MY ACCOUNT
There is only one round of Champions League group stage action left after a dramatic Matchday 5 which saw Sporting triumph to dump out Borussia Dortmund.
Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Manchester United and holders Chelsea all confirmed their places in the round of 16.
Meanwhile, Moldovan minnows Sheriff crashed out after losing to Real Madrid to end their involvement after a plucky showing.
The penultimate round of group games brought some outstanding goals and fine individual performances — but who made it into the LiveScore Team of the Week?
Goalkeeper: David de Gea (Manchester United)
Fresh from his double penalty save in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s final match in charge, David de Gea made three important saves as the Michael Carrick era got off to a winning start.
United beat Villarreal 2-0 to advance from Group F — but not without some heroics from their long-serving No1.
Twice with the game still goalless, the Spaniard had to be at full stretch to deny compatriot Manu Trigueros — who looked in disbelief that he had not found the net with his second attempt.
Right-back: Reece James (Chelsea)
Chelsea’s academy products shone as they thumped Juventus 4-0 at Stamford Bridge and Reece James was the pick of the bunch.
After Trevoh Chalobah had opened the scoring, James doubled his side’s lead 10 minutes into the second half with a lethal half-volley across Juve goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny.
The England international is now up to five goals for the season in all competitions, making him the Blues’ top scorer.
Centre-back: Antonio Rudiger (Chelsea)
Chelsea restricted Juve to just eight shots — only two of which were on target — but Antonio Rudiger stood out more for his contributions in attack than defence.
The giant German assisted Chalobah for the opener, chesting Hakim Ziyech’s corner into the path of his fellow centre-back to turn the ball home.
He made two clearances for good measure too — not that his defensive credentials should need proving given his consistent excellence under Thomas Tuchel.
Centre-back: Presnel Kimpembe (Paris Saint-Germain)
PSG would have gone through regardless of the scoreline but they had Presnel Kimpembe to thank for keeping their defeat to City a narrow one.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side surrendered a 1-0 lead to lose 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium but things might have been much worse if not for the committed defending of Kimpembe.
The Frenchman was constantly involved at the back, making four clearances — including one off the line from Rodri’s header five minutes in — and blocking three City shots.
Left-back: Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich)
Bayern Munich maintained their 100% Champions League record with a hard-fought 2-1 win away to Dynamo Kyiv and it was yet another game in which Alphonso Davies dazzled.
The lightning-quick Canadian was a constant menace up the Bayern left — so perhaps it was little surprise that Dynamo right-back Tomasz Kedziora was substituted off on 76 minutes.
Davies succeeded with seven of his nine dribbles attempted and won nine out of 11 ground duels in a fantastic display with and without the ball.
Defensive midfield: Rodri (Manchester City)
Denied by Kimpembe’s goal-line clearance early on, Rodri pressed on and helped City to a victory which not only sealed their place in the round of 16 but also top spot in Group A.
The Spaniard was not directly involved in either goal but that does not mean he did not play a key role in his team’s recovery from 1-0 down.
It was his sumptuous, floated ball over the top which unpicked the PSG defence for Raheem Sterling’s equaliser, while he also played calmly through pressure early in the move for Gabriel Jesus’ winner.
Right winger: Pedro Goncalves (Sporting Lisbon)
For only the second time, Sporting will play in the Champions League knockout stages after Pedro Goncalves inspired them to a 3-1 win over Dortmund.
The Portugal international sent Sporting on their way when he pounced on a defensive lapse from the visitors 30 minutes into proceedings before doubling the hosts’ lead with a 20-yard rocket.
Goncalves has now bagged a brace in each of his last two Champions League appearances and has 11 goals to his name in all competitions this season.
Attacking midfielder: Christopher Nkunku (RB Leipzig)
Christopher Nkunku kept up his fine goalscoring form by taking his tally for the season to 13 in RB Leipzig’s 5-0 thrashing of Club Brugge.
The 24-year-old opened the scoring in the 12th minute and rounded it off in the 93rd as the German side moved into third to ensure their continuation in Europe through the Europa League.
That was not all for Nkunku as he also provided the assist for Emil Forsberg to put Leipzig 4-0 up in first-half stoppage time.
Attacking midfielder: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
It was a typical City team move which set up Jesus’ winner 14 minutes from time at the Etihad — but Bernardo Silva ultimately set up the all-important goal.
That delicately-cushioned ball across the six-yard box was one of 48 passes Silva completed on Wednesday night out of a possible 48.
In that sense, it was a perfect performance from the Portuguese playmaker, who has three goal contributions in as many club games.
Left winger: Ivan Perisic (Inter Milan)
For the first time since 2011-12, Inter Milan are through to the round of 16 with Ivan Perisic assisting the goal which secured their passage from Group D.
Perisic had a goal of his own disallowed for offside — but the Croatian turned creator later on, teeing up Edin Dzeko for the second of his two strikes in a 2-0 win over Shakhtar Donetsk at the San Siro.
Striker: Edin Dzeko (Inter Milan)
Romelu Lukaku’s successor as Inter’s No9 has not disappointed since his arrival in the summer, banging in 10 goals in 18 games in all competitions.
The veteran Bosnian’s double against Shakhtar took his Champions League tally for the season to three.
Dzeko’s first goal was an unstoppably powerful effort from the edge of the box, while his second was a trademark header at the far post.
