Sancho upstages Mbappe, Kroos’ quality reigns supreme

Enthralling first-leg semifinals in the Champions League have left the fate of the return legs in greater anticipation and in edge-of-the-seat poise, with Borussia Dortmund upstaging Kylian Mbappe's PSG in Germany and 14-time winners Real Madrid snatching a draw against Bayern Munich away from home. 

It was Jadon Sancho's mercurial grace and a moment of technical genius from striker Niclas Fuellkrug that outshone PSG and Mbappe at the Signal Iduna Park as Dortmund attained the upper hand with a slender 1-0 advantage before the second leg at the Parc des Princes on May 8, Wednesday.

On loan from Manchester United, Sancho seemed to have found his mojo and turned the pitch into his dancefloor as he completed 12 dribbles, the most by any player in a Champions League semifinal since Lionel Messi managed 16 against the Red Devils in 2008. Out of favour in Manchester, Sancho never managed more than six take-ons with the club and could never really dish out his best.

On Thursday, PSG left-back Nuno Mendes sure saw the best of the winger, who had 99 touches in the game, the second-most on the pitch, and 29 carries in a menacing 90 minutes that saw him shine on a pitch that also had Mbappe.

With the support of the Yellow Wall, Dortmund, however, could manage a slender lead in the 36th minute, courtesy of FuellKrug who smartly broke free of the offside trap and received a long ball over the backline with sheer guile with his right foot before hammering home with his left.

In the second half, Fuellkrug could've doubled the lead after Sancho's brilliant drop of the shoulder saw him surge past Mendes and at least one more Paris defender as he squared a simple cut-back to the striker who squandered the opportunity by shinning over the crossbar from eight yards out.

Sancho released Julian Brandt with a pass through the legs of a defender but PSG were saved by a last-moment block. And moments later, the winger was at it again when he dinked a teasing cross for Marco Reus which he nodded over. Sancho created three clear-cut chances for his teammates and at least one certainly should have led to a goal.

So, when gearing up for the second leg, Sancho will definitely be amongst the key players who may tip the balances in Paris after a night when he eclipsed PSG's talisman.

Classy Kroos throws his weight around

Bayern seemed to have found their groove in the first 20 minutes of the game but Real did what they so often do on the biggest stage -- they hit back against the run of play and so often when no one expects them to.

Kroos, playing in his 10th semifinal, had recycled the ball in a relatively harmless position on the pitch, and subsequently, Real forward Vinicius Jr began to move, not towards the goal but towards his own half as if he was looking to take one short and then run at the defenders.

Vinicius was closely guarded by Bayern's centre-back Kim-Min Jae, who followed the forward inward, and after a wand-like gesture pointing Vinicius to make a run, Kroos, who completed 79 of the 82 passes he attempted, threaded the needle by side-footing a pass that did not seem to be on. Vinicius had no doubt about the quality of the ball played and finished it past Manuel Neuer to bring Real the lead.

Both Real and Dortmund showed their class on the pitch in their respective first legs, but the slender margin in the scorelines means the fans can only hope for another set of riveting ties in about a week's time.