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Only the best teams from all the European top-flight leagues make it to the UEFA Champions League. That's why the Champions League trophy is the most coveted piece of silverware in club football.
And since it is the best of the best that make it to the Champions League, one wouldn't expect much of a gulf in class between the teams that go up against each other. But there have been several exceptions to this. Top teams have been dismantled and left humiliated many times in the Champions League.
The feeling of embarrassment is greater when such a loss happens in a game where the teams are more or less equally matched on paper or if a lesser team pulls an upset on a bigger one in a comprehensive fashion. Let's take a look at the most embarrassing defeats in the UEFA Champions League.
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#5 Liverpool 4-0 Real Madrid 2008/09
Back before they had signed Cristiano Ronaldo and back when they weren't dominating the Champions League like they did in the second decade of the 21st century, Real Madrid went on an embarrassing streak of getting eliminated in the first round of the knockout stage for 6 consecutive seasons.
Real Madrid went to Anfield carrying a 1-0 deficit from their defeat at the Santiago Bernabeu hoping to turn their fortunes around. Liverpool came out swinging from the get-go and threatened to score every time they attacked.
Casillas made two world-class saves inside the opening minutes but they weren't able to keep Liverpool at bay for long. Rafa Benitez's side tore into Real Madrid and Fernando Torres scored the opener in the 16th minute. Shortly after, Gerrard converted from the spot to increase their aggregate advantage to 3-0.
Ryan Babel scored early in the second half and Andre Dossena came from the bench to put the icing on the cake and Liverpool won the match 4-0 in the most comprehensive fashion.
Real Madrid were simply outclassed on the day and a 5-0 defeat to Liverpool was perhaps their most embarrassing defeat in their awful streak in the Champions League at the time.
#4 Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona 2018/19
After losing the first leg of the 2018/19 Champions League semi-final 3-0 to Barcelona, nobody gave Liverpool a chance to go through. Though Anfield has been a very hostile place for visitors, an in-form Barcelona were expected to see off the possibility of a Liverpool comeback with ease.
It was the first time in 1986 that a team had overturned a 3-0 deficit to win a semi-final and though the dream looked really distant, Liverpool turned up the heat from the get-go and did not give Barcelona a moment's peace.
Divock Origi opened the scoring for the Reds in the 7th minute. The game slowed down subsequently but Liverpool upped the ante post the restart and a 2 minute brace from Georginio Wijnaldum, 10 minutes into the second half, turned the tide in Liverpool's favour.
Just when you thought Barcelona would finally get their act together, they conceded a goal in the most embarrassing fashion and virtually gifted Liverpool a spot in the final. Barcelona conceded a corner in the 79th minute and the players just switched off for the next 10 seconds or so.
Trent Alexander Arnold pretended to be walking away from the ball after setting it up at the corner before finding the Barca players sleeping and returned to smash it into the box to Divock Origi who popped up at the right place with great anticipation and slotted it past Marc Andre-ter Stegen to seal the deal for Jurgen Klopp's men.
#3 Tottenham Hotspur 2-7 Bayern Munich 2019/20
This is perhaps the game that was the final nail in Mauricio Pochettino's coffin as far as his Spurs stint is concerned. The former Tottenham Hotspur manager's 5-year rebuild at Tottenham had started running out of steam since the beginning of the 2019-20 season. But getting thrashed by 7 goals in the Champions League was a new low.
It was Tottenham who got the lead in the game through Son Heung-min. Joshua Kimmich equalized for the Bavarians in the 15th minute of the game and Lewandowski gave them the lead right before half-time.
In the second half, Bayern absolutely bullied Tottenham into submission. They were running rings around Pochettino's men and it was men against boys for the second 45 minutes.
Serge Gnabry scored 4 goals in the second half, two of which came in quick succession shortly after the restart. Kane would bring it back to 3-2 in the 61st minute of the game before Bayern put the hammer down and ran away with it.
Gnabry would then score twice again in the closing 10 minutes on either side of another Robert Lewandowski goal to round off an embarrassing night for the Premier League side who were the runners-up in the previous edition.
#2 Barcelona 6-1 Paris Saint-Germain 2016/17
Paris Saint-Germain were lauded and hailed as the best attacking unit in Europe after they beat Barcelona 4-0 in the opening leg of the Round of 16 game in the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League.
Despite having the MSN leading the line, turning a 4-0 deficit around still seemed impossible. But that's what great players do. They turn up when their team need them the most. Suarez opened the scoring for Barcelona in the 3rd minute of the game.
Neymar and Messi both went close from range but it was Laywin Kurzawa's own goal in the 40th minute, after Paris Saint-Germain defenders made a mess in their own box, that gave Barcelona their first glimmer of hope.
Neymar started putting on a show in the second half and there seemed to be no stopping him. He won a penalty in the 50th minute and Leo Messi slotted the ball home from the spot.
With the aggregate score at 4-3, it looked like Barcelona might just end up walking away with it. But the odds turned in PSG's favour as Edinson Cavani scored an unlikely PSG goal. Needing 3 goals now in order to cancel out PSG's away goal advantage, Barcelona rallied and fought against the odds.
Neymar scored an absolute peach from a 30 yard freekick in the 88th minute of the game to give Barcelona hope when everything seemed lost. Just 2 minutes later, Suarez would win a penalty after the referee decided that he was brought down in the area.
Neymar would then convert to make it 5-1 on the night. But Barcelona needed one more goal. The Brazilian then telegraphed a lobbed ball into the box in the dying embers of the game for Sergio Roberto to hook it home and send the Catalans into dreamland and PSG into eternal embarrassment after having squandered a 4-0 lead from the first leg.
#1 Bayern Munich 8-2 Barcelona 2019/20
Bayern Munich have been absolutely brilliant this season and have been in great freescoring form. They were also the odds-on favourite to win the quarter-final tie against Bayern Munich but nobody was prepared for what unfolded last night.
Bayern Munich were playing inside Barcelona's box all game long like it was a Sunday league fixtu. The Bavarians opened the scoring with Thomas Muller, who turned up with his poaching prowess in the 3rd minute of the game. David Alaba's freak own goal restored parity in the game.
Ivan Perisic's left-footed thunderstrike clipped Ter Stegen's knee on the way to the top corner of the net in the 21st minute. Serge Gnabry would then extend Bayern Munich's lead 6 minutes later with a cool and composed finish. Muller popped up in the right place at the right time once again to poke a low cross home only 4 minutes later.
Barcelona then scored through Suarez in the 57th minute to make it 4-2. However, there was no stopping Bayern after that. Joshua Kimmich tapped in at the end of an excellent solo run from Alphonso David from the left wing to extend the lead to 5-2.
To rub salt in Barcelona's wounds, Philippe Coutinho came on and assisted Robert Lewandowski for Bayern's 6th in the 82nd minute with a neat through ball before scoring twice in the 85th and 89th minute to cap off a win that Bayern Munich fans will talk about for years. As for Barcelona, the less said the better.
