Champions League, Man up for POTW: plenty of big names left out | OneFootball

After the resounding 7-2 handed to Bayer Leverkusen, few would have expected that no Paris Saint-Germain player would appear among the candidates for the Champions League Player of the Week award. Yet, UEFA decided otherwise, leaving out the protagonists of one of the most spectacular matches of the European season.

Champions, no PSG player among the best: UEFA ignores Leverkusen’s 7-2

Standing out in the official selection are other faces, rewarded for their outstanding individual performances. Dennis Man, who scored a brace in PSV’s overwhelming 6-2 victory over Napoli, leads the list of favorites along with Fermín López, who drove Barcelona in their 6-1 win against Olympiacos. Among the chosen names are also Felix Nmecha, decisive in Borussia Dortmund’s 4-2 win over Copenhagen, and Gorka Guruzeta, a key figure in Athletic Bilbao’s victory over Qarabag.

UEFA’s choice confirms a now clear trend: what matters is not the strength of the collective, but the ability of an individual to make a mark. Perhaps this is why none of the Parisians — who delivered a flawless team performance — found a place among the best. From Desiré Doué’s elegant touch to the goals shared among the forwards, PSG built a triumph of balance and quality, but without a solitary hero to celebrate. In previous weeks, the recognition had gone to Marcus Rashford and Kylian Mbappé. This time, however, the Champions League wanted to tell another story: that of the lesser-known faces who, for one night, shone brighter than the stars.

Andrea Alati

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.