UEFA Champions League: Top Five Knockout Ties With Most Goals in History

Knowing just how high the stakes are, teams generally take a cautious approach in the knockout rounds of the UEFA Champions League. The overly mindful approach often results in cagey ties and a lack of goals, leaving fans wanting more.

In today’s list, we will look at a few clubs that decided against caution in the Champions League knockouts, committing bodies forward and scoring as many goals as possible. us as we take a look at the top five ties that produced the most goals in the knockout rounds of the Champions League.

#5 Atalanta vs Valencia (2019-20): 12 Goals

Serie A powerhouse Atalanta and LaLiga outfit Valencia exchanged blows for fun in the Round of 16 of the 2019-20 season. The tie saw 12 goals across two legs, with Atalanta scoring 8 and Valencia 4.

Tie Summary

Atalanta hosted Valencia for the first leg at San Siro due to COVID restrictions.

Hans Hateboer fired the hosts into the lead in the 16th minute, giving them control of the tie. Josip Illicic scored in the 42nd minute to make it 2-0 in Italy. Remo Freuler scored the third in the 57th minute before Hateboer made it 4-0 in the 62nd. Valencia, who had 18 shots — 7 more than Atalanta — got one back through Denis Cheryshev in the 66th minute.

illicic 🥶 https://t.co/ZDWyzGet0C pic.twitter.com/tiR0k9v7oF

— certified Blesser (@katongo_cb) October 17, 2024

In the second leg at the Mestalla, Europe witnessed the brilliance of Josip Ilicic, who scored four goals (3′ P, 43′ P, 71′, 82′), against the Spanish side. Kevin Gameiro scored a brace (21′, 51′) and Ferran Torres (67′) scored, but their goals were not enough to overcome Illicic’s tally on the night.

#4 Arsenal vs PSV Eindhoven (2024-25): 12 Goals

Premier League giants Arsenal and Dutch high-fliers PSV Eindhoven produced a goals galore in the Round of 16 of the 2024-25 season. Across two legs, the two clubs scored 12 goals. The Gunners qualified for the quarter-finals with a 9-3 aggregate scoreline.

Tie Summary

Arsenal travelled to Philips Stadion for the first leg of their Champions League Round-of-16 appointment. Jurrien Timber gave the Londoners a rapid start, scoring in the 18th minute before Ethan Nwaneri (21′) and Mikel Merino (31′) put the visitors 3-0 up. Noa Lang pulled one back from the penalty spot for PSV in the 43rd minute, but it did not trigger a turnaround.

PSV had never conceded 5+ goals at home in a European fixture in their 112-year history, until tonight.

Arsenal have scored 7 against them without a striker 😳 pic.twitter.com/tVP2vckBi1

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) March 4, 2025

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard restored Arsenal’s three-goal lead in the 47th minute before Leandro Trossard (48′) made it 5-1. Odegaard netted once again in the 73rd minute before Riccardo Calafiori completed the rout in the 85th minute.

In the return leg at the Emirates Stadium, PSV played irably, holding Arsenal to a 2-2 draw. In the 18th minute, Ivan Perisic cancelled out Oleksandr Zinchenko’s 6th-minute opener. Declan Rice fired the hosts ahead once more in the 37th minute, but Couhaib Driouech levelled the score for the second time on the night in the 70th minute.

Also Read – Arsenal Trophyless Again: Top Five Managers Who Could Replace Mikel Arteta After UCL Exit

#3 Bayern Munich vs Sporting (RO16 2008-09): 13 Goals

One of the most one-sided ties in UEFA Champions League history came between Bayern Munich and Sporting in the Round of 16 of the 2008-09 season. The tie saw a whopping 13 goals over both legs, with Bayern Munich scoring 12 and Sporting just 1.

Tie Summary

On February 25, 2009, Bayern Munich made the trip to Lisbon for their Round of 16 first leg with Sporting . Franck Ribery drew first blood for the Bavarians, scoring in the 42nd minute. In the 57th minute, Miroslav Klose made it 2-0. Ribery added another to his tally, from the penalty spot, in the 63rd minute, before Luca Toni made it 5-0 with a brilliant late brace (84′, 90+1′).

Franck Ribéry turns 42 today. Happy Birthday! 🥳👑 pic.twitter.com/ZFsNQW1Ukn

— BayernTimes (@BayernTimes) April 6, 2025

After the demolition job in Portugal, Bayern Munich were the overwhelming favourites to proceed to the quarter-finals. They enjoyed a bright start at the Allianz Arena, with Lukas Podolski netting the first goal in the 7th minute before doubling his money in the 34th. Anderson Polga scored an own goal to make it 3-0 for Bayern. Joao Moutinho scored Sporting’s only goal of the tie in the 42nd minute, but Bayern immediately repaid the favour, with Bastian Schweinsteiger finding the back of the net in the 43rd minute.

Mark van Bommel (74′), Miroslav Klose (penalty 82′), and Thomas Muller (90′) scored to make it 7-1 on the night and 12-1 on aggregate.

#2 Liverpool vs AS Roma (SF 2017-18): 13 Goals

Heavyweights Liverpool locked horns with underdogs AS Roma in the semi-finals of the 2017-18 UEFA Champions League season. On paper, it seemed like a lop-sided affair, but it turned out to be a surprisingly balanced affair, with the teams sharing blows and 13 goals over two legs. Liverpool narrowly came out on top, securing a 7-6 aggregate win.

Tie Summary

Liverpool welcomed Roma to Anfield for the first leg at the end of April 2018. Mohamed Salah scored two excellent goals (35′, 45′) in the first half to give Liverpool control of the game. Sadio Mane scored the third goal in the 56th minute before Roberto Firmino bagged a quick brace by netting in the 61st and 68th minutes. Despite going 5-0 down, Roma did not throw in the towel. They pulled a couple of goals back in the final 10 minutes with Edin Dzeko (81′) and Diego Perotti (85′ penalty) getting on the scoresheet.

Mohammed Salah (€15M) – Chelsea to AS Roma (2015) pic.twitter.com/0Ivno559F7

— Transfersthathappened (@actualtransfers) April 6, 2025

 

Although Roma had pulled a couple of goals back, the three-goal advantage looked pretty secure heading into the Champions League semi-final second leg in Rome. Sadio Mane added to Liverpool’s advantage in the ninth minute, putting them 6-2 up on aggregate. A James Milner own goal in the 15th minute restored parity in the game, but Georgio Wijnaldum’s 25th-minute strike once again put Liverpool in front.

Roma came out all guns blazing in the second half, and equalised through Dzeko in the 52nd minute. Radja Nainggolan scored a brace (86′, 90+4′ P) late in the tie to put Roma 4-2 up, but it unfortunately was not enough.

#1 Inter Milan vs Barcelona (2024-25): 13 Goals

Inter Milan and Barcelona treated us fans to an absolute classic in the semi-finals of the 2024-25 Champions League season. Breaking the stereotype, Inter played explosive, jaw-dropping football across both legs, claiming a mega 7-6 victory over the Blaugrana on aggregate. The two teams played out an entertaining 3-3 draw in the first leg in Catalonia before the Nerazzurri nicked a 4-3 win at San Siro in extra time.

Tie Summary

Marcus Thuram fired Barca into the lead inside the first minute in Barcelona before Denzel Dumfries doubled the visitors’ money in the 24th minute. Barca responded with a goal from Lamine Yamal in the 26th minute before Ferran Torres levelled the tie in the 38th minute.

Dumfries scored once more in the 64th minute to put Inter 3-2 up, but Yann Sommer’s own goal the following minute made it 3-3.

ACERBI: 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕  🪽#ForzaInter #UCL #InterBarcelona pic.twitter.com/m6N6jVdoGO

— Inter ⭐⭐ (@Inter_en) May 7, 2025

Inter once again went 2-0 up in the second leg at San Siro, thanks to goals from Lautaro Martinez (21′) and Hakan Calhanoglu (45+1′). But just like the first leg, Barcelona bounced back, with Eric Garcia (54′) and Dani Olmo (60′) scoring in quick succession. Raphinha fired Barcelona into the lead for the first time in the tie in the 87th minute, but their joy was short-lived as sco Acerbi made it 3-3 in injury time and pushed the game into extra time.

Nine minutes into extra time, Davide Frattesi scored the winning goal for Inter.