Zenit are unsurprisingly sluggish at Benfica,while Gent freeze on their biggest night but somehow sustain Wolfsburg tie aliveZlatan Ibrahimovic had one of his best knockout games, Ángel Di María decorated the occasion with the kind of dainty touches that will possess left Manchester United’s supporters wondering where it all went wrong, and Edinson Cavani took his opportunity to settle the first leg in Paris Saint-Germain’s favour with aplomb,Lucas Moura caught the eye with his twinkle-toed surges and Marco Verratti was typically velvety in midfield. Yet in a team packed with star quality, one of the standout performances came from Blaise Matuidi, and who never seems to go close to having a nefarious game,overwhelming Chelsea with his impressive blend of powerful running and intelligent passing. Matuidi has seen a lot of high-grade midfielders come and go during his five years at the Parc des Princes and he is a scarce thing at PSG, a French player who has survived the influx from foreign leagues, and rising to the challenge,feeding off the pressure and developing into one of the finest players in his position in Europe. Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com