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Harry Kane scored Tottenham's first goal in their comeback away at Juventus last night and in style, rounding veteran great Gianluigi Buffon before slotting home with his weaker foot. It was a goal from a player in supreme confidence, not afraid to trust his abilities against one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
With the goal, Kane now has an incredible 7 goals in just 6 games in the UEFA Champions League this campaign (9 from 9, in total), all the more astounding as it's his first season making the knockout stages of the competition. He's firmly put to bed the remaining doubters who thought that he wouldn't perform as well at this level.
Since its creation in 1992, English teams have fared well in the competition, with famous sides like Manchester United's treble winners in 1998/1999, and Liverpool's comeback men in 2004/2005; English players, too, have competed effectively.
This slideshow details the 5 top English scorers in the Champions League, and it surely won't be long until Tottenham's striker is challenging those in this list for their place:
#5 Andrew Cole
A player fondly remembered by those at Old Trafford for his contributions in the 1990's, Cole was a devastating finisher at his peak. The 3rd-highest goal scorer in Premier League history, the striker didn't let his performance levels drop outside of the league and was of great service for his club in the Champions League.
19 goals in 50 appearances is a tremendous return and Cole's famous partnership with Dwight Yorke was a large part of Manchester United's success in this period.
It was the 1998/1999 season that showed their best, with the two having an almost telepathic understanding: they both scored at the Camp Nou against Barcelona, combining superbly and leaving the defenders chasing shadows.
front men would partner for 13 goals to fire their side to the Champions League final, with Cole scoring the winning goal against Juventus at the semi-final stage. In the final, of course, it was substitutes - Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Teddy Sheringham - who brought the goals that won the final for Sir Alex Ferguson's men, but Cole will never be forgotten for his immense performances in that run.
#4 Steven Gerrard
A player bound to be on this list, without Gerrard, Liverpool simply wouldn't have triumphed in the 2004/2005 UEFA Champions League. It was his thunderbolt of a shot in the dying minutes of the last group stage game against Olympiakos that delivered Liverpool to the knockout stages; it was his goal in the 'Miracle of Istanbul' final that started the amazing comeback against AC Milan.
It was one of the greatest performances football has ever seen from a captain, as Gerrard was a force of sheer will, and a strong presence.
He only scored 4 goals in that campaign, but those 2 were so vital to Liverpool's fortunes, the sign of a big-game player. Gerrard's best goal rate would actually come in the 2008/2009 season but this time, Liverpool exited in the quarterfinals after losing to league foes Chelsea, despite their incredible midfielder's 7 goals.
Whenever he played in the competition Gerrard stepped up his game and 21 goals in 73 appearances from the central midfielder is evidence of this.
#3 Frank Lampard
It's apt that Lampard is placed beside Gerrard on this list, given the 2 being almost inseparable throughout their careers: both goal-scoring midfielders for their clubs; both vying for dominance for the England midfield; both icons of their generation.
Lampard had to wait longer to win the ultimate prize, eventually lifting the trophy in his 3rd last season at Chelsea, but he was instrumental in the win. Lampard had the honour of captaining his club in the final due to John Terry's suspension and also scored his penalty kick in the shootout victory over Bayern Munich.
It wasn't as sensational a comeback as Liverpool's was, but Lampard was quietly effective in securing Chelsea's first Champions League win. Lampard came 2nd in the Ballon d'Or voting in 2005 and a large part of this was down to his quality performances in the 2004/2005 Champions League where he drove Chelsea to the semifinals with 4 goals, only to lose out to Liverpool.
Lampard was a vital cog in Chelsea's midfield in the Champions League - where he scored 23 goals in 105 appearances - and other competitions for a full decade - a true mark of his quality and consistency.
#2 Paul Scholes
Similar to Cole, Scholes was such an important part of Manchester United's Champions League success in 1998/1999, without helping in the final. His reason was that he was suspended, however, as the little playmaker picked up an unfortunate yellow card in the semi-final second leg against Juventus, despite coming on as a substitute.
His 4 goals that campaign included an important away goal at the San Siro against Inter Milan and Scholes was firmly at his peak during this time. He went on an excellent run from 1998/1999 to 2002/2003 never making less than 10 appearances in the competition, showing how valued he was by Sir Alex Ferguson.
In truth, Scholes had always played more in the European style, with his renowned passing range, and his performances showed this compatibility. Even at 34, Scholes' world-class ability was needed by his club as they won a 2nd Champions League title under Ferguson: it was his blast from outside the penalty area that beat Barcelona at Old Trafford to secure passage to the final.
That Ferguson could trust him in such a big game at such an age speaks so much to Scholes and his talent. By the end of his career, Paul Scholes had scored 24 goals from 124 appearances in the UEFA Champions League.
#1 Wayne Rooney
Perhaps an obvious number 1, Rooney was pivotal to Ferguson's great Manchester United team from 2006 to 2011. In this time, he was immense in attack as they reached 3 Champions League finals, winning in 2008.
Rooney announced himself on the UEFA Champions League stage in style, scoring a hat-trick against Galatasaray in 2004 aged just 18, making him the youngest player to achieve the feat.
While it's Cristiano Ronaldo who gets the most plaudits for Manchester United's 2008 triumph, it was Rooney's aggressive running and tirelessness beside him that was so effective for his team's success. He still pitched in with 4 goals in 10 games, a decent return.
For 6 seasons from 2006/2007, Rooney scored at least 4 goals in every edition of the competition, a consistently excellent contribution for an attacker. In his 3rd final with the club, it was his strike that equalized against Barcelona at Wembley, only for them to be blown away by Pep Guardiola's side in 3-1 in the second half.
Rooney joined Everton last summer and it's likely that he'll never return to UEFA Champions League action, but the Englishman can take pride in his record tally of 30 goals from 85 appearances, and Harry Kane will undoubtedly have his work cut out to surpass the Manchester United legend.
