💫 CL Awards: Bayern on fire, PSG come up short and history is made | OneFootball

The Champions League group stage kicked off for the 2021/22 season this week, and wasn’t it a lot of fun?

Let’s hand out some awards …

The Nothing But Net Award

Robert Lewandowski played for Bayern Munich this week which naturally means Robert Lewandowski also scored for Bayern Munich this week, because that’s just what he does.

The Polish hitman bagged a brace in Bayern’s comprehensive victory over Barcelona, meaning he has now scored in his last 18 consecutive matches in all competitions.

What’s more, Lewy has now won the last 17 Champions League matches he’s been involved in, scoring 22 goals along the way.

An outrageous footballer.

The Stick A Fork In Me, I’m Done Award

If one image summed up Barcelona’s plight on Tuesday evening it was this one.

Despite suffering from fever and vomiting in the 24 hours before the match, Jordi Alba was forced to play over 70 minutes at Camp Nou before being withdrawn with a hamstring injury.

And his poor face on the bench suggested he had well and truly had enough.

The Feeling The Bern Award

Manchester United made a fine start to their clash with Young Boys on Tuesday, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring his third goal since his return to the club.

But then Aaron Wan-Bissaka got himself sent off and United’s game plan completely fell apart.

It was a famous Champions League victory over PSG in 2018 that landed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer the United manager’s job full-time, but his record in the competition currently leaves a lot to be desired.

The It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over Award

Despite their dominance, it looked like Young Boys were going to have to settle for a draw in Bern.

But then Jordan Siebatcheu capitalised on a poor back-pass from Jesse Lingard to score a dramatic late winner and send the Wankdorf wild.

The More Clean Sheets Than A Hilton Laundry Room Award

Thomas Tuchel has done a remarkable job in transforming Chelsea’s leaky backline into Champions League winners and Premier League title contenders. He’s a better plumber than Mario and Luigi put together.

And after their 1-0 win over Zenit on Tuesday, this stat really summed up just how well organised the Blues have been under the German tactician.

Bravo.

The More Pens Than A BIC Factory Award

Anyone who decided to watch Sevilla take on Salzburg on Tuesday witnessed a bit of history.

For the first time since the Champions League’s inception, we saw FOUR penalties in the first half of a match

But perhaps the most remarkable thing about this game is that it somehow only finished 1-1.

The Best Supporting Actor Award

Anyone who tuned in to watch Manchester City’s clash with RB Leipzig was treated to a nine-goal thriller. City ultimately prevailed 6-3, with Jack Grealish scoring the pick of the goals.

All three Leipzig goals were scored by Christopher Nkunku, and he becomes the fourth player in Champions League history to score a hat-trick and still end up on the losing side.

The Too Many Cooks Award

Onlookers were licking their lips when Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappé all started for PSG against Club Brugge on Wednesday.

But the Belgian side did a good job of shackling the fearsome front three and the game ended 1-1.

Meanwhile, Sébastien Haller had the game of his life as he scored four goals in Ajax’s 5-1 thumping of Sporting.

The Spirit of Istanbul Award

For the third time in Champions League history, Liverpool took on AC Milan on Wednesday, with the previous two meetings being the 2005 and 2007 finals.

And a little bit like in 2005, the Reds came from behind to beat the Rossoneri, with captain Jordan Henderson bagging a Steven Gerrard-esque winner.

Alexa, play Ring of Fire.

The Kiss From A Rose Award

Jude Bellingham and Erling Haaland were the stars of the show in Borussia Dortmund’s 2-1 win over Beşiktaş, with Bellingham scoring the opener before assisting Haaland for the second.

And how cute was this?

Talk about a match made in heaven.

The Unbreakable Wall Award

Real Madrid won away at Inter on Wednesday courtesy of a late winner from Rodrygo.

But Los Blancos’ hero of the night was goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who pulled off a string of fine saves to deny the hosts.

The New Sheriff In Town Award

Sheriff Tiraspol made history on Wednesday when they became the first Moldovan side ever to feature in the Champions League or European Cup, and they marked their debut with a 2-0 win over Shakhtar Donetsk.

Treat yourself to a long look at their club crest today. It really is a joy to behold.