Sadio Mane turned out to be the star for Liverpool in last night’s Champions League win against Bayern Munich.

The Reds went head to head with the Bundesliga giants in what it promised to be a cracker of a contest.

The Senegalese opened the scoring for the visitors from completely a ridiculous angle.

He ran past two defenders and then shot the ball from his left foot keeping the goalkeeper Manuel Neuer at bay.

The lead was soon canceled by an own goal from Joel Matip.  However, Virgil van Dijk scored a crucial header later in the second half to put the Reds up in front.

Mane completed his brace by a stunning header which was set up nicely by Mohammed Salah.

The 3-1 win allowed Jurgen Klopp’s men to advance to the quarter-finals of the league for the second time in a row.

The German manager after being ended as runners-up in last year’s UCL final has now set his eyes on the European glory.

The Reds trail Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City by a point in the Premier League table.

(Despite not being his best this season Ronaldo celebrates his 2nd of the night after some fabulous play from Marcos Asensio)

Zinedine Zidane has come under considerable fire this year from fans and journalists alike, yet Madrid’s 3-1 Champions League win at the Santiago Bernabeu against “Champions league favourites” PSG show you can never really doubt Ronaldo and co.

Ronaldo too has come under considerable fire this term notching only 25 goals in all competitions so far this season, a very low tally by the Portuguese forward’s standards. And it seemed the same old story at the start of the clash with Ronaldo sending two shots sailing high over the crossbar, then later on only to be denied by a brave save from PSG Goalkeeper Alphonse Areola taking the almighty shot power of Ronaldo directly to the face.

Ronaldo’s night only seemed to get worse after the French league Champions elect went 1 goal ahead courtesy of Youth product Adrien Rabiot after being set up by the combined trickery of Cavani and Neymar.

But Ronaldo and co dug deep proving PSG considerable worry from short corners, and at the stroke of half-time, Ronaldo’s chance came after Argentinian Lo Celso brought down Madrid Midfielder Toni Kroos in the box bringing the German international down by his neck giving referee Gianluca Rocchi no chance put to award a penalty.

With Green lasers obscuring Ronaldo’s vision the forward took one deep breath and fired the ball past the French Goalkeeper and firing Zidane’s men back into the game.

This obviously angered PSG and after half-time, the Parisians came out of the blocks in top gear with Neymar, Cavani and Mbappe proving a considerable worry for Real Madrid’s defence.

Zidane then sent on youngsters Lucas Vazquez and Marco Asensio late in the game with the latter definitely making his mark teeing up Ronaldo for Madrid’s second, and later picking out Brazilian Marcelo in a congested PSG box for Madrid’s third of the game.

(Zidane and left-back Marcelo have both come under serious fire this term, yet both celebrate as Marcelo nets Madrid’s third)

While many saw this as a clash of two of Football’s heavyweights Neymar saw it as his audition for Real Madrid after being linked so often with a move to the Spanish capital, yet on that note he may have failed with little impact bar the goal and looking as if he was auditioning for the Brazil 2020 diving team rather than Real Madrid with the number of times the Brazilian superstar went to ground.

Make no mistake this is a modern day Clash of the Titans with explosive consequences for the manager that loses, one of these managers will get the chop following an exit from the Champions League at such an early stage with both Team’s owners pinning a huge amount of emphasis on the Champions League.

For PSG so much so the Parisians splashed £198 million on Neymar and eventually will pay over £100 million for Mbappe (at the end of his 1 year loan deal)  in order to seriously compete in the Champions League after last year’s absolute away capitulation to Barcelona, manager Unai Emery has a lot to prove to the Parisian board and fans in equal measure in the Home leg against Real Madrid.

(Ronaldo consoles Neymar after the game with the pair sharing a lengthy conversation after the match had ended, could Neymar leave Paris for Madrid?)

Meanwhile, for Zidane it alleviates some pressure off him, Los Blancos still sit 4th in La Liga behind both city rivals Atletico Madrid in 2nd and Valencia in 3rd. The former Real Madrid midfielder’s job still hangs very much in the balance with Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettinho still touted to take over next season, but for Zizou and the Madrid fans and players alike it sets the stage perfectly for an away clash in Paris with the world waiting in anticipation for Round 2 of this mega-fight.

(It has become clear that Lambert was not first…or even second choice but Stoke fans won’t care if he keeps them up this season)

It has been turbulent times for the Potters this season, currently sitting in 18th with a defence as watertight as a colander and a promising Goalkeeper in Jack Butland strangled by the poor defensive work it wasn’t a very happy festive period. Under-fire manager Mark Hughes was finally ousted from the helm of Stoke following the quite astonishing 2-1 loss in the FA Cup to Coventry City, a team currently 8th in League Two!

The Stoke hierarchy set their eyes on multiple managerial targets including current Ireland Boss Martin O’Neill, yet the 65-year-old after meeting the higher powers at Stoke decided that Stoke was not the best fit for his return to Club management.

So Stoke then looked across to Spain for their second choice to current Espanyol boss Quique Sanchez Flores, the 52-year-old formerly of Watford was linked considerably with a move to the Bet 365 stadium but quelled the rumours stating “Here I have all I need. I am the coach and will be” so he will continue to manage the 14th placed Spanish outfit.  

So with top targets, O’Neill and Sanchez Flores rejecting the chance to take the helm of Stoke had to cast their net wider, and after searching the managerial job centre realised there was only one man for the job. Step in Paul Lambert. A managerial signing that will divide supporters, in short Lambert has all the qualities to keep Stoke in the Premier League yet the supporters are unlikely to be too inspired by a manager whose previous two stints in management came in the Championship with Aston Villa and Wolves.

Really the managerial merry go round is in full swing with De Boer, Tony Pulis, Craig Shakespeare, Ronald Koeman, Paul Clement and now Mark Hughes all on the causality list this season, which is in stark contrast to the single sacking in the inaugural Premier League season.

(Mark Hughes cuts a sad figure in his last few press conferences as Stoke boss, he joins a growing list of managers ousted from power this season)

Stoke are due to travel to Old Trafford on Monday night to clash against 2nd place Manchester United yet Lambert will not take the helm of the club until Tuesday. In the meantime, Eddie Niedzwiecki will be at the helm of the club assisted by Kevin Russell and also Andy Quy as Stoke aim for damage limitation against Lukaku and co.

Lambert is a manager wherever he has gone has divided opinion, some believe that he is one of “the most underrated managers in England” while others, mainly Aston Villa fans stated “I hate his face and I want him out” during his stint in charge of the now Championship bound midlands club.

The Stoke hierarchy have already targeted problem areas for the ageing squad with young right-back Moritz Bauer signed from Rubin Kazan for £5 million adding depth to an area that has been a cause of concern with Premier League Veteran Glen Johnson injured for the season.

(Stoke fans will be excited by the signings the club are lining up, including Austrian right-back Moritz Bauer)

Surprisingly in January, the higher powers at Stoke are not stopping there as Stoke City target defensive midfielder William Vainqueur from Süper Lig club Antalyaspor, not to mention the Potters putting aside considerable funds for new boss Lambert to bring in players he feels he needs to stay in the top flight of English football.

Stoke fans will be happy to see the back of Mark Hughes, this season he has really failed to hit the heights that he set himself and Stoke City expect of him. The aim now for Lambert will be Premier league survival, and Stoke fans can look to Roy Hodgson’s appointment and Crystal Palace’s subsequent rise up the table that will get them excited for Lambert’s first game in charge against Huddersfield.