Vinícius Jr and Karim Benzema make our Champions League team of the day after scoring two goals

There really is nothing quite like the Champions League, especially with so many mouth-watering draws in this season’s Round of 16.

Liverpool’s thrashing at the hands of Real Madrid was the biggest talking point, with the European champions showing they’re never dead after the heroics of Vinicius Jr and Karim Benzema stunned Anfield.

Elsewhere, Bayern Munich beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 and Napoli showed they are the real deal with a dominant 2-0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.

So, after round of 16 first legs, which players qualify sports mailWhat is the Champions League team of the round?

GOALKEEPER

Gregor Kobel (Borussia Dortmund)

Karim Adeyemi’s second-half goal gave Borussia Dortmund the lead in their tie against Chelsea, despite João Félix hitting the post.

Swiss goalkeeper Kobel, 25, had to turn Reece James’ free-kick to safety in the 55th minute.

He made seven saves during an outstanding display, with the Blues unable to find a route past the big stopper.

DEFENDERS

Kim Min Jae (Napoli)

Goals from Victor Osimhen and Giovanni Di Lorenzo ensured Napoli comfortably won 2-0 at Eintracht Frankfurt with 10 men.

South Korean defender Min-Jae, 26, has played just one of 23 Serie A games so far this season, with the current league leaders conceding just 15 goals.

And he was once again huge against Frankfurt after recording seven clearances, one interception and five tackles. He also completed 125 passes out of 132.

Dayot Upamecano (Bayern Munich)

Bayern Munich beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0, with a second-half goal from Kingsley Coman giving the visitors a deserved lead.

Upamecano formed a crucial partnership with Matthjis de Ligt in defense that night.

And the 24-year-old French defender managed to keep Lionel Messi and Neymar quiet for long stretches of the game.

Eder Militao (Real Madrid)

The Reds fell from 2-0 down to concede five goals in a true European thrashing at Anfield.

After the break, Militão overtook Carlo Ancelotti’s men in front as he headed home unmarked inside the Liverpool penalty area.

Luka Modric kicked into the area and the 25-year-old Brazilian defender swerved past the marker.

He then drove a bullet header past Alisson at close range.

MIDFIELDS

Kingsley Coman (Bayern Munich)

Coman scored the only goal of the game in Bayern’s narrow win over PSG on Tuesday.

The 26-year-old unmarked French winger hit first after a beautiful ball by Alphonso Davies in the area.

Coman’s only goal marked an exact repeat of the score and top scorer in Bayern’s victory over PSG in the 2020 final.

Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)

During a dismal first half against PSG, Bayern midfielder Kimmich was the only player to hit the target.

The 28-year-old German was the standout midfielder in Paris, shooting 91 percent of passes completed, winning two tackles and having four finishes.

Riyadh Mahrez (Manchester City)

Mahrez put English champions Manchester City ahead in the 27th minute of their 1-1 draw with RB Leipzig on Wednesday.

City took a deserved lead when Jack Grealish pounced on a loose ball and flicked a pass through Gundogan’s legs for the 32-year-old Algerian winger to score.

Mahrez shined from the start and enjoyed taking advantage of the increased space. He also took home the Player of the Match award.

Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli)

Eintracht Frankfurt were reduced to 10 men just before 15 minutes against Napoli on Tuesday.

Gli Azzurri captain Di Lorenzo doubled the visitors’ lead in the 65th minute with a superb back-heel assist from the treacherous Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.

The 29-year-old right-back confirmed his goal on the night came straight from the training ground.

“These are moves we practice in training,” Di Lorenzo told Sport Mediaset.

We are happy with the victory, but the second leg will be another difficult game.

‘You never know what’s going to happen in Europe so we need to be ready for this game.’

ATTACKERS

Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid)

Vinicius Jr, who scored the winning goal in last season’s final, tormented Liverpool down the right and brought his team back into the game with a brilliant first goal.

The Brazilian full-back, 22, who was man of the match by some distance, equalized before half-time after a terrible mistake by Alisson.

Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)

Benzema gave his team a two-goal lead when his deflected shot sailed past Reds goalkeeper Alisson and into the net.

The 35-year-old French striker later added his second goal and Real’s fifth of the night to compound Liverpool’s misery and put them out of sight.

His second of the night means Liverpool must come back from three goals down at the Santiago Bernabéu on March 15.

Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)

The Egyptian capitalized on a rare mistake by Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to put Liverpool 2-0 ahead in the 14th minute.

Salah is Liverpool’s top scorer this season with 19 goals in all competitions and has been one of their stars amid remarkable success in recent years.