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Champions League has shifted another gear and all the teams and their fans are preparing themselves for the Quarter Finals. The footballing world witnessed an interesting and eventful Round of 16. One can say it was a bumpy ride and an unexpected one as the 16 teams fought to secure the top 8 spot over the course of four weeks.
Few regular names shone yet again while some saw a shocking exit. With the Quarter Final draws around the corner, let's take a look at some key points in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16.
#4 Premier League Teams and their misery outside England
Time and again, somehow, the Premier League teams falter outside the domestic competition.
It is astonishing to see the teams playing in arguably the world's most difficult league crumble under pressure in European matches. No English club had a smooth contest in the knockout stage. However, Liverpool, who scored five and conceded none is an exception in this case.
To begin with, Tottenham Hotspur had a handy lead and a firm grip on the game but they lacked the temperament and slipped awfully against Juventus. Spurs had their noses in front, thanks to a strike from Heung-Min Son in the 34th minute.
However, their celebrations were short-lived as Gonzalo Higuain stood up to the occasion by scoring a goal in the 64th minute and within three minutes, setting up another one for Paulo Dybala which resulted in Spurs' exit from the Champions League.
Spurs' London rivals Chelsea had their reasons to lose as it was the mighty Barcelona that they faced.
The loss was due to their own mistakes rather than Barca's brilliance. It was Andreas Christensen's error in the first leg that gave the Catalans a crucial away goal.
In the reverse fixture at Camp Nou, there were individual errors from the Chelsea players, especially Thibaut Courtois who got nutmegged twice by Lionel Messi.
The biggest highlight of the round was, of course, Manchester United's shocking exit by the hands of Sevilla.
It was all square until the 74th minute but trouble for United came in the form of a substitution as Sevilla's substitute Wissam Ben Yedder proved to be their nightmare.
The No.9 scored a brace within a span of four minutes to end the Red Devils' campaign.
#3 Big teams and their one-sided dominance
Most of the spots for the Top-eight were booked by the teams after the first leg itself. Other than Juventus vs Spurs, Barcelona vs Chelsea and Real Madrid vs PSG, one really can't say that the remaining fixtures were evenly contested.
Bayern Munich tops the list in this contest as they scored a massive total of eight goals in both legs combined against Besiktas who replied with just one goal.
Liverpool, who scored five goals without any reply from Portuguese club Porto, stands second on the list.
Current Premier League leaders, Manchester City got the best out of FC Basel by scoring four goals in the first leg before losing 1-2 at the Etihad.
However, an aggregate score of 5-2 saw the Citizens cruise past FC Basel with ease.
La Liga giants; Real Madrid and Barcelona were drawn against sides which should give them competition but nonetheless, Chelsea and PSG got thrashed by the Spanish juggernauts.
#2 Lionel Messi breaks his Chelsea hoodoo
Messi and his record against Chelsea has been a major talking point in the football world since a brief period of time.
However, that is not the case anymore as he scored three goals against the Londoners during Barcelona's Round of 16 clash against them.
His first came as Iniesta made the most of Christensen's error and set him up for a brilliant finish at the Stamford Bridge in the first leg itself.
The Catalan scored,a brace at the Camp Nou. both times firing between Thibaut Courtois' legs.
Fans went crazy to see their "Messi-ah" finally breaking his duck against the Blues and playing a pivotal role in the club's victory.
He achieved another feat as the Argentine now has a total of 100 Champions League goals and is the second player to cross the 100 goal mark after Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo loves the Champions League
The Champions League is also nicknamed as the Cristiano Ronaldo League by the Portuguese footballer's fans following his performances in the European competition.
This season started off as a poor one for the Real Madrid No.7 as he struggled to find the net and his best form.
However, the fact that all know by now is that Ronaldo is a different figure altogether in the Champions League and is seemingly unstoppable.
When it comes to the Champions League, he holds numerous records to his name.
Most goals in the Champions League history, most goals in the group stage, most goals in the Champions League with one club, only player to score in three UEFA Champions League finals, most goals in the Knockout stages, and now the most recent one which got added - he is one of only two players to score in nine consecutive appearances in the competition (along with Ruud van Nistelrooy). The list goes on like that.
With Ronaldo as their attacking spearhead, Real Madrid can aim for its third consecutive European trophy and create history.
