Angel Di Maria jumps ahead of Lionel Messi and edges closer to breaking Cristiano Ronaldo’s UEFA Champions League assists record

Juventus winger Angel Di Maria has overtaken compatriot Lionel Messi to rise to second in the UEFA Champions League all-time assists leaderboard, only behind Cristiano Ronaldo.

Di Maria put on a show for La Bianconeri against Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League on Wednesday (October 5) night. The Argentine recorded a hat-trick of assists to lead his side to a 3-1 victory, their first in Europe this season.

With his unique treble, he surged ahead of Lionel Messi for the second-most assists in Champions League history. Di Maria now has 38 assists in 102 appearances in the competition, one more than Messi, who has played 159 matches.

Both Argentines are behind all-time leader Cristiano Ronaldo, who has laid out 42 assists in 187 Champions League matches. The Portuguese superstar is also the top-scorer in the competition's history with 140 goals, some way ahead of Messi, who has scored 127 times.

But returning to Di Maria, the veteran winger was absolutely outstanding for Juventus against Maccabi.

He sent in a through-ball for Adrien Rabiot to open the scoring with a superb finish into the roof of the net in the 35th minute. The forward then tore open the Maccabi defense with another fabulous ball in behind, which Dusan Vlahovic converted five minutes after half-time.

Di Maria rounded off a terrific display with a third assist in the 83rd minute. Juventus' No. 22 sent in a corner from the right that was flicked on by Rabiot and found the far corner.

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How have Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel Di Maria fared this season?

The Champions League's top three assist providers of all time have had very different starts to the 2022-23 season.

Lionel Messi has been fantastic for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the ongoing campaign. He has scored eight goals and assisted eight more in 13 appearances across all competitions for PSG.

Messi's most recent contribution was a sublime goal in the Parisians' 1-1 draw with SL Benfica in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Angel Di Maria, who joined Juventus on a free transfer this summer, has gotten off to a relatively slow start. Prior to his performance against Maccabi Haifa, he scored and assisted once each in five matches across all competitions. He will hope to kick on in the matches that lie ahead.

Lastly, Cristiano Ronaldo has had a largely underwhelming campaign so far. The superstar forward has made just three starts for Manchester United, scoring one goal.