Paris Saint-Germain 2-1 Liverpool: 5 Talking Points and Tactical Analysis | UCL 2018/19

#3 Tuchel stirs the ultimate recipe from the touchline

Tuchel outwitted Klopp during the battle from the touchline in the end

Prior to the game, Thomas Tuchel had commented that his team will have to do it the hard way by facing one of the greatest teams in Europe in the form of Liverpool. And that is exactly what they did as the German outwitted Jurgen Klopp from the touchline by scripting a memorable victory in a big European night for the Ligue 1 champions.

Tuchel's tactics had come under criticism following PSG's defeat to Liverpool at Anfield in the reverse fixture back in September, but he more than made up for it by stirring his players on from the touchline. The German opted for a 4-4-2 formation against Liverpool with Angel Di Maria and Neymar on the flanks while Marco Verratti and Marquinhos sat in front of the back-four.

Neymar and Kylian Mbappe continually bypassed a hapless Liverpool midfield in the first half as they hit cruise control and Verratti's imperious presence in midfield helped the hosts replicate the kind of football they are usually associated with in Ligue 1, where they have won all 14 of their league games so far this season while also winning five of the last six league titles.

The unsettling news of a clash between Tuchel and Adrien Rabiot, who had to settle for a place on the bench and was only introduced in the dying embers of the game, had emerged before kick-off, but the German tactician had everything in control and guided his team to a memorable win.