Top Winners, Losers After Wednesday's Final Champions League Round of 16 Results

Timothy Rapp @@TRappaRTFeatured ColumnistMarch 17, 2021

Chelsea's Emerson Palmieri, left, celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the Champions League, round of 16, second leg soccer match between Chelsea and Atletico Madrid at the Stamford Bridge stadium, London, Wednesday, March 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

The final two clubs booked their place into the Champions League quarterfinals on Wednesday, with Bayern Munich defeating Lazio 2-1 (6-2 on aggregate) and Chelsea knocking off Atletico Madrid 2-0 (3-0 on aggregate).

Below, we'll break down the day's biggest winners and losers.

Loser: Luis Suarez

Luis Suarez was so utterly devoid of impact on Wednesday he was subbed off after just 58 minutes. Not great.

Maximiliano Bretos @MaxBretosSports
That’s about as bad a Luis Suarez performance as I have seen.

Dermot Corrigan @dermotmcorrigan
Suarez looking like player Barca sold.

Granted, it shouldn't come as a huge surprise the veteran forward couldn't find the back of the net—he hasn't done so away from home in the Champions League in a very, very long time:

B/R Football @brfootball
Luis Suarez extends his away leg goal drought in the Champions League to 25 games 😬 https://t.co/khaciosxMI

Richard Jolly @RichJolly
Martin Demichelis has scored an away goal in the Champions League more recently than Luis Suarez.

Atletico needed a strong performance from Suarez to get past an in-form Chelsea team. They didn't get much of anything at all.

Winner: Robert Lewandowski

✨ Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content

All this man does is score goals.

Champions League on CBS Sports @UCLonCBSSports
Robert Lewandowski scores his 39th goal of the season. 💥 https://t.co/g6rLfsIpyT

OptaJoe @OptaJoe
25 - Since the start of last season, Robert Lewandowski has been directly involved in more Champions League goals than any other player (20 goals and five assists). Master. #FCBLAZ

What more is there to say about Lewandowski that hasn't already been said? He's arguably the best striker in football today, and the primary reason why Bayern Munich remain a major threat to win this competition.

Loser: Diego Simeone

Atletico looked listless and rather unthreatening for long stretches vs. Chelsea. That buck starts and stops with Diego Simeone. Nothing seemed to work on Wednesday.

Jack Lang @jacklang
Simeone has forgotten more about football than I’ll ever know, but this team is a complete mess after the substitutions

Dermot Corrigan @dermotmcorrigan
Trippier off and Lemar on, so Llorente to RB. Fourth change of team shape / structure in less than 25 mins from Simeone.

Andy Brassell @andybrassell
Very polished first half by Chelsea. Simeone being outdone by a German tactician for the second straight season as stands

Miguel Delaney @MiguelDelaney
A night when Simeone's football looked consigned to the past, in a vintage exhibition of how exacting the CL can be. Chelsea just looked a level above, in Tuchel's best display so far, and maybe like European champions https://t.co/yzIWjzlCLc

B/R Football @brfootball
▪️ Brushed aside by Chelsea in the UCL ▪️ Three wins in their last 10 games ▪️ Out of the Copa del Rey by a third-tier side ▪️ La Liga lead dwindling by the week Atletico's recent form 🥴 https://t.co/yT05aJNwQC

Atletico was outplayed and Simeone was out-coached. A 2-0 loss easily could have been worse.

Winner: Thomas Tuchel

A masterclass from Thomas Tuchel. Chelsea were composed, defensively sound and clinical when presented clear chances. They threatened on the counter-attack and looked a very better side than anything they showed under Frank Lampard.

WhoScored.com @WhoScored
🔵 Thomas Tuchel's opening 1⃣3⃣ matches as Chelsea head coach ✅ Wins - 9⃣ 🤝 Draws - 4⃣ ❌ Defeats - 0⃣ 🤯 Takumi Minamino remains the only opposition player to score against Chelsea in that period... https://t.co/AYdMGMldnl

Jeff Borzello @jeffborzello
Onto the quarterfinals! Tuchel tactics worked perfectly. Absorbed some early pressure, scored and then barely let Atleti have a clean look at goal the final 45 minutes. 11 clean sheets in 13 games under Tuchel. Unreal. #CFC

His choice to start players like Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech paid off on the first goal:

Champions League on CBS Sports @UCLonCBSSports
Havertz. Werner. Ziyech. This counter-attack. 😳 https://t.co/RX4PTyXrrp

Substitute Emerson Palmieri scored on his first touch for the second tally:

Champions League on CBS Sports @UCLonCBSSports
Pulisic sets up Emerson who scores 30 seconds after coming on. 💥 https://t.co/AybxXkf1Nq

Simeone couldn't seem to get anything right on Wednesday. Tuchel has gotten very little wrong since being hired midseason.

Loser: Stefan Savic

Savic's second-half red card was perhaps a touch harsh, but it also ended any Atletico hopes of mounting a comeback.

Champions League on CBS Sports @UCLonCBSSports
Atleti down to 10-men after Stefan Savic is sent off. Agree? 👀 https://t.co/weS822HMpR

OptaJoe @OptaJoe
3 - Stefan Savic received his third UEFA Champions League red card; only Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edgar Davids and Sergio Ramos (all four) have had more in the competition's history. Marching. #CHEATM

James Benge @jamesbenge
Felt like even Simeone was going through the motions after Savic red, looking away and walking off before belatedly shouting "VAR" after his players surrounded the referee. The fight looks to have gone out of Atleti.

But he also could have done far better on Chelsea's first goal:

Jimmy Conrad @JimmyConrad
Great counter from Chelsea but I have an issue with Savic. He does well to cut the passing lane but then once he does, he backs up! Why not continue to close down Werner to make it harder for him to do what he wants? @jamesbenge, I know you're there. Ask him for me, please. https://t.co/AuA5u3xOxo

Not a sparkling performance from the Atletico defender.