Just the 18 goals across four Champions League games this week. Who says European football is boring?
The eight teams left in the competition put on an absolute spectacle in the first legs of their quarter-final ties and, unsurprisingly, there were plenty of players who stood up on the biggest stage to make their quality known.
Here are the ten best performers from the first legs, ranked.
There’s no other way to put it. Phil Foden is on an absolute tear right now.
The latest moment of magic came from the edge of the Real Madrid penalty area as Foden unleashed a scorching strike which crashed beyond Andriy Lunin in the blink of an eye.
Arsenal got off to a rip-roaring start against Bayern Munich after Bukayo Saka’s early goal.
Most of Arsenal’s best moments came through Saka, who gave Alphonso Davies such a tough time that the German media are still wondering what has happened to the Bayern Munich left-back.
Leon Goretzka is one of many Bayern players to have attracted criticism this season, but he silenced his doubters with an all-action display against Arsenal.
Showing real defensive discipline, Goretzka helped control the midfield battle and even popped up with an assist for Serge Gnabry’s equaliser.
Vitinha has quietly proven himself as an elite midfielder during his time with Paris Saint-Germain, and the 24-year-old’s stock rose even higher after a dazzling showing against Barcelona.
He may have come out on the losing side, but Vitinha was one of the main reasons PSG were still in the game, with his smart strike putting the French giants ahead early in the second half.
The youth in the Barcelona squad has been both a strength and weakness this season, but Xavi’s youngsters dovetailed perfectly with the experience of Ilkay Gundogan in midfield.
Gundogan stepped up to play a leading role in Barcelona’s subduing of PSG, giving his all in the press and even sending in the corner which was headed in by Andreas Christensen late on.
Having turned Erling Haaland into a meme last season, Antonio Rudiger once again took responsibility for City’s cyborg striker. While there…
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