Top Winners and Losers After Tuesday's Champions League Round-of-16 Results
Vinícius Júnior and Karim Benzema tore apart the Liverpool defense to help Real Madrid rally from a two-goal deficit and win 5-2 at Anfield in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg on Tuesday.
The 22-year-old Brazilian brought Los Blancos level with Liverpool before halftime with a pair of goals. Vinícius Júnior also won the free kick that led to the go-ahead goal that was headed home by Eder Militao.
Benzema finished off Liverpool with a pair of second-half tallies.
Real Madrid's drastic reversal put it in a fantastic position to advance to the quarterfinal round, and it left Liverpool asking countless questions about its defensive approach.
Napoli also has one foot in the final eight after its 2-0 road triumph over UEFA Europa League holders Eintracht Frankfurt.
The dynamic duo of Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia contributed to each of the two goals. Osimhen scored the first tally, and Kvaratskhelia provided a lovely assist to Giovanni Di Lorenzo.
Not only is Napoli up two goals, but it does not have to deal with Eintracht's leading scorer, Randal Kolo Muani, in the second leg since the striker was sent off Tuesday.
Winner: Vinicius Junior
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Vinícius Júnior brought Real Madrid back from a brutal start at Anfield.
The Brazilian playmaker opened his 2023 knockout-round account with a spectacular finish in tight space from the left side of the penalty area that curled into the bottom-right corner.
Alisson, the Liverpool goalkeeper, helped Vinicius get on the scoresheet again in the 36th minute. The Brazilian played an attempted clearance right off Vini's foot, and the ball ended up in the back of the net.
Vinicius did not let up in the second half, as he won a free kick just outside the left side of the box in the 46th minute.
Luka Modrić played a perfect pass to the head of Éder Militão on the ensuing set piece that put Real Madrid in front for good.
Vini also picked up an assist on the final goal of the night, which was the second netted by Benzema.
The two goals and one assist marked the most successful match of the season for Vinícius Júnior. He had one two-assist performance and three with one goal and one assist across all competitions before Tuesday.
Winner: Karim Benzema
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Benzema put the dagger in Liverpool's Champions League hopes with a pair of second-half tallies.
The Frenchman got a bit lucky on his first goal, as it deflected off Joe Gomez and past Alisson.
The second goal in the 67th minute was a clinical finish that silenced Anfield for good.
Benzema's goals were his first of the current Champions League campaign. He battled through injuries and played just two full games in the group stage.
The 35-year-old became the second player to score a goal in 18 consecutive Champions League seasons. Lionel Messi is the other player to achieve that feat, per CBS Sports.
Benzema's pair of goals put Madrid in safe standing ahead of the second leg in three weeks' time. Los Blancos have a single home loss in all competitions to Barcelona this season.
The strikes from Benzema and Vinicius sent last year's UCL runner-up to the brink of elimination and proved that Real can't be counted out regardless of what the score is.
Loser: Liverpool's Defense
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Alisson's mistake on Vinícius' second goal was the beginning of Liverpool's demise.
The concession of the first strike was excusable because Vinícius used a brilliant bit of skill to carve the ball through the defense.
Alisson's error that sent the ball right to his fellow Brazilian's feet changed the dynamic of the contest.
Real Madrid leveled the match before halftime after Liverpool ran all over it in the first 15 minutes thanks to goals from Núñez and Salah.
Liverpool's defense let it down again on Militão's goal. The Real defender got free on a preplanned play between him and Modrić and thundered a header home past Alisson.
By that point, Liverpool's morale appeared broken. It got even worse when Benzema's shot deflected off Gomez for the fourth Madrid goal.
Liverpool gave up five goals in a single game for the first time this season, and the poor defensive performance may doom the club from getting back to the Champions League next season.
The Reds are seven points adrift of Tottenham Hotspur for fourth place in the Premier League. Winning the Champions League would automatically qualify them for next season's competition, but now the only available method to reach the UCL for 2023-24 is to make up the gap on Spurs and leap the north London side, Newcastle United, Fulham, and Brighton and Hove Albion in the EPL.
Winner: Napoli's Dynamic Duo
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It came as no surprise that Osimhen and Kvaratskhelia were key players in Napoli's two goals.
Osimhen broke the deadlock with Eintracht Frankfurt in the 40th minute on a perfectly crafted counterattack.
The goal was the 19th of the season for the Nigerian forward, who has been one of the breakout stars across Europe's top five leagues.
Osimhen entered the season with a previous career high of 14 goals for Napoli. He shattered that mark with three months left to play in Serie A and the Champions League.
Kvaratskhelia has become the best signing in Europe with his 17 goals and 15 assists across all competitions.
The Georgian did not let a first-half penalty miss deter him, as he was a menace to the Eintracht defense for most of the contest.
The 22-year-old finally got on the scoresheet in the 65th minute. He produced a brilliant backheel pass to Di Lorenzo, who finished off the victory with low-rolling effort past a diving Kevin Trapp.
Napoli's dynamic duo put the Serie A leader in fantastic position to close out the round-of-16 tie at home, where it has not lost all season.
Loser: Randal Kolo Muani
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Kolo Muani had a disastrous Champions League knockout-round debut.
Eintracht's leading scorer did not put a shot on target before he was sent off in the 58th minute. Kolo Muani tackled Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and his foot ended up on top of the Napoli player's ankle.
The French striker initially got some of the ball in his challenge, but the follow-through caused too much damage for him to remain on the pitch.
Kolo Muani entered Tuesday with seven goals in his last six games. His form matched what Osimhen has been doing for Napoli, and that could have been viewed as Eintracht's equalizer in the return tie.
Now, Eintracht manager Oliver Glasner will have to draw up a different game plan at Naples in three weeks.
Rafael Borré, who has three goals in all competitions, would be the natural replacement for Kolo Muani. Daichi Kamada, Eintracht's second-best scorer, and Jesper Lindstrøm will be asked to step up more in the final third for the German side to have a chance at reversing the two-goal deficit.
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