Ousmane Dembélé’s crazy form, the ageless Otamendi: Team of the week of the UEFA Champions League

On February 11-12, the first matches of the preliminary round of the Champions League playoffs took place.

On the first matchday, PSG and Borussia easily defeated Brest and Sporting away with identical 3-0 scores. Juventus beat PSV, while in the round’s central match, Real Madrid snatched a last-minute victory against Manchester City.

On the second matchday, Club Brugge was stronger than Atalanta, Monaco, playing with ten men, lost to Benfica, Bayern won away against Celtic, and Feyenoord overcame Milan.

We present the symbolic team of the first matches of the preliminary round of the Champions League playoffs.

Goalkeeper: Timon Wellenreuther (Feyenoord)

In this Champions League season, the match against Milan was the first "clean sheet" for the 29-year-old German goalkeeper. His key save in the final minutes helped secure the narrow advantage.

Timon made 2 saves inside the penalty area and one outside it, as well as one intercepted cross and one clearance. Wellenreuther delivered 8 accurate long passes and won one ground duel.

Right-back: Achraf Hakimi (PSG)

The 26-year-old Moroccan, in the match against Brest, made three clearances and one interception. Hakimi won both of his aerial duels and in two out of four cases prevailed in ground duels. Two out of three dribble attempts by Achraf were successful.

Hakimi delivered 74 accurate passes (85%), including two key passes. In the 45th minute, from his pass, Ousmane Dembélé doubled PSG’s lead. This was already the fourth assist in four consecutive UCL matches for the Moroccan.

Center-back: Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica)

The key player for the "Eagles" in the match against Monaco was the 37-year-old Argentine. He recorded 5 clearances, 3 interceptions, as well as one blocked shot and one tackle.

57 (81%) of Nicolás' passes found their target, including two accurate long balls. In duels, Otamendi prevailed in 10 out of 13 battles. He also attempted two shots on Monaco’s goal.

Left-back: Gijs Smal (Feyenoord)

The 27-year-old Dutchman, in the match against Milan, completed 2 successful dribbles and one tackle. Gijs won 3 out of 4 ground duels.

Smal made just 43 touches, but 24 of them were accurate passes. Already in the third minute, after his pass, Igor Paixão scored. For Smal, this was the second assist for Feyenoord in the Champions League.

Defensive midfielder: Pascal Groß (Borussia Dortmund)

The 33-year-old German played a direct role in Borussia’s rout of Sporting. In the 68th minute, he converted Serhou Guirassy’s cross, doubling the lead for the "Black and Yellows."

Groß also won 4 out of 6 duels in the air and on the ground. He delivered 52 (88%) accurate passes, including three key passes, two long balls, and two crosses. He also recorded 3 tackles and one clearance.

Left midfielder: Dani Ceballos (Real Madrid)

The 28-year-old Spaniard delivered 46 accurate passes (98%), including five long balls and one key pass. In the 60th minute, after his assist, Kylian Mbappé managed to equalize. For Dani, this was his first assist not only in this Champions League campaign but in the entire history of his participation in the tournament.

Right midfielder: Joshua Kimmich (Bayern)

The 30-year-old German made 3 clearances, blocked two shots, and recorded one interception. Joshua completed 80 accurate passes (96%), including two key passes, three long balls, as well as one cross and one created big chance.

In the 49th minute, Kimmich provided an assist to Harry Kane, who doubled Bayern’s advantage. This was Joshua’s fourth assist in the current Champions League season.

Left winger: Igor Paixão (Feyenoord)

The hero of Rotterdam in the match against Milan was the 24-year-old Brazilian. At the very start of the match, he scored what turned out to be the only goal, thus bringing Feyenoord closer to the Round of 16.

In 9 Champions League matches, Igor has recorded 6 goal contributions. Initially, he provided 4 assists, and now he has scored his second goal.

Right winger: Julian Brandt (Borussia Dortmund)

The 28-year-old German was involved in 2 out of 3 goals his team scored against Sporting. In the 60th and 82nd minutes, Julian delivered two assists.

In total, he completed 40 (91%) accurate passes, including 3 key passes. Brandt also executed one long ball and one cross.

Striker: Serhou Guirassy (Borussia Dortmund)

Like Brandt, the 28-year-old Guinean was involved in two goals. First, he finished Brandt’s pass, opening the scoring. Eight minutes later, he delivered a cross, which Groß converted into a goal.

Striker: Ousmane Dembélé (PSG)

In 8 matches in 2025, in which Ousmane participated, he has already scored 15 goals. Against Brest, the 27-year-old Frenchman bagged a brace, becoming the match’s key figure.

Dembélé also completed two successful dribbles, made 26 accurate passes (70%), provided two key passes, and won three duels.

Coach: Carlo Ancelotti (Real Madrid)

In the round’s central match, the Italian coach’s team secured an away victory over Manchester City. Ancelotti adapted Real Madrid’s tactics, exploiting the weaknesses of Pep Guardiola’s team.

He strengthened Bellingham’s role in pressing and effectively utilized open spaces on the flanks, creating numerous dangerous moments. Thanks to this and counterattacks, Real Madrid managed to neutralize the opponent's attacks and stage a comeback.