The Champions League is finally back, ladies and gentleman.

After a two-month hiatus, eight teams contested their last-16 ties on Tuesday and Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Atletico Madrid shocked Liverpool in their first leg at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium while an Erling Haaland inspired Borussia Dortmund narrowly saw off PSG.

And on Wednesday, Atalanta smashed Valencia 4-1 and RB Leipzig beat Tottenham 1-0 in London.

With the Champions League making it's long awaited return, we've decided to look at stats provided by WhoScored.com to list the 20 best players in the competition so far this season.

20. Willian - 7.61

Willian was statistically Chelsea's best player as they narrowly progressed through Group H.

19. Luis Suarez - 7.61

Suarez recorded five goal contributions in four starts before Christmas.

18. Kingsley Coman - 7.64

Bayern won all six of their Group B games, with Coman tallying two goals and an assist.

17. Juan Cuadrado - 7.66

Cuadrado - not Cristiano Ronaldo - has been Juventus' best Champions Leaguer performer this season.

16. Son Heung-min - 7.68

Son netted five times for Spurs in the group stages. Unfortunately, he is now expected to be out for the season and won't feature in the competition again.

15. Hwang Hee-Chan - 7.69

Hee-Chan performed well for Salzburg before their elimination, recording six goal contributions in the group stages.

14. Gabriel Jesus - 7.71

Man City cruised through to the knockout rounds and Jesus, who netted four times, played a big role.

13. Karim Benzema - 7.74

Benzema continues to shine both in Spain and in Europe. He has relished becoming Real Madrid's star man after Ronaldo's departure.

12. Houssem Aouar - 7.74

Aouar recorded three goal contributions in four games for Lyon as they progressed through Group H.

11. Hakim Ziyech - 7.74

Ajax crashed out of the competition in December but that was not Ziyech's fault, who leads all players in the competition with four assists.

10. Raheem Sterling - 7.79

Seven goal contributions in just four starts is a brilliant return. He's fared a lot better in Europe than he has in the Premier League this season.

9. Kylian Mbappe - 7.83

Five goals and four assists in just four starts is insane.

8. Memphis Depay - 7.84

Depay scored five times in as many games but, unfortunately, his campaign has been cut short with a serious injury.

7. Rodrygo - 7.91

Rodrygo has thrived in his first Champions League campaign, netting four times for Real Madrid in just three starts.

6. Riyad Mahrez - 7.93

Mahrez isn't a guaranteed starter for Man City but has been one of their best performers this season.

5. Thiago - 7.96

Bayern were mightily impressive in the group stages and Thiago makes the side tick.

4. Harry Kane - 8.08

Kane netted six times in the group stages but it's likely he won't play another Champions League game this season.

3. Toni Kroos - 8.09

Kroos turned 30 in January but is still performing at a very high level for Real Madrid.

2. Lionel Messi - 8.66

Messi has performed brilliantly again this season, turning in an average rating of 8.66/10. That's not enough for top spot, though...

1. Robert Lewandowski - 9.15

Lewandowski has been unstoppable in Europe this season. His 10 group stage goals helped him to an average rating of 9.15/10, which is out of this world.

So the top 20 is littered with Bayern, Man City and Real Madrid players, who all have three representatives.

Despite winning it all last season and being dominant domestically, Liverpool don't have a single player in the top 20. 

Haaland is also a surprise omission. The Norwegian striker has scored eight times in the competition but is only ranked 32nd.

And there's also no place for Ronaldo.

The Portuguese forward has recorded an average rating of 7.32 which only makes him the 54th best player in the competition.

There's plenty of time for him to turn it around though between now and the end of the Champions League season...