5️⃣ things we learned from Wednesday's Champions League action | OneFootball

It was another eventful night of Champions League football with the second pair of last 16 first-leg ties taking place.

Here is what we made of the action.

Tuchel is in trouble

Every loss is considered a crisis when you are the manager of Bayern Munich, which makes you wonder what two in a row constitutes for the club, and for the future of manager Thomas Tuchel?

It is not something the German giants are used to, having last suffered that fate in December 2019. That was a season that ended with Champions League glory, but the idea of that this time around feels more than fanciful, as does any trophy success right now.

Bayern sit five points behind Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga after their 3-0 hammering at the weekend, and were knocked out of the DFB Pokal in shambolic fashion by third tier Saarbrücken.

Now, they face a task just to keep their slim hopes of success in Europe alive. Bayern showed last season they are not afraid to make mid-season changes, with Tuchel replacing Julian Nagelsmann on the eve of the quarter finals last year.

What odds on a different manager being in the Allianz dugout for the second leg in three weeks’ time?

Lazio more than deserving of a famous victory

While Bayern’s disastrous night might take the headlines, nothing can be taken away from Lazio, who were more than deserving of a famous victory.

Despite struggling for form of late in Serie A, Maurizio Sarri’s side looked full of confidence from the outset tonight, largely outworking Bayern and making the best of the chances.

There was standout performances from former Arsenal man Matteo Guendouzi and tricky Danish winger Gustav Isaksen, who won the penalty after being chopped down by Dayot Upamecano, who was subsequently red-carded.

It was fitting that the greatest hero of Lazio’s recent history, Ciro Immobile, was the man to slot home from 12 yards and send the Stadio Olimpico wild.

It was the Biancocelesti’s first knockout victory for 24 long years, but they still await progression in the knockout rounds for the first time.

Could this be their year? It will be a mighty ask in Bavaria but they have hope.

Cometh the hour, cometh the man for PSG

These days, it feels as if there is more talk about Kylian Mbappé off the pitch than there is on the pitch, and more focus on his future than his present.

Tonight, he did his talking on the pitch, stepping up when it mattered most to help his side to a precious 2-0 victory against a tricky Real Sociedad side – Luis Enrique’s delight post-game was a testament to that.

The Basques, who boasted the best defensive record in the group stages, held strong until the 58th minute when Mbappé found himself unmarked at the back post to finish smartly after a corner came his way via a deflection.

It was his 44th strike in the Champions League, moving him past former teammate Neymar in the all-time standings and level with Didier Drogba and Mohamed Salah.

Unlike those three men, though, the French captain is yet to lift the famous trophy. Could he mark his likely PSG swansong in the ultimate style at Wembley in July?

Kane starved of service yet again as Bayern fire blanks

No one quite epitomises Bayern’s current struggles more than Harry Kane, albeit he is not to blame for any of them.

Having enjoyed an incredible goalscoring start to life in Germany, Kane has slowed down in recent weeks as both the Bayern system and his teammates have begun to struggle. He now has just two goals in six games, although a record of 28 in 29 games for the season is still an incredible return.

He had just 18 touches in the weekend loss at Leverkusen and had few more here, with many of them coming in midfield as he dropped deep to try and make things happen to little success.

Bayern have now had just one shot on target in 180 minutes of football, with Leroy Sané, in particular, seriously struggling in the final third tonight.

Not since 2011/12 have Bayern failed to win a trophy, and their current form is unfairly leading to a “curse of Kane” narrative forming. True or not, something has to change for both the team and the England captain.

The kids are alright on the night for Enrique

Mbappé might still be a superstar extraordinaire in the PSG team but tonight showed the French club’s recent transition away from their Galactico policy of years gone in full effect.

Lionel Messi and Neymar amongst others departed in the summer, replaced in the side by younger, French talents like Ousmane Dembélé, Randal Kolo Muani, Bradley Barcola and Warren Zaïre-Emery.

The latter two were the stars tonight, Barcola skipping past the Sociedad defence and finishing coolly for the second goal and Zaïre-Emery showing off his precocious talent at heart of the Parisians’ midfield. It is difficult to believe he is just 17 years of age.

It is rather ironic that this youth movement has been adopted just as Mbappé looks set to finally depart, given it was rumoured he wanted it implemented in previous seasons, but it does point towards a brighter future for the club.

Paris is one of the most concentrated areas of footballing talent in the world. It is about time PSG fully utilised that, with or without their main man.