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It was a wild couple of matchdays during the second set of fixtures in the UEFA Champions League’s round of 16 first leg matches. Here are the key talking points.

 

Manchester City’s eight-goal thriller with Monaco

 

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City have been the subject of heavy criticism this season with a string of blow-par results. However, as opposed to their UCL record, they have now put one foot into the quarter final of the 2016/17 edition of the competition by getting the better of AS Monaco 5-3 on Tuesday; that too in berserk fashion!

 

 

 

The Citizens were trailing 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium with under 20 minutes to go on the clock, courtesy a brace from Radamel Falcao on either side of Kylian Mbappé’s strike in response to a goal each from Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero. But a 71^st minute cross from David Silva was sent bursting into the net by Kun Aguero to trigger a dramatic turnaround, which was completed by John Stones in the 77^th minute and sealed by Leroy Sane five minutes later.

 

 

More goals, EPL champions still in the hunt

 

The same night saw another goal-fest between Atletico Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen with the ball finding the back of the net half-a-dozen times. Saul Niguez and Antoine Griezmann put Atletico 2-0 up within the first 25 minutes before Karim Bellarabi reduced the deficit to one goal. But Kevin Gameiro restored Atletico’s two-goal cushion from the penalty spot in the second period before Stefan Savic’s own goal again pulled one back for the Germans. In the end though, it was Fernando Torres, on as a late substitute, who finally put the Spanish outfit in front by two goals, ahead of the second leg at home.

 

The next evening had English champions Leicester City trailing 2-0 away to Sevilla before Jamie Vardy got a crucial away goal for them in the 73^rd minute. With the first leg ending 2-1, the Foxes would return confident of their chances in the second, at home.

 

 

Iker Casillas vs Gigi Buffon, much?

 

It was billed as the clash of the two goalkeeping legends but fizzed out as a one-sided 2-0 win for Juventus against a 10-man Porto after Alex Telles was red-carded in as early as the 27^th minute. Despite the number disadvantage, the team from the Portuguese port city managed to keep danger at bay till the final quarter of the game. But Marko Pjaca finally broke the deadlock in the 72^nd minute and former Barcelona man Dani Alves sent one past the ex-Real Madrid keeper to set up a steep mountain to climb for Porto in the away leg.

 

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