Soccer Football - Champions League - FC Barcelona v Brest - Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, Barcelona, Spain - November 26, 2024 FC Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski scores their third goal REUTERS/Albert Gea
BARCELONA, Spain (Reuters) -Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski scored twice as the hosts cruised to a 3-0 win over French side Brest on Tuesday, with the Polish striker joining Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi as the only players to pass the 100 goals mark in the competition.
The victory lifted Barca to second in the 36-team table on 12 points from five games, one point behind Inter Milan and level with third-placed Liverpool, who host Real Madrid on Wednesday. Brest dropped to ninth spot with 10 points.
Lewandowski put Barcelona ahead after being fouled by goalkeeper Marco Bizot and converting from the spot in the 10th minute, scoring his 100th Champions League goal.
After successive LaLiga games without a victory, and still missing injured teenage winger Lamine Yamal, Barca returned to winning ways with a dominant display as they created 19 scoring attempts against a side who did not have a shot on target.
But the wasteful hosts squandered several chances to extend their lead and were almost caught out by a couple of counter attacks before Dani Olmo got their second with a fine individual goal after dribbling past two defenders and firing home.
Lewandowski wrapped up the win in added time with a tidy finish inside the far post from Alejandro Balde's assist.
"I'm very happy, very happy. 101 goals in the Champions League is great number," Lewandowski told Movistar Plus.
"I didn't think I could score so many goals in the Champions League. To join Messi and Ronaldo ... I guess they are good, right?
PATIENCE NEEDED
Despite faltering domestic league form Barca top LaLiga, four points ahead of Real Madrid who have a game in hand.
"We haven't been playing well in LaLiga lately, but we have a lot of games to play yet. We just have to be patient, we'll score more goals in the end," added Lewandowski.
"We're looking to win every game. If I can score goals to help the team, all the better. We have to win every game until the end of the season."
At 36, Lewandowski has been in top form this term, scoring 22 goals in 19 games in all competitions for Barcelona.
He is the leading scorer in the Champions League this season with seven goals in five games and in LaLiga with 15 goals and two assists in 14 matches.
Lewandowski's first Champions League goal was for Borussia Dortmund in a 3-1 win over Olympiakos Piraeus in October 2011.
With the German side he netted 17 goals in 28 Champions League games in three seasons and took his tally to new heights after moving to Bayern Munich, scoring 69 goals in 78 games in eight campaigns before joining Barcelona two years ago.
However, Lewandowski still has a mountain to climb to surpass former Barca great Messi's 129 Champions League goals, with Ronaldo holding the record on 140.
Fourth on the list is Karim Benzema, with 90 goals and now playing in Saudi Arabia. The closest player to Lewandowski who is still active in the Champions League is his former Bayern teammate Thomas Muller with 54.
Barca will face a busy week with three games in LaLiga - at home against Las Palmas and away at Mallorca and Real Betis - before traveling to face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Dec. 11.
(Reporting by Fernando Kallas; Editing by Ken Ferris and Toby Davis)
