'Goosebumps': Football world loses it over 'unbelievable' scenes

Karim Benzema has helped mastermind one of the great comebacks in Champions League history with a stunning second half hat-trick that saw Real Madrid knock out French giants Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16.

Benzema's stunning treble earned Madrid a place in the Champions League quarter-finals, after the Spanish giants earned an extraordinary 3-2 aggregate victory.

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Down 1-0 from the first leg in the French capital, Madrid found themselves two goals down in the tie after Kylian Mbappe's first half strike.

It looked to be curtains for the 13-time European champions but Carlo Ancelotti's men - through the craft of former Ballon d'Or winner Luka Modric and the ruthlessness of Benzema - found another gear to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

A horrible error from PSG keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma presented Benzema with his first goal just after the hour and a quick-fire pair of strikes in the 76th and 78th minutes completed the remarkable turnaround that sparked crazy scenes at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Donnarumma dallied on a back pass when approached by Benzema, sliced the ball across goal and Benzema finished when Vinicius Junior squared back to him.

The France forward headed just wide, and Vinicius missed a great chance as PSG wobbled before falling apart.

Modric's wonderful pass released Vinicius who raced up the park and the Croatian midfielder fed Benzema to level with a deflection from the return.

A video check delayed matters but just 10 seconds after kick-off PSG were heading out the competition when Marquinhos' weak clearance was poked in by Benzema for his hat-trick from the edge of the box.

The 34-year-old Frenchman now also has the honour of being the oldest scorer of a hat-trick in Champions League history.

Benzema has also overtaken legendary Real Madrid striker Alfredo Di Stéfano as the third most prolific goal-scorer (309 goals) in the club's storied history.

The striker's extraordinary feat sparked scenes of pandemonium at the Santiago Bernabeu as the football world celebrated an unforgettable match.

PSG fall victims to another knockout stage collapse

PSG's failure came five years after Barcelona overturned a huge first-leg deficit against them in the Champions League and this loss will hurt just as much.

Madrid target Mbappe had two goals disallowed as he controlled the game early on but faded and self-inflicted wounds cost Mauricio Pochettino's side dearly.

Lionel Messi was hardly a factor in his return to Spain.

Real will enter the March 18 quarter-final draw along with Manchester City, who drew 0-0 with Sporting Lisbon after a 5-0 canter in Portugal.

Bayern Munich and Liverpool progressed on Tuesday and the remaining second legs are played next week.

Mbappe has been repeatedly linked with a move to Real and his performance, including the 39th minute opener from Neymar's through ball, did not hurt his reputation.

That is in contrast to the PSG defence which collapsed spectacularly when under little pressure.

Despite the wealth of attacking talent at their disposal, PSG were beaten and Real could have made it four in the final stages.

In Manchester, Sporting restored some order with a defensive display earning a goalless draw after their debacle in Lisbon.

Gabriel Jesus had a potential winner disallowed for offside but Premier League leaders City are unlikely to be too concerned.

with agencies

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