-of-16 games in the UEFA Champions League for Olypimque Lyon and Real Madrid. The Frenchman, who is currently plying his trade at Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad, scored one goal in five Round-of-16 appearances for Lyon. Meanwhile, at Real Madrid, he bagged 16 goals in 23 games.
The 2022 Ballon d’Or winner played 152 UCL matches — 19 for Lyon and 133 for Real Madrid — before jetting off to Saudi Arabia. He scored 12 goals for the French side and 78 times for Los Blancos, claiming the European crown five times for the All-Whites.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus): 36 appearances
Deservedly dubbed Mr Champions League, Cristiano Ronaldo, graced the pitch in 36 Round-of-16 matches in the UEFA Champions League across Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus. Ronaldo scored twice in 12 Ro16 games for Man Utd, eighteen in as many matches for Real Madrid, and five times in six games for Juventus.
The 40-year-old, who is still scoring for fun at Al-Nassr, has played the most matches and is the leading scorer in Champions League history. Across 183 appearances, Ronaldo scored a jaw-dropping 140 goals. The five-time UCL winner — four times with Real Madrid and once with Manchester United — scored 105 goals for Madrid, 21 for Man Utd, and 14 for Juventus.
#1 Lionel Messi (Barcelona, PSG): 36 appearances
Lionel Messi, the most decorated player in football history, featured in 36 UEFA Champions League Round of 16 matches before leaving for Inter Miami. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner appeared in 32 Ro16 games for his boyhood club Barcelona, finding the back of the net a whopping 29 times. The remaining four appearances came for PSG. Surprisingly, Messi could not score for Les Parisiens.
Messi, 37, took part in 163 games in the UEFA Champions League prior to his European exit in 2023. He scored 129 times, winning the competition four times with Barcelona.