Champions League round-up: Contrasting fortunes for football's two best players

It was a week of contrasting fortunes for football’s two best players. Lionel Messi played a vital role in Barcelona’s 4-0 win over PSV on Tuesday night, while Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off on his Champions League debut for Juventus, his first ever dismissal in Europe’s elite club competition. 

Messi smashed in a hat-trick against PSV as Barcelona got their Champions League campaign up and running in fine fashion. The Argentine hit the back of the net with three of his six shots on goal and his hat-trick was his eighth in the Champions League, more than any other player in the competition. Three key passes to go with his trio of goals saw Messi land a perfect 10 against PSV, with he our player of the first round of group stage matches. 

Compatriot Nicolas Tagliafico was an unlikely hero for Ajax in Wednesday’s early 3-0 win over AEK Athens. Not renowned for his goalscoring, the defender netted twice from left-back as the Dutch side made a running start to their Champions League campaign. He didn’t shirk his defensive responsibilities either, with three tackles and four interceptions returning a WhoScored rating of 9.56. 

Rounding off the top three top performers is Manchester United ace Paul Pogba. The Frenchman may have his critics, but two goals and one assist in United’s 3-0 win over Young Boys means the midfielder has had a direct hand in five goals in six club appearances this season. Three key passes was a commendable return for the World Cup winner, whose efforts were rewarded with a WhoScored rating of 9.31, the third best of gameweek one of the 2018/19 Champions League group stages. 

At the other end of the spectrum, Ronaldo endured a forgettable return to Spain. The Portuguese star was unfairly red carded after 27 minutes at the Mestalla, though it didn’t come back to bite Juventus who came away with a 2-0 win over Valencia. As things stand, Ronaldo will miss the meeting with Young Boys and possibly a return to Old Trafford to face former side Manchester United depending on the severity of the incident as judged by the UCED. However, it didn’t stop Ronaldo from gaining a WhoScored rating of just 5.30, the worst of the week in the Champions League.