AP Photo/Armando Franca
The 2021-22 Champions League knockout stage kicked off Tuesday featuring several teams with dreams of winning the title.
Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid were two of the biggest favorites coming into this event, but only one will advance from their round-of-16 matchup. PSG got the upper hand in the first leg with a 1-0 win.
Manchester City also put itself in position to advance with a 5-0 win over Sporting CP.
Here are the biggest winners and losers from the first day of the knockout stage.
Loser: Lionel Messi’s Alpha-Dog Status on PSG
Lionel Messi is arguably the greatest of all time and won the Ballon d’Or in 2021, but he is not currently the best player on his own team. That honor goes to Kylian Mbappe.
The 23-year-old had the moment of the match with a goal just before the final whistle:
Mbappe kept the pressure on Real Madrid all match long with quick touches and elite footwork. He created several looks out of nothing and set up easy chances for teammates.
He also nearly helped his team score in the 61st minute after drawing a penalty on a foul in the box.
Unfortunately for PSG, Messi took the ball and missed the shot:
beIN SPORTS @beINSPORTS_EN
A penalty miss from Leo Messi! WOW! <br><br>Live Blog ???? <a href=”https://t.co/KmXLxuVGht”>https://t.co/KmXLxuVGht</a><br><br>Watch Now ???? <a href=”https://t.co/hkoevnV6B4″>https://t.co/hkoevnV6B4</a><a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/beINUCL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#beINUCL</a> <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/UCL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#UCL</a> <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/PSGReal?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#PSGReal</a> <a href=”https://t.co/d5dcTH0C98″>pic.twitter.com/d5dcTH0C98</a>
It was a quiet match overall for Messi, and his miss only made things worse.
This is now Mbappe’s team, and he should be the one taking over as the go-to option in every situation.
Winner: Thibaut Courtois for 93 Minutes
Based on the run of play, Paris Saint-Germain could have beaten Real Madrid by several goals. The main reason it stayed close was Thibaut Courtois in net.
The goalkeeper made one of the biggest plays of the match with a penalty save against Messi:
Bleacher Report @BleacherReport
Messi’s penalty is SAVED ????<br><br>Courtois keeps the score level between PSG & Real Madrid in the Champions League <a href=”https://twitter.com/brfootball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@brfootball</a> <br><br>(via <a href=”https://twitter.com/CBSSportsGolazo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@CBSSportsGolazo</a>) <br> <a href=”https://t.co/jSjZFp5h5Z”>pic.twitter.com/jSjZFp5h5Z</a>
It was one of eight saves in an impressive match from the Belgium star:
Courtois finally gave up a goal in the 94th minute, but he still did enough to keep Real Madrid in the hunt for the quarterfinal.
Winner: Manchester City’s Firepower
For some teams, you can key in on one or two players and hope to slow down the attack. This simply isn’t an option for Manchester City, which can get goals from a wide variety of sources.
Three different players scored in the first half to build an early 4-0 lead:
They didn’t even need much contribution from Raheem Sterling, who leads the team with 10 goals in Premier League play, until the second half.
Riyad Mahrez has only 10 league starts for Manchester City, but he has been one of the hottest players in the world in front of net:
Football on BT Sport @btsportfootball
Riyad Mahrez now has ???? goals in his last 11 <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/UCL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#UCL</a> appearances ????<br><br>The perfect start for Man City as he taps home from close range! <a href=”https://t.co/epwm7NnhGB”>pic.twitter.com/epwm7NnhGB</a>
Bernardo Silva scored twice and added an assist from the midfield, including the best goal of the day:
Henry Winter @henrywinter
That’s one of the strikes of the season, absolutely magnificent from Bernardo Silva????<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/mcfc?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#mcfc</a> so in control, <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/SportingCP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#SportingCP</a> far too meek so far.
Without even getting to midfield star Kevin De Bruyne, there is simply too much offensive talent for opponents to control.
Already in good position in the Premier League, Manchester City also want to bring home a Champions League title.
Loser: Portugal’s Chance at a Deep UCL Run
Clubs from Portugal’s Primeira League are often overlooked in European competitions, but that usually becomes a mistake.
Porto has won a European title in the past and is usually competitive each season, reaching the quarterfinals in each of the past two years. Last year’s upset over Juventus in the round of 16 was one of the most notable results in the round.
This season, Sporting CP and Benfica each made surprising runs to the knockout stage by finishing above Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona, respectively.
Unfortunately, the success might not last too much longer.
Sporting was overmatched against Manchester City and had problems right from the start:
Luke Edwards @LukeEdwardsTele
Manchester City have destroyed Sporting Lisbon in a little over half an hour with three goals and complete domination of a tie which still has almost two and a half hours of football still to be played yet. Utterly ruthless.<br>Utterly brilliant <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/mcfc?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#mcfc</a> <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/ChampionsLeague?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#ChampionsLeague</a>
It would take a near miracle to come back in the second leg.
Benfica has an easier battle on paper against Ajax, but the Dutch giants went a perfect 6-0 in the group stage and likely won’t slow down with the stakes higher.
This could mean a quick exit for the Portugal teams, especially with league-leader Porto already eliminated.
Loser: UEFA Away-Goal Rule Change
Last June, UEFA announced away goals would no longer be used as a tiebreaker at the end of two legs. If the two teams are even on aggregate goals at the end of the second leg, they will go to extra time.
Though this is fair in some ways, we have already seen the impact in just one day of knockout-stage play.
Manchester City was dominant in a usually difficult environment. Though away goals are unlikely to matter in that tie, the English club still deserves an advantage for its impressive road performance.
More importantly, the away-goal rule seemed to impact Real Madrid’s strategy in its trip to Paris. The club stayed conservative knowing it could keep the match close and have another 90 minutes to perform in the return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Even with tons of offensive talent, Real Madrid finished with just three shots, none on goal.
It left fans wanting more from one of the biggest matchups on paper this year.
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
