Sixteen have now become eight in the Champions League and Europe’s elite will find out where their next adventure takes them in Friday’s quarter-final draw.
However, whatever fate awaits clubs from England, Italy, Germany, Portugal and Spain, this week was all about one set of golden oldies and a player at the other end of the age spectrum who may well be remembered as such by the time his career draws to a close.
While it should be some time before that stage is reached, it will probably also be some time before his record-breaking exploits of this week are matched.
In the words of respected journalist Henry Winter, Erling Braut Haaland was unplayable. Hat-trick. Nerveless pen, then fast reactions for two more. Manchester City – terrific, such energy and pace.
That the Norwegian striker, described as exceptional by his manager, became only the third player to score five in the Champions League, following Luiz Adriano in 2014 and Lionel Messi in 2012, and the 10th since the European Cup’s inception, was one thing.
But for him to break the club’s single-season goal record as the champions of England demolished RB Leipzig was quite another.
City beat the Bundesliga side 8-1 on aggregate and Haaland now has 33 Champions League strikes in 25 appearances – the youngest player, at 22 years and 236 days, to reach 30 goals in the tournament.
In the process he eclipsed Tommy Johnson’s 38 City goals in 1928-29, his quintet coming across 35 minutes, while the victory, in which Ilkay Gündogan and Kevin De Bruyne also scored, equalled the club’s best in the competition.
In fact, when he left the pitch after 63 minutes, Haaland had taken eight shots, all eight on target, scored five goals and completed 11 passes.
Whether or not any more records fall this season, the plaudits will surely continue when the player of the season gongs are handed out.
Joining City in the quarter-finals are Inter Milan.
The two Milan giants may be well adrift in the Serie A title race this term but both are through to the last eight.
Inter goalkeeper André Onana made several crucial saves as a goalless draw in Porto secured their progression and helped them reach the quarter-finals of the competition for the first time since 2011, when they were holders.
Napoli made it three Serie A clubs in the last eight for the first time since 2006 with plenty more to spare as the runaway league leaders despatched Europa League winners Eintracht Frankfurt with ease.
The in-form Victor Osimhen was their main man yet again, scoring twice either side of the break with his second proving to be Napoli’s 24th in this season’s competition.
Piotr Zielinski added a third with a calmly taken penalty for a team which has been creating Champions League 2023 highlights all season, ever since thrashing last season’s beaten finalists Liverpool 4-1 in their opening group match in September.
The Merseyside club won’t be returning to the final this season after reigning champions Real Madrid caused yet more Mersey misery to knock out Jurgen Klopp’s men for a third successive season.
After a superb 5-2 first-leg victory three weeks ago, the SBOTOP Champions League 2023 betting odds were always stacked in favour of Carlo Ancelotti’s aces and so it proved.
Led by their ‘golden oldies’ of Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, they controlled long spells of this contest and the outcome never seemed in doubt even before the Frenchman netted the only goal of the contest 11 minutes from time.
Only Lionel Messi (27) has scored as many Champions League goals against English opposition as Benzema (19) and seven of those have come against Liverpool.
The only potential downside for Ancelotti was the world player of the year hurting himself while scoring and having to be replaced, four days before a potentially crucial El Clasico in La Liga.
Liverpool’s 6-2 aggregate loss is actually their heaviest margin of defeat over two legs of a Champions League knockout tie.
Considered past their best by this SBOTOP observer, I was delighted to be proved wrong as Real saw off all before them last season and it appears only Bayern Munich and City may be capable of stopping them as we approach the business end of this tournament.
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