**_PARIS_**: Harvey Elliott’s late goal snatched a 1-0 win for Liverpool away to Paris Saint-Germain in their Champions League Round of 16 first leg but the real hero was goalkeeper Alisson who produced what even he described as “my best game ever.”
A;isson even provided the 87th-minute long clearance which Darwin Nunez played on so Elliott could score only goal, putting manager Arne Slot’s team in the driving seat for a place in the quarter-finals against Aston Villa or Club Brugge. Alisson made a string of point-blank saves during PSG’s 28 attempts on goal versus Liverpool’s two.
Liverpool manager Slot said PSG were the best team in the tournament and even a draw for his side would have felt lucky after PSG dominated with 65pc possession and carved through their opponents time-after-time.
He said: “(Alisson) showed that he is the best in the world today. To go away with a win here was probably a bit more than we deserved. We were not under par, it was the pure quality of Paris St Germain, the way they’ve played all season. All the underlying stats tell you they are the best team this season.”
**Barcelona too**
Raphinha struck a second-half winner to give Barcelona a lion-hearted 1-0 victory at Benfica as they overcame a red card for Pau Cubarsi early in the game to steal an advantage.
Barcelona’s teenage defender Cubarsi was given a straight red card for a last-man foul on Vangelis Pavlidis in the 22nd minute, but the visitors hung on with goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny putting in a brilliant performance.
The Polish veteran pulled off a string of brilliant saves to keep Barca in the game and his effort was rewarded in the 61st minute when Raphinha pounced on a poor defensive pass across the Benfica box.
He then capitalised on the mistake, firing a low strike that deflected off a defender before going in just inside the left post.
The star of the show, however, was Szczesny, who came out of retirement to play for Barca after Germany international Marc-Andre ter Stegen sustained a torn knee ligament in September.
Harry Kane scored in each half to guide Bayern Munich to a 3-0 victory over 10-man Bayer Leverkusen in the all-German tie.
The Bavarians earned their first victory in the last seven matches against Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen and will take a significant advantage into next week’s return,
For the visitors, second in the league behind Bayern, it was a bitterly disappointing evening, filled with mistakes and sloppy defending in their worst performance of the season.
The Bundesliga leaders, knocked out of the German Cup by Leverkusen, shot out of the blocks and established a ninth-minute lead through Kane’s powerful header.
Kane’s 30th goal across all competitions ended the striker’s four-game goal drought.
In a pulsating start, the visitors almost hit back five minutes later but Jeremie Frimpong, alone in front of goal, could not beat Manuel Neuer, making his 150th Champions League appearance, from close range.
Bayern had control of the game and came close to a second goal when Jamal Musiala headed against the crossbar.
Error-prone Leverkusen, with top strikers Victor Boniface and Patrick Schick left on the bench, were a shadow of the team who dominated Bayern in their goalless league draw just over two weeks ago.
Leverkusen keeper Matej Kovar gifted the hosts a second in the 54th minute after he dropped the ball from a Joshua Kimmich cross to allow Jamal Musiala to tap home.
Things got worse for the visitors when Nordi Mukiele was sent off following a second booking and Kane sealed Bayern’s comfortable win with a well-taken 75th-minute penalty and his 31st goal across all competitions.
The winners will face Feyenoord or Internazionale who won 2-0 in Rotterdam.
Goals from Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez either side of the break secured three-times European champions Inter a two-goal advantage in the first leg of the tie.
“(Lautaro and Thuram) played a great game, then (Mehdi) Taremi and (Marko) Arnautovic also came on well,” Inzaghi told a press conference.
“On the wings everyone did well, (Francesco) Acerbi, (Alessandro) Bastoni, (Yann) Bisseck, also for the availability they showed. It wasn’t a simple game and the second round won’t be either.”
Inter’s defensive solidity has been remarkable this season as the Serie A leaders have conceded just once in nine Champions League games, in a 1-0 loss at Bayer Leverkusen.
Spaniard Josep Martinez has been deputising in goal for first-choice keeper Yann Sommer, who has not played since suffering a fractured thumb against Juventus last month.
Goals from Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez made all the difference.
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