5️⃣ things learned from Wednesday's UCL quarter-final action | OneFootball

The Champions League quarter-final first legs closed out tonight, and like last night, delivered in some style.

Here's what we made of it all.

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📸 LLUIS GENE - AFP or licensors

Barcelona haven't won the Champions League since the glory days of Messi, Suarez and Neymar in 2015, but they currently possess a front three to rival them, at least in terms of output.

Robert Lewandowski's 28th and 29th goal against his former side, coupled with Raphinha and Lamine Yamal's strikes, makes it 82 goals for the season from the trio, and they have a combined 45 assists alongside that.

The stats just keep coming, with Lewandowski now on 40 goals for the season and the first player to ever score 10 or more goals in a single Champions League campaign for three different clubs. Raphinha has 50 goal contributions and is a genuine Ballon d'Or contender. And, well Yamal is Yamal isn't he.

The Brazilian and Pole are also the two leading scorers in this season's competition, with 12 and 11 respectively.

A 4-0 first leg win all but seals Barça's place in a first-semi final since 2019, and keeps alive their hopes of a third treble.

Their last one? 2015. The stars are aligning for Hansi Flick's rampant side.

PSG continue to look the team to beat

To win the Champions League, Barça or another side will have to topple PSG, and that looks like an incredibly difficult task.

As in their round of 16 first-leg against Liverpool, the Parisians dominated possession and had the bulk of the chances, but once again fell behind to a goal fully against the run of play.

Luckily for them, it came far, far earlier in the contest, and they bounced back in supreme style to record a convincing 3-1 victory that puts them in the driving seat for a place in the last four.

Luis Enrique deserves major credit for sticking to his guns after a trying start to this season's competitions, and now has a brilliant young side moulded perfectly in his vision.

After so many years of chaotic failure, is this finally the year Paris reigns over Europe?

Désiré Doué announces himself on the big stage

📸 Michael Steele - 2025 Getty Images

Equalising so quickly after Morgan Rogers' shock opener was crucial, and it came in simply stunning fashion from Désiré Doué, who is fast becoming a key man for the Ligue 1 champions.

Signed last summer in a big-money move from Rennes, it was expected the 19-year-old would play second fiddle this season before slowly being integrated into Enrique's side.

Instead, he has forced his way into the reckoning with double figures in both goals and assists, and got the nod over Bradley Barcola tonight. He repaid the faith put in him by cutting in and curling home a sublime effort from outside the box, which was the highlight of an all-round great performance.

Likened to Neymar in some quarters, he could prove a worthy successor to the Brazilian in the French capital.

Kvaratskhelia might not need that nickname anymore

📸 THIBAUD MORITZ - AFP or licensors

On the other wing to Doué was Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who somehow possibly scored a goal even better than the young Frenchman.

The Georgian winger finished off a fine counter by dribbling and stud-rolling the ball past a bewildered Axel Disasi, before rifling the ball through Emi Martínez and into the near-hand corner from an improbable angle.

It was a goal from the gods, and a reminder why Napoli fans near-instantly christened him "Kvaradona" in his two-and-a-half-year stint at the club.

A throwback player in every sense of the word, the 23-year-old is one of the most enjoyable players we have had the privilege to watch in a long, long time.

It might not be long before his nickname is dropped, and his own name becomes immortalised.

Villa still in it but Dortmund's sorry season is over

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Nuno Mendes' injury-time goal could prove a hammer blow to Villa's hopes of turning the tie around next week, but they can hold their heads high after a tough night in Paris.

Despite having just 25% possession and little experience at this level, Unai Emery's side bravely battled against an elite side in front of a raucous crowd, and their plan largely worked until that late, late strike.

They still have a chance, Villa Park will be rocking on the biggest night for the club in decades, but the first goal is absolutely vital. Who'd bet against another Marcus Rashford show against PSG?

As for Dortmund, their season is as good as over following their humbling in Catalonia.

Niko Kovač already faced a tough task of getting anything from the first-leg but the loss of Nico Schlotterbeck days before the game proved the final nail in the coffin for his side.

Barring an all-time miracle, the second leg is a write off, and all attention must turn to scraping a place in the Europa League or Europa Conference League next season.

It could be a while before we see the Black and Yellow at this stage of Europe's premier competition again.

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