Manchester United picked up victory in the Europa League but it wasn’t a good week for the North London duo of Arsenal and Tottenham in their respective European outings.

Arsene Wenger’s Gunners were thumped 5-1 by German champions Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie on Tuesday night, despite going in at half time level at 1-1 after Alexis Sanchez cancelled out Arjen Robben’s excellent opener for the hosts.

However, that was as good as it got for Wenger’s men, who totally capitulated second half and conceded three goals in ten minutes to all but end their hopes of ending their last 16 hoodoo, the stage at which they have been knocked out of the competition in each of the last six seasons.

Arsenal weren’t the only team battered in the Champions League this week, as Luis Enrique’s Barcelona went down 4-0 at French champions Paris Saint-Germain, who of course finished runners-up to Arsenal in the group stages.

In the Europa League on Thursday, Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United eased past Saint-Etienne 3-0 at Old Trafford thanks to a hat-trick from in-form striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, yet Tottenham suffered a surprising and disappointing 1-0 defeat in Gent, leaving them with a lot of work to do at Wembley next week.

So, in what was an exciting week of football around the continent, here is What’s Hot and What’s Not from this week’s European fixtures…

HOT – Bayern Munich and PSG

Both Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain would have targeted the first legs of their Champions League last 16 ties as an opportunity to take a lead into their away matches, yet neither would have expected to take such a healthy cushion into the second legs.

Unai Emery’s PSG battered tournament favourites Barcelona 4-0 at the Stade de France on Tuesday night, with Angel di Maria firing home a brace in what was a totally dominant and commanding performance against the Spanish giants.

Barca by contrast were very poor, with the likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez anonymous, but Arsenal went some way in trying to beat them to worst performance of the week the day after in Munich.

The Gunners were level at half time after Alexis Sanchez cancelled out Arjen Robben’s opener, but their second half display was a horror show, conceding four times to all but end their hopes of reaching the quarter finals for the first time since 2010.

Bayern and PSG would not have believed their luck this week, and they are heavy favourites to now make it through to the last eight.

NOT – Arsene Wenger and Arsenal

Arsenal were in a great positon at half time against Bayern, and many even speculated at the break that the Gunners could go on and win the game.

However, their second half showing was awful, with the loss of captain Laurent Koscielny appearing to impact them more than it should have done.

The Frenchman was hauled off after 49 minutes, and the hosts took full advantage of Arsenal backline’s distinct lack of leadership and organisation to net three times in ten minutes.

But for goalkeeper David Ospina, it could have been significantly worse for the Gunners, but the total capitulation in the second period was totally unacceptable, and one both the manager and the players have to take responsibility for.

Subsequently, Wenger’s future is now up in the air, with it plausible that his future in the job boils down to an FA Cup fifth round clash at non-league Sutton United on Monday.

HOT – Zlatan Ibrahimović

Zlatan Ibrahimovic continues to fire home the goals for Manchester United, with his hat-trick in the 3-0 success over Saint-Etienne taking his tally to 23 for the season.

There was much talk about the 35-year-old’s suitability to the English game when he arrived on a free transfer in the summer, but he has completely quashed any doubts after a stunning start to life in Manchester.

Thursday night’s trio was his first hat-trick for the club, but it once again highlighted how important he is to Jose Mourinho’s side, with his 23 goals now 14 more than their next top goal-scorer Juan Mata.

Ibrahimovic was excellent against the French side, and United will as a result take a commanding lead to the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard next week.

NOT – Tottenham

In contrast to United’s comfortable win in the Europa League, there were once again European demons for Tottenham as they went down 1-0 to Gent on Thursday.

The Belgian side, currently eighth in the top-flight having lost 1-0 to the side fourth from bottom last weekend, were good value for their win over Mauricio Pochettino’s men, despite the Spurs boss including the likes of Harry Kane and Dele Alli in his starting line-up.

It was yet another lacklustre and meek display from Spurs, something the Wembley faithful were accustomed to during their ill-fated Champions League campaign earlier in the season, which leaves them needing a strong display at the national stadium next week to turn things around.

There’s clearly an issue with Tottenham playing in Europe, and it’s one Pochettino must solve fast to not only remain in the Europa League this term, but to increase their chances of success in future European competition.