Top Winners and Losers After Tuesday's Champions League Round of 16 Leg 1 Results

Top Winners and Losers After Tuesday's Champions League Round of 16 Leg 1 Results
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1Winner: Kingsley Coman
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2Winner/Loser: Gianliugi Donnarumma
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3Winner: Kylian Mbappe, Losers: Neymar & Lionel Messi
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4Winner: Malick Thiaw
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5Loser: Cristian Romero
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Top Winners and Losers After Tuesday's Champions League Round of 16 Leg 1 Results

Feb 14, 2023

Top Winners and Losers After Tuesday's Champions League Round of 16 Leg 1 Results

PARIS, FRANCE - FEBRUARY 14: Kingsley Coman of Bayern Muenchen vies with Marco Verratti of FC Paris Saint Germain during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 leg one match between Paris Saint-Germain and FC Bayern München at Parc des Princes on February 14, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christina Pahnke - sampics/Corbis via Getty Images)
PARIS, FRANCE - FEBRUARY 14: Kingsley Coman of Bayern Muenchen vies with Marco Verratti of FC Paris Saint Germain during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 leg one match between Paris Saint-Germain and FC Bayern München at Parc des Princes on February 14, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christina Pahnke - sampics/Corbis via Getty Images)

Bayern Munich survived its UEFA Champions League round-of-16 first leg against Paris Saint-Germain with a 1-0 victory at the Parc des Princes.

The German Bundesliga leader went ahead through Kingsley Coman, who was arguably the best player on the field for the first 60 minutes.

PSG came close to sending the two-legged tie back to Munich on level terms, but Kylian Mbappe had two goals ruled out for offside.

Bayern should not feel comfortable about its lead after 90 minutes, and neither should AC Milan, who used an early Brahim Diaz strike to beat Tottenham Hotspur 1-0. Tuesday's pair of victors face different challenges in the second leg.

Bayern returns at home, where it has not lost all season, but it faces the prospect of taking on a healthier Mbappe for 90 minutes.

Milan has to go to north London and defend its lead against Harry Kane and Co. The Serie A side should feel a bit more confident than Bayern in holding to its lead because of how well its defense played inside the San Siro.

Winner: Kingsley Coman

Bayern Munich's French forward Kingsley Coman (R) celebrates scoring his team's first goal during first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 football match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and FC Bayern Munich at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris on February 14, 2023. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)
Bayern Munich's French forward Kingsley Coman (R) celebrates scoring his team's first goal during first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 football match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and FC Bayern Munich at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris on February 14, 2023. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)

Coman's 53rd-minute tally is the difference between his current club and his former side after 90 minutes.

The Frenchman found himself in a wide-open position on the right side of the box and connected with a cross from Alphonso Davies.

PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma had some trouble collecting the shot as it trickled under him and past the goal line.

Coman deserved the goal for his performance over the first 52 minutes. He was the liveliest attacker in a first half where Bayern failed to put the ball on target.

The 26-year-old was responsible for one of Bayern's two shots on target in the first half, and he posed a constant threat down the left side of the pitch.

At halftime, Coman shifted over to the right wing-back role after Bayern manager Julian Nagelsmann swapped Joao Cancelo for Davies.

Coman found space on his more natural side of the field and delivered the first breakthrough in a match where Bayern should have scored multiple goals before Mbappe entered the fray.

Bayern dictated the pace of play for the first 55 minutes, and it even produced a few chances on goal in the minutes after Mbappe entered.

The lack of finishing may come back to haunt Bayern on aggregate, if PSG has Mbappe on the field from the start of the second leg, but for now, the German side has to be happy with at least returning home with a lead.

Winner/Loser: Gianliugi Donnarumma

PARIS, FRANCE - FEBRUARY 14: Gianluigi Donnarumma of FC Paris Saint Germain during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 leg one match between Paris Saint-Germain and FC Bayern München at Parc des Princes on February 14, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christina Pahnke - sampics/Corbis via Getty Images)
PARIS, FRANCE - FEBRUARY 14: Gianluigi Donnarumma of FC Paris Saint Germain during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 leg one match between Paris Saint-Germain and FC Bayern München at Parc des Princes on February 14, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christina Pahnke - sampics/Corbis via Getty Images)

Donnarumma is the reason why PSG is down at halftime of the two-legged tie with Bayern, but he is also the reason for the Parisians being down just one goal.

The Italian netminder made two critical saves in the second half on Benjamin Pavard and Eric-Maxim Choupo Moting to keep the deficit at one goal.

Bayern might have been able to put away the tie with multiple goals after Coman's opener, but Donnarumma kept PSG in the game at a vital juncture.

PSG started to play itself into the game minutes after Donnarumma's pair of denials, and that led to a frantic final 25 minutes in which Mbappe got behind the Bayern defense on a few occasions.

Donnarumma should still be criticized for letting Coman's shot seep through his grasp, but PSG can go into the Allianz Arena with confidence in the goalkeeper to make a few key saves that potentially swing the tie in its favor.

If the second leg plays out like the last 25 minutes on Tuesday, PSG can complete the comeback and eliminate one of its main title rivals in the competition.

Winner: Kylian Mbappe, Losers: Neymar & Lionel Messi

PARIS, FRANCE - FEBRUARY 14: Kylian Mbappe of FC Paris Saint Germain runs with a ball during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 leg one match between Paris Saint-Germain and FC Bayern München at Parc des Princes on February 14, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christina Pahnke - sampics/Corbis via Getty Images)
PARIS, FRANCE - FEBRUARY 14: Kylian Mbappe of FC Paris Saint Germain runs with a ball during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 leg one match between Paris Saint-Germain and FC Bayern München at Parc des Princes on February 14, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Christina Pahnke - sampics/Corbis via Getty Images)

The PSG attack did not come alive until Mbappe came on the field in the 56th minute.

Lionel Messi and Neymar looked lost in the first half, as PSG tried to break loose on the counter against Bayern's controlling possession.

Messi and Neymar did not make many adjustments to their style of play out of halftime, which led to Bayern owning more of the ball and scoring.

PSG's entire attack failed to have a consistent presence in front of Yann Sommer's goal. The team's heat map shows a large lack of touches through the middle and right side of the final third and very few intrusions into the box, per WhoScored.

Mbappe had one shot on goal that was turned away by Sommer's face and two other goals that were taken back for offside.

The first disallowed goal because Mbappe was behind the defensive line as Neymar put the ball on net. The second one was ruled out because Nuno Mendes was inches offside before he broke loose down the left flank.

Mbappe shined brighter than PSG's two other attacking superstars in a shorter stint on the pitch.

The Frenchman's dangerous movements in the final third will be needed to put away Bayern. He has three weeks to fully recover from his hamstring injury in order to be the top threat for the Ligue 1 side from the start.

Winner: Malick Thiaw

MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 14: Malick Thiaw of AC Milan in action during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 leg one match between AC Milan and Tottenham Hotspur at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on February 14, 2023 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Scaccianoce/Getty Images)
MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 14: Malick Thiaw of AC Milan in action during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 leg one match between AC Milan and Tottenham Hotspur at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on February 14, 2023 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Scaccianoce/Getty Images)

While most of us were focused on PSG-Bayern, Malick Thiaw delivered a defensive master class for AC Milan.

The 21-year-old German, who started just three previous times for Milan, shut down the Harry Kane-led Tottenham attack.

The defender played a massive role in holding Spurs to three shots on target, none of which came from Kane, Son Heung-Min, Dejan Kulusevski or substitute Richarlison.

Thiaw's performance Tuesday came in his Champions League debut. He was acquired in the summer from Schalke and earned his first post-World Cup start in Serie A on Friday against Torino.

Milan's defense came under pressure from a Spurs attack that chased the lead for 83 minutes. Brahim Diaz gave Milan the advantage in the seventh minute.

The majority of Spurs' most notable attempts either came from outside the box, or were weak shots in the direction of Milan goalkeeper Ciprian Taturusanu.

Milan still has 90 minutes, or more, of road defending to do to move on, but the Italian side can take plenty of positives from its defensive performance to limit Kane, Son and Co. once again.

Loser: Cristian Romero

Tottenham's Cristian Romero heads the ball during the Champions League, round of 16, first leg soccer match between AC Milan and Tottenham Hotspur at the San Siro stadium in Milan , Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Tottenham's Cristian Romero heads the ball during the Champions League, round of 16, first leg soccer match between AC Milan and Tottenham Hotspur at the San Siro stadium in Milan , Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

One misstep is all it takes to make a difference in a Champions League knockout-round tie.

Spurs defender Cristian Romero learned that the hard way on Milan's first-half goal, as he was outjumped by Theo Hernandez.

Hernandez proceeded to dribble the ball into the left side of the box and his shot deflected into the middle of the box.

Diaz had one attempt saved by Fraser Forster before he jumped close to the goal line and put the ball past the Spurs goalkeeper.

Romero's mistake turned out to be the difference at the San Siro, and now Spurs have to open the second leg with aggression to pull goals back to avoid extra time.

Spurs have scored multiple goals at home on seven occasions this season, but they only have two tallies in their last four matches at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The recent home form and Milan's defensive play could concern Spurs fans about what the second leg may look like.

If the second leg plays out similar to Tuesday's match, Romero's mistake may loom larger over the tie.

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