With a 1-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain in this year’s Champions League final, Bayern Munich became the first team in tournament history to win 11 straight games in the competition. While Bavarians set several records en route to the title, the competition also put on some enthralling performances.

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That said, we take a look at five players who exceeded expectations and emerged as one of the top performers of this year’s competition.

Dayot Upamecano (RB Leipzig)

“He was a beast from the first to the last minute,�?coach Julian Nagelsmann explained in the press conference after defender Dayot Upamecano succeeded in keeping Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa quiet for the entirety of their quarter-final round against the Spanish side.

That @RBLeipzig_EN goal will liven things up. Highlight thus far has been watching the outstanding Dayot Upamecano. Massive future ahead for the young French defender. Superb with and without the ball.

�?Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) August 13, 2020

His performance, however, wasn’t limited to Costa, as he completed his game with a 100 percent tackle rate, won six of his seven duels on the ground, and three of four he had in the air. In eight Champions League appearances this season, Leipzig’s number 5 has averaged 3.1 tackles and 3.4 clearances per game. A vital member for the Leipzig squad under Nagelsmann, Upamecano’s understanding of tricky situations at 21 years of age has attracted comparisons with the former greats like Rio Ferdinand.

The 21-year-old French centre-back has signed a new contract with Leipzig in July, but given the performances he has put in this year’s Champions League, Leipzig are certain to have issues in keeping him at the club. 

Houssem Aouar (Lyon)

Lyon’s run till the semi-finals was exhilarating, to say the least. The French side defied odds to eliminate Juventus before causing the upset against Manchester City in the quarter-finals. A defeat against Bayern Munich in the semis was heartwrenching but Lyon showcased what is to come from their relatively young side.

Amongst the lot that made Rudi Garcia proud, a certain Houssem Aouar shone the brightest. A return of a solitary goal and four assists might not sound profound, but the fact that Lyon were majorly dependent on his performance speaks volumes. 

We need to talk about how good Houssem Aouar was for Lyon last night

Even Kevin De Bruyne was impressed pic.twitter.com/V7XY3VyPl7

�?Goal (@goal) August 16, 2020

At 22, Aouar not only exuded sheer confidence but the tactical side of his game was so spot on that former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand compared him to Samir Nasri. "He has it all. He reminds me of Samir Nasri at times. He’s someone who can be a top player at one of the top clubs in Europe," said Ferdinand.

Serge Gnabry (Bayern Munich)

Serge Gnabry’s rise from being a West Brom reject to a Bayern Munich starter was perfectly documented this season. The former Arsenal winger has finished his season with 23 goals and 12 assists, nine strikes of which came in the Champions League in a mere 10 appearances.

DREAM COME TRUEEEE!!! @ChampionsLeague @FCBayern pic.twitter.com/rbtmvgrgBF

�?Serge Gnabry (@SergeGnabry) August 23, 2020

Gnabry was lethal for Bayern since football resumed post-pandemic as he was one of the scorers during his side’s 8-2 rout over Barcelona. He followed that up with a brace over Lyon in the semi-finals. In fact, his numbers against the French side were truly inspiring, having completed the game with 100 percent shot accuracy. He attempted three shots on the night, two of which found the back of the net.

He was relatively quiet in the final against PSG, but that was just a one-off game. Keep in mind that he had scored four against Tottenham early in the tournament. 

Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich)

From one Bayern player to another, left-back Alphonso Davies was an unassailable revelation in this year’s UEFA Champions League. The 19-year-old Canadian defender provided three assists in the competition but his contribution was simply much more than that, having attempted more take-ons than any other Bayern player this season.

Who would have guessed it a kid from Canada, Edmonton Alberta. Most people don’t even know where that. Where it snows I’m talking -40 weather, he’s now a champion league winner #AD19⚡️

�?Alphonso Davies (@AlphonsoDavies) August 24, 2020

The first-ever Canadian to win the UEFA Champions League, Davies has enjoyed a great run under Hansi Flick, having started in 35 out of 36 games under the German. Blessed with speed, precision and sheer understanding of the game, Davies�?best Champions League outing came against Chelsea in the first leg of the round-of-16 at Stamford Bridge where he dismantled the entire Chelsea defence with his pace to provide an assist for Robert Lewandowski. 

Quick stat: Davies clocked a speed of 36.51 km/h in June 2020, which forced Thomas Muller to name him the roadrunner.

Mario Pasalic (Atalanta)

Attacking midfielder Mario Pasalic, who recently made his Atalanta tenure permanent from Chelsea, has been one of the top performers for his side this season, having scored 12 goals and seven assists in 46 appearances in all competitions. In Champions League, the Croatian has returned with a figure of three goals and a couple of assists, which includes THAT goal against PSG in the quarter-finals.

Gian Piero Gasperini has been applauded for playing free-flowing football at Atalanta and Pasalic has been a vital component of it. Playing alongside former Middlesborough man Marten de Roon and Switzerland rookie Remo Freuler, the 25-year-old has duly delivered what was asked from him. A perfect team player, Pasalic is your typical silent vigilante who delivers when least expected.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Miguel A. Lopez

Bayern Munich were crowned German champions for the 30th time in the club's history on Tuesday as the Bavarian giants secured an eighth straight Bundesliga title.

Here, we look at three key players from Bayern's league-winning campaign:

Alphonso Davies

Davies has undoubtedly been Bayern's find of the season.

The 19-year-old, who was born in a Ghanaian refugee camp before his parents emigrated to Canada, joined Bayern in 2018 from Vancouver Whitecaps for an MLS record fee of $13 million (11.5 million euros).

He only made his first Bundesliga start last October, converting from a left-winger to a left-back, after Lucas Hernandez suffered an ankle injury.

Davies has made the position his own, with his lightning pace either covering holes in defence or launching counter-attacks.

"We can no longer imagine the team without him," admitted Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic.

He is exceptionally fast, prompting Thomas Mueller to nickname him "Bayern's Road Runner".

"You set a new record of 36.51km/h..."

"Really?!"

Look at @AlphonsoDavies' reaction when he's told the speed he clocked during the game

Not even he can believe that pic.twitter.com/aPj1PK47bD

�?Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) June 16, 2020

The Canadian clocked 36.51 km/h in the victory over Werder Bremen which secured the title. With Davies at left-back, David Alaba has moved across to forge a solid centre-back partnership with Jerome Boateng.

It left Hernandez, who cost a club-record 80 million euros from Atletico Madrid, as a very expensive substitute after recovering from injury.

Thomas Muller

Muller has been back to his very best since being reinstated into the regular starting XI by Hansi Flick following the sacking of Niko Kovac last year.

He was vocal in his criticism of being used mainly as a substitute under Kovac.

Bayern have barely looked back since he was given a run of starts under Flick.

Mueller has scored seven league goals, while many of his 20 assists this campaign -- one short of the league record -- were finished off by Lewandowski as the pair quickly re-established their prolific partnership.

Due to his constant chatter, Muller has the nickname "Radio Paehl" -- referring to the sleepy Bavarian town he hails from -- and he has been back to his jokey best in post-match interviews.

He described playing behind closed doors as like "old men's football, 7pm, under floodlights".

Robert Lewandowski

Lewandowski is enjoying the best scoring season of his career with 31 league goals and 46 in 40 games in all competitions.

The 31-year-old has already equalled the Bundesliga record for a foreigner, set by Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the 2016/17 season for Borussia Dortmund.

Gerd Mueller's Bundesliga record of 40 goals from the 1971/72 season looked in danger when Lewandowski set a new record by scoring in the first 11 league games of the campaign.

Lewandowski is set to win the Golden Cannon as the Bundesliga's top scorer for the fifth time -- only Mueller has won more with seven.

But both Mueller and Lewandowski are approaching the twilight of their careers, and Bayern are looking for long-term replacements with Manchester City winger Leroy Sane and Bayer Leverkusen attacker Kai Havertz both reportedly in their sights.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Martin Meissner

There might be no fans in the stadiums but the Bundesliga knows the world is watching and on Tuesday Bayern Munich's Thomas Muller was part of its charm offensive.

Because of the global pandemic, the German top-flight is the only top-level game on the planet and football fans everywhere are watching. 

After scoring the only goal as Bayern won a crunch match in Dortmund, Joshua Kimmich displaced Donald Trump as the top-trending subject on Twitter in the US.

Cue Bayern veteran Mueller smiling and joking as he reached out to international viewers with a post-match interview in almost faultless English.

Muller is known in his own country as an interviewee with a sense of humour. 

After the victory, he beamed as he faced a microphone and happily showed off his German sense of humour as he talked about the length of Roman Buerki's arms and compared teenage team-mate Alphonso Davies to the Roadrunner, complete with sound effects.

Go to 1:10 of Thomas Muller's post-match interview for discourse on Alphonso "MEEP MEEP MEEP" Davies pic.twitter.com/oncokOKLW3

�?The18 (@the18com) May 26, 2020

Mueller described Kimmich's game-winning lob over home keeper Buerki as "having a long hang time" while miming watching the ball pass over his head.

"I had a good feeling," he said. 

"Roman Buerki is a great keeper but one of his strengths is that he is maybe one of two steps outside his goal because maybe he has not got the longest arms so with these one of two steps he tries to have a better angle and Joshua saw that."

The interviewer quickly asked about the impressive and pacy Canada wing-back Davies, who tracked back to tackle a counter-attacking Erling Braut Haaland in the first half.

"A player with a lot of heart and with extreme power," said Mueller, a 30-year-old Germany international. "Although sometimes he has not the best position." 

"When the opponent thinks 'Oh, I have time,' 'meep, meep, meep' the Roadrunner comes and steals the ball."

Mueller was pleased with his team's display in a game in which both teams showed occasional signs of rust.

"We did a great performance. With the ball perhaps not our best, but with our heart and that's the most important thing," said Mueller, tapping his chest.

"This game is maybe the decider and we won it. It's a great feeling"

"It looks better than before."

Feature image courtesy:  AFP / Federico Gambarini 

Bayern Munich's Alphonso Davies says it would be a "disaster" if the coronavirus reaches one of the world's many refugee camps -- like the one he was born in.

The 19-year-old started life in a refugee camp in Ghana after his parents fled the civil war in Liberia. The family emigrated to Canada when Davies was five years old.

The move was made possible by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), for whom Davies helped raise funds by playing a virtual match last Saturday.

His opponent was AC Milan goalkeeper Asmir Begovic, 32, another former refugee who fled to Germany from Bosnia as a young boy before also eventually settling in Canada.

The pair went head-to-head in the eFootball PES2020 livestream tournament, organised by the UNHCR to help the 70 million refugees around the world.

"Right now, the main focus is to raise money to help get refugees whatever they need," said Davies in a video press conference Tuesday in Munich.

Read | How Manchester United missed out on Alphonso Davies in 2018

"Obviously social distancing is tough for them with things so compact (in the camps) and if corona hits one of those refugee camps, it could be a disaster.

"I just want to use my platform to spread the word and help as much as possible. They (UNHCR) helped me out when I was in a camp and I wanted to support them."

The online game raised around 9,000 euros ($9,755) in donations.

"It was really fun, but I think he won more games than I did," admitted Davies with a smile.

The Canadian teen joined Bayern in late 2018, and nailed down a first-team berth at left-back this season despite arriving from Vancouver Whitecaps as a winger.

The Bundesliga season was halted in mid-March due to the coronavirus, but Davies has kept busy improving his German and last week signed a contract extension until 2025.

He has entertained Bayern fans on social media during the lockdown with videos of him trying to master tricky words in the Bavarian dialect.

His dubbed imitation of the Backstreet Boys hit "I Want It That Way" went viral on TikTok.

"I love entertaining," Davies admitted and smiled when a reporter from broadcaster RTL jokingly offered him a guest role in one of their soap operas.

The German Football League (DFL) has said it is ready to resume from May 9, albeit behind closed doors, but Angela Merkel's government must still give the go-ahead.

With Bayern four points clear at the top of the table and on course for an eighth straight league title, Davies said playing the remaining nine games in near-empty stadiums will be a challenge. 

"If it happens, it is going to be different," said Davies. "The fans are a part of us, but it's for everyone's safety, so I don't mind it."

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Glyn Kirk

Alphonso Davies says it is a "dream come true" to extend his Bayern Munich contract until 2025, joining Thomas Mueller and coach Hansi Flick who have also prolonged their involvement with the German champions.

Davies is the latest Bayern star offered an extension after Mueller and Flick both recently signed new contracts until 2023. Davies, 19, was originally signed until June 2023, but the versatile teenager has impressed this season, both on the left-wing and at left-back.

"I'm very happy. Bayern Munich is one of the best clubs in the world, and for me, it's a dream come true to play here," Davies said in a statement.

Read | How Manchester United missed out on Alphonso Davies in 2018

"I want to win as many titles as possible with this club. The mentality of always wanting to win everything is in FC Bayern's DNA.�?/p>

View this post on Instagram

Happy to sign a new contract with this amazing club #AD19 #miasanmia

A post shared by A D 1 9⚡️ (@alphonsodaviess) on Apr 20, 2020 at 10:15am PDT

Davies was born in a refugee camp in Ghana in 2000, his parents fled the civil war in Liberia and the family moved to Canada when Davies was five years old. He joined the German giants from Vancouver Whitecaps in 2019, but has made the breakthrough to Bayern's first team this season.

Before the season was interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, Davies had started 17 of Munich's 25 league games and made his Champions League debut.

"Alphonso has developed very well at FC Bayern and has earned this contract extension with his impressive performances," said Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

"We are happy that he will remain in the long term. He delights our fans not only with the way he plays, but also with the way he is off the pitch."

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Christof Stache

Manchester United, back in 2018, missed out on signing Bayern Munich full-back Alphonso Davies, then playing in MLS with Vancouver Whitecaps, after his trial was cancelled as he was due in the Olympic camp that year.

Davies made headlines on Wednesday after a sumptuous performance against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League. The 19-year-old, playing as a left-back/wing-back, not only kept Mason Mount at bay but also provided an assist to Robert Lewandowski’s goal with a rapid pace.

⚡️ pic.twitter.com/IulwuknjiO

�?TheFootballAddick (@FootballAddick) February 25, 2020

Davies, who made his senior team debut at the age of 15 for Vancouver Whitecaps, joined Bayern Munich in July 2018 for a fee reported to be around $13.5 million, potentially rising to $22 million depending on add-ons, making him the most expensive export from MLS at the time.

pic.twitter.com/6P1L60bgHe

�?TheFootballAddick (@FootballAddick) February 25, 2020

The story would have been entirely different if only his scheduled three-week trial with Manchester United in 2018 had not been called off. As per Manchester Evening News, the then 17-year-old Davies was due a trial in January, but international commitments mean he rather joined Canada’s Olympic team camp under coach Octavio Zambrano during the time.

After the camp, his team - Vancouver Whitecaps �?were unsure if they would allow him to travel to Manchester as the new MLS campaign was due in March. And as things panned out, Bayern Munich secured his signing in July 2018 on a five-year contract.

This Alphonso Davies looks a right player. Top class last night pic.twitter.com/3Sj4Zcov5x

�?Conor Stroud (@ConorStroud) February 26, 2020

Davies eventually made his Bundesliga debut in January 2019 against Stuttgart and scored one goal in six appearances. This season, the 19-year-old has notched a total of six assists in all competitions and the best arguably came against Chelsea on Tuesday night. Davies took on not one or two but three Chelsea players before delivering a pin-point ball towards Robert Lewandowski, who made no mistake in making it three for the visitors.

The youngster completed his night by winning 100% of his tackles, a 91% pass accuracy, completed six of seven take-ons and made eight ball recoveries.