Lionel Messi is on the cusp of hitting another goalscoring milestone in the Champions League when his Paris Saint-Germain side face Bayern Munich on Wednesday.
Messi is one goal away from reaching 50 knockout goals in the competition in what will be his 77th appearance at this stage - only Cristiano Ronaldo has reached this milestone before.
With three goals in his last three games, the Argentine comes into the game on form, and he showed during the World Cup that he is still capable of being the difference-maker in big games.
Messi's strike partner Kylian Mbappe also has the opportunity to set a new record in Munich, as he could become the first opposing player ever to score in three consecutive away matches against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
However, the recent history of the sides in the Champions League suggests PSG face an almighty task to overcome their first-leg 1-0 deficit.
Bayern have lost only twice on the 22 occasions they have led in the first leg of a knockout tie in this competition - against Real Madrid in 2002 and Inter Milan in 2011.
In addition to this, PSG have progressed only once after losing the first leg of a Champions League knockout tie, but it did come against German opposition - Borussia Dortmund in 2020.
Some encouragement for the French outfit is that they are the only team who have won at the Allianz Arena in Bayern's previous 17 Champions League home fixtures, on their way to knocking the six-time winners out in the quarter-finals in 2021.
Andrew Delaney
