Champions League: Harry Kane sets numerous marks in win while ‘best in the world’ helps Liverpool survive PSG onslaught

Harry Kane set numerous British records as he scored twice to help Bayern Munich beat its German rival, Bayer Leverkusen, 3-0 in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday. The English striker scored a goal in both halves at the Allianz Arena as Bayern took control of the tie, moving one step closer to the quarterfinals. Kane opened the scoring with a close-range header in the ninth minute, converting Michael Olise’s cross to give the home side the perfect early start. And after Jamal Musiala had doubled Bayern’s lead shortly after half-time when he capitalized on a mistake from Leverkusen goalkeeper Matěj Kovář, Kane’s second goal of the game came from the penalty spot with 15 minutes remaining to clinch an impressive win. “I think we felt the hype around the game,” Kane told TNT Sports afterwards. “We knew that we were here at the Allianz. There was a lot of talk after the last performance away from home, but there were a lot of different factors that went into the game. “We were fresh. We’ve come off playing on Friday night. We had a good time to prepare. Everyone was ready to go out there and have a high intensity, especially without the ball. “That’s where the game was won really today; tidying up on the second balls, controlling the game from there and transitioning from there. We made it really difficult for them.” Kane had previously gone four games without scoring for Bayern but his two goals mean he now has 31 in all competitions this season. Since joining Bayern in 2023, he has scored 75 goals in all competitions which is the most by any player in all of Europe’s top five leagues, per the BBC. His brace on Wednesday also means he’s scored nine goals in the Champions League this season, the most by an English player in a single Champions League campaign and tying the European Cup single-season record with Dennis Viollet who scored nine goals for Manchester United in 1956-57, per the BBC. Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney are the only Englishmen to have scored more than Kane’s nine Champions League knockout goals, with 15 and 14 respectively. Kane now has scored 31 goals this season. Tobias Schwarz/AFP/Getty Images The only negative for Bayern was the injury suffered by captain Manuel Neuer midway through the second half which came in an unlikely fashion. Neuer appeared to injure himself while celebrating Musiala’s goal, going down to the turf and signaling to the Bayern bench that he was not fit to continue. The 38-year-old was eventually replaced by Jonas Urbig who made his debut for the club. “In this moment, I have no news about Manuel,” Bayern manager Vincent Kompany said afterwards, per TNT Sports. “But it’s true that when he celebrated the goal, he injured himself. It looks like his calf, but we will have to see now.” On a disappointing evening for Leverkusen, things were made even harder for the reigning German champion when Nordi Mukiele was sent off for a second yellow card midway through the second half which will mean he’ll miss next week’s second leg. But Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso isn’t ruling out his side’s chances despite needing a three-goal comeback. “It will take time to process this game,” Alonso said. “A lot went against us today, but that was our own fault. We didn’t have good control and made big mistakes. “But it’s not over until it’s over. The craziest things have already happened in football and we’ll fight to make something happen next week.”

‘The best goalkeeper in the world’

Elsewhere on Wednesday, Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson put in an inspired performance to help his team snatch a 1-0 victory away at Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie. PSG was completely dominant at the Parc des Princes, creating plenty of chances and looking like the only team likely to score on the night. The French team’s frontline of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Ousmane Dembélé and Bradley Barcola tormented Liverpool’s defense all evening but found an outstanding Alisson standing before them. PSG had 28 shots and the Brazilian had to make nine saves – many of them extraordinary feats of athleticism and timing – to keep his team in the game. Alisson was in imperious form as Liverpool beat Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League. Christophe Ena/AP Alisson was beaten by a brilliant curling effort from Kvaratskhelia in the first half, but the goal was ruled out by the video assistant referee (VAR) for offside. In the end, Liverpool was able to find a shock winner in the 87th minute when substitute Harvey Elliott netted the only goal of the game just 47 seconds after coming onto the pitch. After the game, Alisson’s display – for which he earned the Man of the Match award – was the main talking point. “Alisson, for me, is the best goalkeeper in the world. Has been for years. I think he showed that today,” Liverpool defender Andy Robertson told UEFA after the game. “When called upon, he made some fantastic saves. “The clean sheet, I think the team helped a lot. But I think the clean sheet goes to Alisson today with the amount of saves he had to make.” Elliott agreed with his teammate Roberston, saying: “Without (Alisson), I don’t know where we’d be.” Elliott scored the only goal of the game as Liverpool stole an away victory against PSG. Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP/Getty Images It was a tough result for PSG, who lost for the first time in 23 games in all competitions. But PSG manager Luis Enrique said his squad still believes ahead of next week’s second leg. “It’s difficult to think about the match in a positive way. We deserved to win, clearly,” Enrique said afterwards. “Football many times is unfair and we have to accept that, but we are ready to (go to) Liverpool. “We don’t have anything to lose.”

Wednesday’s full Champions League scores

Home vs. away Feyenoord 0-2 Inter Milan PSG 0-1 Liverpool Bayern Munich 3-0 Bayer Leverkusen Benfica 0-1 Barcelona

Source: edition.cnn.com