What’s better than knockout matches? We’ll give you the answer right away, nothing. The Champions League play-offs set up completely crazy scenarios, with surprises (Bodo Glimt), turnarounds (PSG, Bruges), and spectacle on all pitches. You shouldn’t have missed a beat, and if that’s the case, then French Football Weekly makes you catch up by putting together its typical team for the first leg play-offs.
And we start in goal with a goalkeeper who took 3 but who still saved the furniture. Jan Oblak was Atlético de Madrid’s best player on the pitch in Bruges. In front of him, a 3-man defense, with a former Ligue 1 player, Ramy Bensebaini, solid with Borussia Dortmund against Atalanta, the Colombian Davinson Sanchez, sometimes clumsy but imperial this time against Juventus with Galatasaray, and the rough Odin Bjortuft, central defender of Bodo Glimt who held up the shock against the internal attackers.
An ultra offensive team
In front of them, a pair of midfielders who beamed. Let’s start with the Brazilian Gabriel Sara, sparkling with Galatasaray. First scorer, he led his troops and tortured Juventus with a left foot that was as precise as it was powerful. At his side, Nigerian international Raphael Onyedika, Bruges’ best player against Atlético de Madrid. A scorer too, he increased his attempts at shots, played forward and raked in numerous balls. On the wings, in ultra-offensive piston roles, we install Vinicius on the left side, with his splendid goal against Benfica, almost overlooked given what happened next.
On the right side, we obviously invite Anthony Gordon, author of a quadruplet in one half against Little Thumb Qarabag. Here he is with 10 goals in the Champions League, second top scorer behind Mbappé. In number 10, place for Désiré Doué. Not a starter, the 20-year-old Frenchman replaced Ousmane Dembélé at the half-hour mark and saved PSG from a bad start by scoring twice with his left foot. In front, we propel a duo of Schick-Hogh attackers. The first scored a nice double against Olympiacos, the second amazed again against Inter, with a goal and two assists.
