Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah could equal a Champions League record set by Samuel Eto'o when the Reds take on Lille in Tuesday's showdown at Anfield.
Arne Slot's men need only draw with the French giants on Merseyside to guarantee a place in the last 16, having taken 18 points from 18 on offer in the 2024-25 league phase so far.
Salah was responsible for the only goal in Liverpool's last Champions League showdown, a 1-0 success over Girona in December, which marked the Egyptian's second goal in the current tournament.
The 32-year-old has also excelled on the playmaking front for the European leaders, already providing four assists in the league phase, two against Bayer Leverkusen and one each against Bologna and RB Leipzig.
Should Salah set up a teammate on Tuesday evening, he would become just the second African player to register five assists in one edition of the Champions League, emulating former Barcelona, Inter Milan and Chelsea forward Eto'o.
Salah chasing Eto'o record in Champions League
© Imago
The ex-Cameroon international came up with five assists for Inter Milan during the 2010-11 campaign, in addition to scoring eight goals as the then-defending champions lost to Schalke 04 in the quarter-finals.
Salah could therefore set a new outright record for African players with a pair of assists in Tuesday's showdown, but he is still some way off breaking the all-time record for a player of any nationality.
The most assists ever provided by one player in a single Champions League campaign was nine by Luis Figo, who registered that unparalleled tally while on the books at Barcelona in the 1999-00 season.
Salah's former Liverpool teammate James Milner came close to surpassing Figo in the 2017-18 season but fell just short with eight assists, the same number that Neymar, David Beckham and Gaizka Mendieta previously managed in one UCL season.
Salah has failed to contribute to a goal in either of his last two Premier League appearances, but there are few doubts about his starting place for the contest with the 2020-21 Ligue 1 champions.
How can Liverpool make history in Lille showdown?
© Imago
As well as Salah's individual feats, Liverpool could also write a new chapter of Champions League history by defeating their French counterparts at Anfield, but only if they keep a clean sheet while doing so.
Since their opening 3-1 success over AC Milan, Liverpool have won each of their last five UCL games without conceding, shutting out Girona, Bologna, Leipzig, Leverkusen and Real Madrid in the process.
Should Slot's men prevail to nil on Wednesday, they will become just the second team to ever win six straight games in Europe's premier tournament while not conceding a single goal.
The only previous team to achieve that feat were Leeds United in the 1969-70 European Cup, meaning that Liverpool could become the first to do so in the current edition of the Champions League.
While Liverpool sit at the summit of the league phase table, Lille are also on course for last-16 progression, as they occupy the eighth and final automatic qualification spot in the standings.
Ben Knapton
