Fact check: Best stats from this week's (15-16 Feb) UEFA Champions League action

The UEFA Champions League is after a two-month hiatus. And it was all worth the wait, given the fascinating encounters we got to witness over two days.

The Champions League knockout stage has a penchant for throwing up surprises, and this week's games were no different.

In Paris, we had the biggest game amongst the Round of 16 ties between Paris Saint Germain and Real Madrid. But it was not a goal fest as one would have hoped for.

Instead, it was more of a tactical battle with Carlo Ancelotti's men trying to shut out the mighty front three of PSG, losing only to a moment of magic from Kylian Mbappe.

In Lisbon, Pep Guardiola's men put Sporting Lisbon to the sword, slotting five past the Portuguese club and effectively putting the tie to bed before the second leg. Sporting were blown away in the first half itself, with City plundering their goal from the word go and registering four goals inside the first half.

In Milan, Liverpool stole the show towards the end of the match, scoring twice in the last 15 minutes of the game after registering zero shots on target before that. The game was a cagey affair, with Inter struggling as well to test Allison. They registered zero shots on target despite having great spells of possession.

RB Salzburg held the mighty Bavarians at bay after scoring on the break. They almost came away with an improbable win, only for Kingsley Coman to come up with a reply for the visitors to tilt the balance in Bayern's favour.

So, without further ado, here are the best stats from this week's UCL action:

Best stats from this week's Champions League ties

PSG vs Real Madrid

• Real Madrid failed to register a shot on target for only the second time since 2003-04. And on both such occasions, PSG have been their opponent. The last time it happened was in Sept 2019.
• Lionel Messi has failed to score from the penalty spot on five occasions in his Champions League carer, tying the record of Thierry Henry.
• On the other hand, Messi has surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo's record of most penalty attempts (22) in the competition with his 23rd kick from the spot.
• PSG's 90th minute winner was just the second time they won, courtesy of a 90th minute winner. Previously, they won via a 90th-minute goal against Atalanta in August 2020.
• This was only the second time Madrid have conceded a winning goal in the 90th minute in the Champions League. Previously, they conceded a 90th-minute winner against Roma in March 2008.

Sporting vs Manchester City

• Pep Guardiola's marauding men have become the first team in the Champions League history to win five consecutive away games in the competition's knockout stages.
• Man City's win over Sporting is their biggest win in an away game in any round of the competition.
• The 5-0 loss was Sporting's biggest home defeat in European competition, tying the record of the loss against Bayern in Feb 2009.
• Man City also became the first side to register four goals before half-time in the competition's knockout stages.
• City have become only the 14th club side to reach 200 Champions League goals, having done so in just 97 games!

Inter Milan vs Liverpool

• Inter returned to the knockout stages of the Champions after a gap of almost 10 years. The last time they played a knockout tie in Europe's premier competition in March 2012, against Marseille.
• Harvey Elliot became the youngest player ever (18 years & 318 days) to start a knockout game in European competitions, surpassing teammate Trent Alexander Arnold (18 years & 354 days).
• Liverpool have become the second team ever to win against both AC and Inter Milan in the same European campaign after Spurs (2010-11).
• Liverpool have become only the fourth club ever to win their first seven games of the campaign on the bounce. Previously, it was achieved by Real Madrid (2013-14), Barcelona (2002-03) and Bayern Munich (2019-20).
• Liverpool have now won three consecutive away games against Italian clubs in European competitions. Previously, it took them 14 games to register the same number of wins.

RB Salzburg vs Bayern Munich

• Bayern Munich currently holds the record for the longest unbeaten streak away from home in the Champions League (P22 W17 D5).
• Bayern trailed against their opponent for the first time this season in the European competition!
• This was only the second time in the last 12 games that Bayern had to come from behind in the Champions League, albeit that came against PSG in April 2021, a tie that they lost.
• RB Salzberg have won only once in their last seven games against German opponents (D1 L5), conceding 19 games across that stretch.
• This was Robert Lewandowski's 50th away game in the Champions League. He has scored 37 goals in these games, three more than the second-placed Messi (34).

Stats: TransferMarkt & Whoscored