Champions League Round-of-16 So far

The first-leg of the UEFA Champions League Round-of-16 stage begun on the 16th of February. In case, you missed anything, allow me to fill you in. So far, eight teams have played, that is, four matches in the first week while the remaining eight teams will take their turn next week. The results so far have been both impressive and shocking. This is what makes the Champions League the most challenging club competition in Europe. Although, the atmosphere of the stadium is being highly missed owing to restrictions by Covid-19. The chantings of fans is usually admirable and I hope we can have that back.

---

---

The games played so far included;

Barcelona vs Paris St Germain
RB Leipzig vs Liverpool FC
FC Porto vs Juventus
Sevilla vs Borussia Dortmund

---

Barcelona vs Paris St Germain: The Outcome
This clash was expected to be the toughest match in this round because of the two big teams involved. Sadly, it turned out very differently and wasn't so tough as envisaged. This is the point I said some results were shocking and surprising as no one expected Barcelona to lose with such a large margin. The game which was played at Camp Nou ended in frustration for Lionel Messi and his team mates as Paris St Germain scored four goals against Barcelona's lone goal to clinch a massive victory. I wouldn't say Barcelona have been eliminated just yet but chances of their qualification is very slim. As it stands, Paris St Germain have four away goals and for Barcelona to qualify, they have to score four goals or more than four depending on whether PSG will score in the return leg.

Out of the four goals, Kylian Mbappe netted a superb hat-trick while Lionel Messi only scored an early penalty. Barcelona have really really fallen down the grid as their performances is becoming poor by the day. In the last season Champions' League, Bayern Munich thrashed them eight goals to two in just one leg. It was so shameful! However, let's wait for the replay as PSG will be hosting them.

---

RB Leipzig vs Liverpool: 0:2
Liverpool impressed in the game as the defeated the German-side by two goals to nil. The two goals of the match came from the duo, Mohammed Salah and Sadio Mane, all in the second-half. Leipzig really did put up a fight but Liverpool appeared more experienced and balanced. Liverpool now have a better chance at qualifying to the semis with their two away goals. However, they still need to play better when they will be hosting Leipzig at Anfield. I hope key players return before then.

---

FC Porto vs Juventus: 2:1
Football is really full of surprises. Here was another interesting game and a shocker as well. Juventus performed very poorly which saw them being defeated by the Portugal-based team in 2-1 scoreline. Mehdi Taremi of Porto scored the first scored just in the first minute of the game while Moussa Marega netted a second in the 46th minute of the match. Federico Chiesa then scored for Juventus in the 82nd minutes to make it 2-1. In the last minute, Christiano Ronaldo was fouled in the box but the referee didn't see it to be a penalty. A huge victory it was for the home team but they should not celebrate just yet till they visit Italy. I still see Juventus qualifying to the semi-final and Porto exiting.

---

Sevilla vs Borussia Dortmund: 2-3
This was a five-goal thriller match and we watched Borussia Dortmund do a nice come back to be the winner of the clash. Suso scored first for Sevilla while Erling Braut Haaland scored a hat-trick in the outing. Dortmund now have a better chance at reaching the next round of the Champions League.

---

Next week, we watch the other eight teams take their turn. Don't miss it!