Benfica ace, Angel Di Maria, has now surpassed Argentina teammate Lionel Messi’s UEFA Champions League assist tally.

The Argentine is now chasing Cristiano Ronaldo’s tally after his display against Monaco on Wednesday.

Di Maria, also known as El Fideo, was instrumental to Benfica’s 3-2 win over the French side.

Formerly of Real Madrid, Di Maria has been in fine form for Benfica this season, having signed a one-year deal in the summer.

Di Maria, 36, has netted eight times and provided five assists in 16 games across all competitions for his club this season.

The Argentina international eclipsed his countryman Messi with a brace of assists in the closing stages of the encounter against Monaco at the Stade Louis II.

It took his tally in the Champions League to 41, one more than Messi’s.

Football expert, Fabrizio Romano, reports that the former PSG star is now just one assist shy of the competition’s record, jointly held by Ronaldo and Ryan Giggs.

Di Maria helped Benfica rescue a 1-2 deficit to win 3-2 with two assists in the final six minutes of the encounter.

Di Maria has played 112 games in the Champions League, less than the 163 played by Lionel Messi.

His tally of games is also less than the 183 played by Cristiano Ronaldo.

This means that the Argentine has managed to create more goals than the pair in much less game time.

UCL: Di Maria breaks Lionel Messi’s record, chases Ronaldo’s