European football fans are still catching their collective breath after a wild midweek round of UEFA Champions League football.
We were left to marvel as 64 goals flew in over two evenings, with Manchester United (five), Shakhtar Donetsk (four), Manchester City (four) and Bayern Munich (three) all notching with regularity.
As fans we are simply left to appreciate what was an incredible two nights, and here we take a look at five top performances from a crazy round of games.
Arturo Vidal, Juventus
Vidal is one of the finest box-to-box midfielders in world football—perhaps the finest should Bastian Schweinsteiger continue in a different role—but he’s not expected to score bucket loads of goals.
His hat-trick, then, against Copenhagen came as a rather welcome surprise, and his goals were even more critical given the circumstances.
Juve were yet to secure a victory in the competition having drawn three and lost one, and a home win here was critical in lifting them into second place in the group.
Vidal takes a mean penalty and he did so on two occasions on Wednesday, then topped it off with a looping back-post header from a beautiful Paul Pogba cross.
Wayne Rooney, Manchester United
Manchester United travelled to Bayer Leverkusen on the back of a disappointing 2-2 draw at Cardiff City, courtesy of a last-minute equaliser from Kim Bo-Kyung.
In contrast Sami Hyypia’s men were in fine form, having taken second place in the Bundesliga—and in the process opening up a three-point lead of Borussia Dortmund—and were primed to cause an upset.
For the Werkself, then, to lose 5-0 in their own back yard is an astonishing result, and Wayne Rooney was integral to the mauling despite not netting himself.
His interlinking with the midfield was magical, and picked up two assists for his efforts.
Kaka, AC Milan
Kaka’s return to Milan has been sending the fans into raptures on a weekly basis, as the former Brazilian international found his form immediately and is now banging in the goals.
His strike against Celtic—a free header from a corner—was hardly prestigious, but it serves as an example of the boost he gives the club and the players are clearly reacting to it.
The Rossoneri are struggling badly in Serie A, currently 14 points off the third and final UEFA Champions League qualification spot, but Kaka’s form since rejoining has been strong.
If anyone can rally the troops, its him; Milan’s 3-0 victory over Celtic this week was crucial in their attempts to qualify.
Jack Wilshere, Arsenal
With every piece of skill, goal and assist, Jack Wilshere is telling the Arsenal faithful: “don’t forget about me.”
Aaron Ramsey has been the undeniable star of the show so far this season, even though Mesut Ozil joined the club for £42 million this summer and Mathieu Flamini’s return has also been a very popular decision.
Wilshere, the former golden boy, has been left behind a little, and the Englishman is now battling to play as many minutes as possible to stay relevant in the starting XI.
His performance against Marseille—despite how poor the French outfit were—was absolutely scintillating, bagging two good strikes to enhance the Gunners’ chances of qualifying for the latter stages.
Mohamed Salah, Basel
Basel have been pretty average in the Champions League this season…unless they’re playing against Chelsea.
For some reason when they play the Blues they turn it on, with Mohamed Salah affirming his quality once again with the world’s eyes fixed firmly upon him.
His delicious chipped finish after cutting in from the left-hand side won it for the Swiss outfit, and Blues fans won’t be quick to forget the match-winning performance he put in at Stamford Bridge earlier in the year either.
His stock continues to rise.
