Paris Saint-Germain vs Bayern Munich Combined XI | UEFA Champions League 2019-20

CDM: Marquinhos | Paris Saint-Germain

Marquinhos has scored two goals in his last two games

Thomas Tuchel experimented with Marquinhos' role last year due to the lack of personnel in midfield, but it was one that paid an astonishing amount of dividends for the German. The Brazilian, although he has played exclusively in defence for a majority of his career, looked like he had been playing in midfield all his life — such is the quality of the former Roma man.

Marquinhos has been peerless at the base of PSG's midfield, playing the role of a third centre-half while in possession and acting as the destroyer without the ball. His ability to win possession back from the opposition has been the critical factor for his consistent performances, and the 26-year-old has shown great composure on the ball as well, which is another crucial aspect of his midfield role. Not to mention, he's currently on a hot streak of two goals in two games.

149 - There were just 149 seconds between Marquinhos scoring PSG's equaliser and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting scoring their winner to send the French side through to the semi finals of the UEFA Champions League. Drama. pic.twitter.com/dbdHNC7rqs

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 12, 2020

The Brazilian has helped nullify some of the most dangerous threats faced by PSG so far, and he will now come up against arguably the most in-form team in the world. The final would be another game for Marquinhos to prove his versatility and truly own his relatively new midfield role, having carried it out excellently so far.

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CDM: Thiago | Bayern Munich

Thiago has been the chief architect of Bayern's midfield dominance

The Spanish metronome came to Bayern Munich as a talented footballer looking for regular game time and could now potentially leave Germany as European champion. Thiago Alcantara has been at the heart of the Bavarians' impressive midfield set up, effortlessly pulling strings from the middle of the park.

The Catalan has been the subject of a lot of transfer speculation in recent times, but has been a model professional and not allowed any of it to take away anything from his displays on the pitch. Thiago looks fitter, sharper and more experienced than ever, as Barcelona found out the hard way in the quarter-finals. The 29-year-old has been the epitome of an all-action midfielder in the UCL, making more than his fair share of defensive actions as well as controlling the tempo of the games.

Thiago Alcântara is the only player in the Bundesliga this season with 90%+ passing accuracy and 80% dribble success rate (min. 10 take-ons attempted):⠀⠀⬢ 90% pass accuracy⠀⬢ 89% take-on success⠀⠀So, so, so silky on the ball. 💫⠀ pic.twitter.com/8ljIQKpJmm

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) January 20, 2020

On form, he has arguably been the most impressive midfielder in the competition so far after some of the most well-rounded displays witnessed by this year's edition of the UCL. Alongside a perfect foil in Leon Goretzka, Thiago has been simply phenomenal in the middle for Bayern.

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CAM: Thomas Muller | Bayern Munich

Muller has enjoyed his best-ever season tally in 2019/20

It would be inaccurate to say that Thomas Muller has rolled back the years with his performances this year as the German has enjoyed what is undoubtedly the best season of his career so far. Muller was on the brink of being left on the periphery of proceedings until Flick took charge of Bayern, and since that moment, there has been no looking back.

The 30-year-old took control of Bayern's creative responsibilities in the final third this year and went on to break the record for most assists in a Bundesliga campaign. With a whopping 21 assists to his name, Muller has been the chief architect of all the damage done by the Bavarians and, particularly, by Robert Lewandowski, as the German assisted eight of the Pole's goals — the highest single combination in Germany. His understanding of spaces and movement is simply unparalleled, and this aspect has been on full display in 2019/20.

23 - Thomas Müller has now scored 23 goals in the Champions League knockout stages, the third-most of any player behind Cristiano Ronaldo (67) and Lionel Messi (47). Stage. #UCL pic.twitter.com/3p2GYY7tKe

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 14, 2020

Muller has also put in tireless shifts for his side, pressing relentlessly at every opportunity and winning the ball back high up the pitch. The Raumdeuter will be one of the key men that PSG need to account for while plotting their tactical set up.

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