Valverde strike keeps Real Madrid at the top of Champions League stoppage-time charts

Real Madrid strengthened their record as the Champions League’s leading scorers of late goals when Federico Valverde struck in the 90th minute of their 3-2 win away to AEK Athens on Wednesday.

The Uruguay international settled a five-goal game in the second minute of added time, sending a powerful effort from outside the penalty area into the net to give Real Madrid victory in the fourth round of the competition.

The result continued the Spanish club’s long-standing reputation for producing decisive moments at the end of matches. According to Spanish football statistics specialist Fran Martinez, Real Madrid have scored 49 goals in the 90th minute or later across the history of the Champions League.

That figure excludes goals scored during extra time.

Valverde’s goal also added to his recent record from distance. Statistics from SofaScore show that he is among the players to have scored more than 10 goals from outside the penalty area for clubs in Europe’s five major domestic leagues over the past three seasons.

He has scored 11 such goals during that period, placing him sixth in the ranking.

Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe leads the list with 17 goals from outside the box. Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise is second on 15, while Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal has scored 14.

The full list is:

– Kylian Mbappe – 17 goals – Michael Olise – 15 goals – Lamine Yamal – 14 goals – Harry Kane – 12 goals – Hakan Calhanoglu – 12 goals – Federico Valverde – 11 goals