Champions League Team of the Week: Donnarumma — King of Post-Match Penalties

On March 11-12, the second legs of the Round of 16 in the 2024/2025 Champions League season took place.

On the first matchday, Barcelona defeated Benfica, Inter overcame Feyenoord, Bayern once again bested Bayer, and PSG secured a win in a penalty shootout against Liverpool in an away game.

On the second matchday, Borussia achieved a comeback victory over Lille, Arsenal and PSV played a high-scoring draw, and Aston Villa thrashed Club Brugge while playing with a man advantage. The Madrid derby required a penalty shootout to determine the winner, which Real Madrid executed better.

Here’s the symbolic team of the Champions League Round of 16 second legs for the 2024/2025 season.

• Goalkeeper: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG)

In the match against Liverpool, the Italian saved 8 shots, made one interception of a cross, and completed one save inside the penalty area. His main contribution came in the penalty shootout, where Donnarumma saved two penalties—from Núñez and Jones.

Thanks to this, PSG won the shootout and advanced to the quarterfinals. The Italian goalkeeper has now won 6 out of 7 penalty shootouts in his career.

• Left Back: Alphonso Davies (Bayern)

In the match against Bayer, the Canadian made 4 clearances, 5 ball recoveries, blocked 2 shots, and made 1 interception. He completely dominated aerial duels and completed one successful dribble. Davies had one shot on target, which was the match-winning goal, setting the final result.

• Center Back: Emre Can (Borussia Dortmund)

The "Bumblebees" captain made 6 clearances, 3 ball recoveries, and 2 interceptions against Lille. He completed 48 (91%) accurate passes, including 6 long balls. Can won 6 out of 8 duels both on the ground and in the air and completed one successful dribble. In the 54th minute, he scored a penalty, kickstarting Borussia’s comeback victory.

• Right Back: Jan Maatsen (Aston Villa)

The Dutch player made 2 clearances, 2 interceptions, and 1 ball recovery. He completed 60 (94%) accurate passes, including 3 key passes. Maatsen won 4 out of 6 duels on the ground and in the air and completed one successful dribble. In the 57th minute, Maatsen scored his first Champions League goal in nearly a year.

• Left Midfielder: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)

The Englishman completed 84 (92%) accurate passes, 6 long balls, dribbled past opponents 4 times successfully, won all 3 aerial duels, and 10 out of 14 ground duels. Additionally, Jude calmly converted his penalty in the shootout.

• Right Midfielder: Oleksandr Zinchenko (Arsenal)

In the match against PSV, the Ukrainian made 1 key pass and created a goal-scoring opportunity. In the 6th minute, Zinchenko opened the scoring with a long-range shot. It was Zinchenko’s first goal and first key action in the Champions League in nearly three years.

• Attacking Midfielder: Raheem Sterling (Arsenal)

Saka played a part in both of Arsenal’s goals, providing assists for both. Over his Champions League career, he now has 45 goal contributions (27 goals, 18 assists).

• Left Winger: Raphinha (Barcelona)

The Brazilian was involved in all three of Barcelona’s goals against Benfica, scoring twice and providing one assist. He now has 11 goals and 5 assists in this Champions League campaign, making him the highest-scoring Brazilian in a single season for any club in the competition’s history.

• Right Winger: Lamine Yamal (Barcelona)

Yamal made history once again by scoring and assisting against Benfica. At 17 years and 241 days old, he became the youngest player to record a goal and an assist in a Champions League knockout match.

• Striker: Harry Kane (Bayern)

Kane was involved in both of Bayern’s goals against Bayer. He opened the scoring, becoming the first English player to score 10 goals in the Champions League, and later assisted Alphonso Davies. Kane now has 50 goal contributions in the Champions League—39 goals and 11 assists—matching the legendary record of 50 goal contributions.

• Striker: Marco Asensio (Aston Villa)

Asensio came on in the second half and scored twice in just over 15 minutes against Club Brugge. The Spaniard has truly flourished at Villa, scoring 7 goals in his last 5 matches across all competitions.

• Coach: Luis Enrique (PSG)

Luis Enrique masterfully exploited Liverpool’s weaknesses by utilizing free fullbacks to create scoring opportunities. He refreshed the squad intelligently in the second half and extra time, shifting the initiative to PSG’s right flank. Despite Liverpool’s pragmatic 4-2-4 formation and fullback pressure, Luis Enrique’s side held firm and won the shootout. His tactical acumen was key to PSG’s progression to the quarterfinals.