Everyone loves a goal or assist record. You know the TV commentator will make immediate mention of it as soon as the ball hits the back of the net. Some records are frankly untouchable — thanks, Lionel Messi — but others are most certainly within reach and can be broken this season.
Here is the latest on the scoring titles of Europe’s top-five leagues.
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Premier League | Bundesliga | LaLiga
Serie A | Ligue 1 | UEFA Champions League
Single-season goal record: 36 goals, Erling Haaland (2022-23)
This season’s top scorer: 22 goals, Haaland
Will it be broken? Unlikely
Single-season assist record: 20 assists, Thierry Henry (2002-03), Kevin De Bruyne (2019-20)
This season’s assist leader: 13 assists, Bruno Fernandes
Will it be broken? Possibly
There was a time earlier this season when Haaland looked like he could break his own single-season league record mark. The Manchester City striker scored in nine of his first 11 Premier League games, notching 14 goals over that time. However, he suffered an uncharacteristic goal drought to start this calendar year, scoring just once in a seven-game stretch between Dec. 27-Feb. 1. It means he almost certainly won’t reset the goal record this season.
The record to keep an eye on this year is the assist record. Manchester United captain Fernandes was often a square peg in a round hole in midfield under Ruben Amorim, but his upturn in goal contribution since his exit has at least put him in the conversation to reach the mark set by Premier League legends Henry and De Bruyne.
Fernandes added five assists in his first four league games after Amorim left the club. However, he would need to continue that form to make his slice of Premier League history in the next 11 games.
Single-season goal record: 41 goals, Robert Lewandowski (2020-21)
This season’s top scorer: 30 goals, Harry Kane
Will it be broken? Possibly
Single-season assist record: 21 assists, Thomas Müller (2019-20)
This season’s assist leader: 16 assists, Michael Olise
Will it be broken? Likely
Bayern Munich have been in record-breaking form under manager Vincent Kompany this season. The Bavarian giants won the Bundesliga in Kompany’s first season as coach, but it’s his second campaign in charge that they’ve hit their stride.
Bayern legend Gerd Müller’s German top-flight record of 40 league goals in a season stood for 49 years before it was famously broken by Lewandowski in 2021. However, Kane is well on his way to surpassing Lewandowski’s mark, thanks in part to a ferocious start that saw him score 10 goals in his first five league games this season.
Kane will need to maintain his scoring form for the remainder of the season. It is unlikely to take the shine off of Lewandowski’s record, though — the Poland striker scored his 41 goals in just 29 games.
Kane will take the headlines should he break the single-season goal record, but don’t forget about the assist mark as Michael Olise is within range of breaking the record set by Müller in 2021.
Single-season goal record: 50 goals, Lionel Messi (2011-12)
This season’s top scorer: 23 goals, Kylian Mbappé
Will it be broken? No
Single-season assist record: 20 assists, Messi (2019-20)
This season’s assist leader: 10 assists, Lamine Yamal
Will it be broken? Unlikely
There are no hard feelings here: Lionel Messi’s single-season goal record may never be broken. Mbappé is easily one of the top scorers in all of Europe’s major leagues, and yet he is not even close to Messi’s record. It will surprise nobody to learn that one of Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo holds the top seven single-season goal marks. It would take a special season for anybody to even think about breaking it.
Messi’s record of 20 assists in a single LaLiga season feels much more within reach — both Henry and De Bruyne managed that mark in a 38-game Premier League season. Yamal is the closest thing that modern football has to a Messi heir, but he is unlikely to break this record this term.
Single-season goal record: 36 goals, Gonzalo Higuaín (2015-16), Ciro Immobile (2019-20)
This season’s top scorer: 14 goals, Lautaro Martínez
Will it be broken? No
Single-season assist record: 16 assists, Alejandro “Papu” Gómez (2019-20)
This season’s assist leader: 15 assists, Federico Dimarco
Will it be broken? Yes
Forget about Serie A’s single-season goal record. The mark set by Higuaín and Immobile was never in doubt this season. However, you would expect Dimarco to sail past Gomez’ tally of 16 assists in 2019-20. It is a highly attainable figure in comparison to Europe’s other major leagues — it begs the question why it is so low in the first place — but Inter Milan left back Dimarco is well on track to reset that mark this season, thanks to a breathtaking recent surge of assists.
Dimarco managed eight assists in just five games in a one-month period between Jan. 23-Feb. 21. Keep that up, and the record is as good as his.
Single-season goal record: 38 goals, Zlatan Ibrahimovic (2015-16)
This season’s top scorer: 14 goals, Mason Greenwood, Joaquín Panichelli
Will it be broken? No
Single-season assist record: 18 assists, Ángel Di María (2015-16)
This season’s assist leader: 8 assists, Ludovic Ajorque
Will it be broken? Unlikely
Greenwood shared last season’s Ligue 1 top scorer award with Paris Saint-Germain star Ousmane Dembélé, and he is leading a similarly tight scoring race this time out. His 14 goals puts him level with Strasbourg forward Panichelli . Ibrahimovic can rest easy knowing his single-season record won’t be broken this time.
Di María will also know his single-season assist tally will go unbroken. Brest forward Ludovic Ajorque is closest, but it would take a monumental effort for the remainder of the campaign to threaten it.
Single-season goal record: 17 goals, Cristiano Ronaldo (2013-14)
This season’s top scorer: 13 goals, Kylian Mbappé
Will it be broken? Possibly
Single-season assist record: 9 assists, James Milner (2017-18)
This season’s assist leader: 4 assists, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Arda Güler, Michael Olise, Dominik Szoboszlai, Federico Valverde, Vinícius Júnior
Will it be broken? Unlikely
Real Madrid defines itself by Champions League success, so what better way for Mbappé to make his mark at the club by breaking Ronaldo’s 12-year-old record? In truth, this total has been under threat ever since UEFA moved to its new expanded Swiss model that sees every team play at least two more games. Still, Ronaldo played 11 games in the Champions League when he broke the record with a goal against Atlético Madrid in the 2013-14 final.
Mbappé has only played eight games in the competition this season — he was an unused substitute against Manchester City in December due to fitness concerns, and he missed the playoff second leg against Benfica with a knee issue. He still needs four goals to level Ronaldo’s record. Can he achieve it against City in the round of 16?
The assist record seems unlikely to be broken. Liverpool’s Milner having the most Champions League assists in one season feels like a perfect trivia question. There is a six-way tie for this season’s top spot, although Aubameyang is no longer in the competition.
