UEFA Champions League: The Top 18 Goal-Scorers Left in the Competition

The last 16 teams in the Champions League have been announced to much fanfare, with some surprise early departures and new emerging dark horses. And along the way, there have been plenty of massive golazos worth tweeting home about.

This was going to be a list of the top 15 remaining goal-scorers left in the competition, but there was a big tie for fourth place, so that wouldn't have been fair. That being said, here are the top 18 goal-scorers, in ascending order of amount, left in the competition, along with video so you can relive their best golazos. 

André Ayew (Olympique De Marseille)

Number of goals: 3

The young Ghanaian midfielder became a hero with fans of Marseille when he kept the Ligue 1 side from elimination in the last round of the competition. His decisive strike against Borussia Dortmund gave them the equalizer and kept hope alive as they looked as though they would face elimination at the hands of Borussia Dortmund. Mathieu Valbuena finished the job, and there was much rejoicing. 

Roman Shirokov (Zenit St. Petersburg)

Number of goals: 3

Zenit St. Petersburg has been another side no one expected to see in the Round of 16, but they've been a surprise tour-de-force. One key player to their success has been defensive midfielder Roman Shirokov, who has been a surprisingly high-volume scorer considering his position. 

Tough guy Shirokov equalized and then doubled the score against Porto in what would be a 3-1 victory for Zenit, and helped hold a draw against Shakhtar Donetsk. Although his primary job is to keep the other team from scoring, his contributions in the net have been key in keeping Zenit in this competition.

Fabian Frei (FC Basel)

Number of goals: 3

There are two players with the surname Frei who start for FC Basel, which can sometimes make things confusing when you're putting together play-by-play commentary, but each have contributed some truly wonderful performances to the surprise Swiss contenders.

After a loan to St. Gallen, Frei has returned to Basel for this season, and it's turned out to be a good decision. The young midfielder scored the goal to put Basel on the board in their first meeting with Manchester United, which ended in a 3-3 draw at Old Trafford, as well as putting goals in the net in both rounds of the campaign against Otelul Galati. 

Aílton (APOEL)

Number of goals: 3

Among all the strikers on this list, Aílton had to probably work the hardest. Unlike the "big guns" who get to walk straight into the group stages, APOEL had to go through several qualifying rounds, and it was Aílton who scored key goals to get them into the group stage.

What no one could have expected was that the Cypriot champs would sail past Russian juggernauts Zenit St. Petersburg and last year's undefeated Portuguese Liga champs, Porto, to reach the Round of 16. He opened the scoring in a 2-1 win over Porto and scored the go-ahead goal against Zenit to bring glory to APOEL. 

Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)

Number of goals: 3

This competition is to Cristiano Ronaldo what Cheers was to Norm and Woody—he's a regular. Everybody knows his name. And whether that name is loved or reviled, of course, depends on one's affiliation, but as Los Merengues emerge from the group stage as the team to beat, the importance of Ronaldo to his side will undoubtedly become the topic of conversation.

CR7 has seen three goals and two assists so far in this competition, and he has played in all 90 minutes in each of his Champions League appearances. After elimination at the hands of Barcelona last season and again in the race for the Ballon d'Or, Ronaldo will be hungry to knock out Madrid's rivals and bring glory to the Bernabéu.

David Villa (Barcelona)

Number of goals: 3

Villa Maravilla has had a strong season so far, becoming a regular scorer for Barça and the Spanish national team. The world-class striker known as "El Guaje" may be past his youthful nickname at age 30, but his gifted performances have proved he is still great career form. Although he hasn't netted as many goals as Messi or Pedro so far in this campaign, his deadly finish and skill will still make themselves known.

He helped Barça take the lead against AC Milan in the group stage opener (although a stoppage-time goal would hold them to a draw), and would go on to score in his next two appearances, both victories for the Blaugrana. 

Robin Van Persie (Arsenal)

Number of goals: 3 (plus one in the play-off round)

Arsenal's Captain Fantastic has demonstrated great leadership and skill throughout this season, helping them break their slump in the Premiership and become the first English side to clinch a spot in the Round of 16.

It was van Persie who scored the equalizer that began the Gunners' Champions League campaign, as they went on to defeat Udinese in the playoff. He proved his worth again in both rounds against Borussia Dortmund, opening the scoring in the 1-1 draw and netting both goals in a 2-1 victory. One of the most technically gifted pure strikers in the game, van Persie will be essential to Arsenal's success in the knockouts. 

Didier Drogba (Chelsea)

Number of goals: 3

The veteran Chelsea hitman is no stranger to this competition and is responsible for many of the club's memorable recent tournament moments, from the brilliant (his hat-trick against Levski Sofia in 2006) to the infamous (the 2009 semi-final defeat where his outburst at referee Tom Ovrebo became a viral sensation). 

Luckily, his performance against Valencia in the last round of the group stage was a lot closer in nature to the former than the latter. His skillful brace, hopefully a marker of a return to form, helped secure Chelsea's place at the top of the group, and he was able to get an assist in there, too. 

Edinson Cavani (SSC Napoli)

Number of goals: 4

The Uruguayan goal machine is one third of an attacking team that has just been on fire in this competition, driving the Azzurri to victory and knockout stage qualification alongside wildly creative playmaker Marek Hamsik and striker Ezequiel Lavezzi. His nickname is "El Matador," and with his deadly strike, it's clear to see why.

Cavani's best performance in the competition so far was against Manchester City, where he brought his Blues past the Noisy Neighbours by scoring both goals in the 2-1 victory. If he continues in his good form, Cavani will help lead dark-horse Napoli even further in this competition. 

Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)

Number of goals: 4

Real Madrid is hardly short on attacking options with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higüaín and impressive newcomer José Callejón at Jose Mourinho's disposal. But one of the competition's best performers for the Merengues—here the team to beat with a 6-0-0 record in the group stage—has been French international Karim Benzema.

Benzema contributed to big wins over Ajax and his former side Lyon in his appearances, as well as netting a brace in a 6-2 routing of Dinamo Zagreb. But it's more than a high volume of goals he offers: Benzema has also set up three goals for his Madrid teammates. 

Zlatan Ibrahimovic (AC Milan)

Number of goals: 4

Consistency, thy name is Zlatan. The AC Milan striker and his distinctive half-ponytail have been among the most reliable performers in this tournament, with Ibra scoring once in each of his Champions League appearances, including victories over Plzen and BATE.

When he faced Barcelona, he came to the rescue to tie things up after Mark van Bommel's own goal. It wasn't enough to save the win, but his strength and control will continue to keep AC Milan in contention as the Rossoneri will be tested by some seriously tough opponents in the Round of 16.

Pedro (Barcelona)

Number of goals: 4

Pedro's stock has been rising at the Camp Nou over the past several seasons, and he eventually became a Champions League hero at Barça when he opened the scoring in last year's final, in which the Blaugrana saw their second Champions of Europe title in three seasons.

Pedro proved his importance once again in Barça's opening bout with AC Milan, catching the Blaugrana up with Pato's impressive strike in the first minute of the match. In the last round of the group stage against BATE Borisov, Pedro netted a brace and led the squad's young and untested in a 4-0 routing of the Belarusian side.

José Callejón (Real Madrid)

Number of goals: 4

The winger and Real Madrid academy alumnus returned home to the Bernabéu at the beginning of the season after three seasons at Espanyol. 

Although he has yet to really make his mark with regular first-team status, Callejón has impressed in the Champions League with a pair of braces, first against Dinamo Zagreb and tonight against Ajax in the last round of the group stage. The versatile Callejón, who can play as a winger or a striker effectively, has impressed with his breakneck speed and serious finishes. 

Seydou Doumbia (CSKA Moscow)

Number of goals: 5

Doumbia's side almost got eliminated from the competition as Trabzonspor has the possibility to close in on Lille and jump them in the ranks and CSKA were the underdogs against an already-qualified Inter Milan, and that would have been a shame, as we wouldn't have been treated to any more great competition goals from the brilliant Ivorian international. 

Doumbia has been essential to CSKA's success in the competition so far, most notably scoring a tremendous brace against OSC Lille to salvage a draw and keep his side from slipping lower in the table. He repeated this the next month, scoring a brace to give CSKA the win over Trabzonspor. Against Inter Milan in the final round, Doumbia opened the scoring, and Berezutski's go-ahead gave the Army Men the win and the trip to the knockout stage. 

Alexander Frei (FC Basel)

Number of goals: 5

The prolific veteran striker was the top scorer in the Swiss Super League last season and has led FC Basel to back-to-back league titles.

And in the group stage of the Champions League, he played a key role in Basel shocking everyone by advancing to the knockout stage, and helped fire his side into footballing history, scoring a cracking goal in Basel's upset over regular tournament juggernauts Manchester United. With the win Basel, became the first Swiss side ever to advance to the Round of 16 in the Champions League. 

Mario Gómez (Bayern Munich)

Number of goals: 6

'Tis the season of Mario Gómez. In addition to wowing in the Euro 2012 qualifiers, scoring six goals for Die Mannschaft in their 10-win run in their group, Gómez has been an incredible asset to Bayern Munich in their Champions League campaign.

And in a match last month against Napoli that rocked Bayern to its core with a severe injury to Bastian Schweinsteiger, it was Gómez who brought optimism back to supporters of the Bundesliga side with an impressive hat trick.

Although it was his best performance, Gómez put his concern for the health of his teammate first, telling UEFA.com: 

"

"The team was shocked. It took us a while to find our feet again and clear our heads. Basti' is our midfield motor. He dictates the tempo of the game and you could see that we lost our rhythm without him. It's a bitter one, but we're a top team and if we want to stay that way we'll have to compensate for his absence."

"

Bafétimbi Gomis (Lyon)

Number of goals: 6

There was a time, not so very long ago, when Bafétimbi Gomis would not have made this list. And then today happened. In their last-breath performance against Dinamo Zagreb, Gomis secured a berth in the knockout stage for Lyon in the most resonant way possible—a jaw-dropping four goals in one match in the 7-1 victory. 

Gomis opened the scoring in Lyon's last meeting with Dinamo Zagreb in this competition, joining Bakary Koné on the board in a 2-0 win. If the French international can maintain this level of prolific striking throughout the knockout stage against some of Europe's most formidable defenses, we will be able to hear the calls of "Gomis, he don't miss" again. 

Lionel Messi (Barcelona)

Number of Goals: 6

It will only be a matter of time before the well-orchestrated Messi YouTube tributes start pouring in. The Argentine wizard can pretty much be counted on for entertaining play and results in this tournament, and in the prime of his career, he's reaching astronomical heights. 

Messi leads the competition in goal attempts with 17 and is tied for second with a number of players in assists with three. And last month, in a Champions League match against Viktoria Plzen, he not only netted a hat-trick, but scored his 200th goal for Barcelona.