Top 5 Defenders with the Most Champions League goals

There is a popular quote stating that "attack wins you games, defence wins you titles". The saying couldn't have been more perfect. Although every team needs a quality defender who will not let the other team score, goal-scoring defenders are very rare. Moreover, when it comes to the most elite European Club competition, every goal matters. Let us look at the defenders who have the most Champions League goals to their name.

Also Read: Top 10 Highest scoring Defenders in the 21st century

Top 5 Defenders with the most Champions League goals:

#5 Ronald Koeman (13 Goals)

The former Barcelona defender Ronaldo Koeman features at number 5 in this list of defenders with the most Champions League goals having scored 13 goals in 52 appearances. However, he scored all his goals in the Champions League for three different clubs. He scored 4 goals out of the 13 in the European Cup and the rest 9 in the Champions League.

European Cup goals breakdown: 1 goal for Barcelona in 11 appearances. 3 goals for PSV in 12 appearances.
Champions League goals breakdown: 8 goals for Barcelona in 12 appearances in the 93/94 season. 1 goal for Barcelona in 8 appearances in 8 appearances in the 94/95 season.

#4 Ivan Helguera (15 Goals)

Iván Helguera Bujía is a Spanish former footballer. He played as either a central defender or defensive midfielder and had excellent defensive and offensive skills. He scored 15 goals in 87 appearances for Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League. However, he joined Valencia CF in the latter stages of his career. His best season in the UCL was in the 2000-2001 season where he scored 6 goals and provided 2 assists in 14 appearances.

=2 Roberto Carlos (16 Goals)

The explosive Brazilian left-back features at no.2 in the list of defenders with the highest number of goals in the Champions League. Best known for his curved and swirling free-kick, the Brazilian represented two different clubs in the Champions League. However, he scored all of his 16 goals for the Los Blancos.

Roberto Carlos scored 16 goals in 120 appearances in the UCL and also provided 25 assists in the meantime. Although he has 13 appearances for Fenerbahce SK from 2007-09 in the UCL, he failed to register his name on the scoresheet.

2. Gerard Pique (16 Goals)

The ever-dependable Barcelona legend Gerard Pique also has 16 goals in 128 appearances under his belt. Pique scored his goals in the Champions League for two different clubs, Manchester United and FC Barcelona.

Champions League goals breakdown:
For Barcelona - 14 goals in 118 appearances from 2008-2023.
For Manchester United - 2 goals in 4 appearances from 2004-2008.

Also Read: 10 players who have won the most trophies in football history

#1 Sergio Ramos (17 Goals)

Former Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos is the only defender this century to crack 100 goals, clocking in with 126 in 890 games. On the other hand, when it comes to the Champions League the Spaniard is also on the list of highest-scoring defenders.

The Famous 92:48

Ramos always had a knack for scoring match-winning goals. His 93rd-minute (92:48) header for Real Madrid against Atletico Madrid in the 2014 Champions League final helped the Los Blancos equalise and eventually win the title.

He has netted the ball 15 times in 129 appearances for the Los Blancos. Ramos also provided 8 assists and played a whopping 11,399 minutes in the Royal Whites. The current Sevilla defender has netted two goals and assisted once in the Champions League for his current team and became the defender with the most Champions League goals.

N.B. The stats are accurate as of October 21, 2021.