Chukwueze, handed a rare starting role for AC Milan, made the most of the opportunity, scoring a brace in the 6-1 demolition of Sassuolo

Super Eagles duo Samuel Chukwueze and Nathan Tella stole the spotlight on Tuesday, scoring crucial goals in their respective Cup games for AC Milan and Bayer Leverkusen.

Chukwueze, handed a rare starting role for AC Milan, made the most of the opportunity, scoring a brace in the 6-1 demolition of Sassuolo.

His goals helped Milan book their Coppa Italia quarter-final spot, where they will face either Roma or Sampdoria.

The Nigerian winger's first goal came in the 12 minute after a sensational Tijjani Reijnders pass found him one-on-one with the goalkeeper.

Although his initial attempt hit the upright, Chukwueze bundled the rebound over the line.

He completed his brace nine minutes after with an angled drive into the far bottom corner, after Abraham laid the ball off for him.

Tella magic

Meanwhile, Nathan Tella came off the bench to score the winning goal for Bayer Leverkusen against Bayern Munich in the German Cup.

The 1.72-metre tall Tella headed in an Alex Grimaldo cross in the 69th minute, securing a 1-0 victory for Leverkusen.

The win was made all the more impressive by Bayern Munich's dominance of the ball, despite playing with a man down for most of the game.

Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was sent off in the 18th minute for a rash challenge on Jeremie Frimpong, forcing Bayern to play with a numerical disadvantage.

Tella's goal proved to be the decisive factor, as Leverkusen held on to inflict a first domestic defeat on Vincent Kompany's Bayern Munich.

The victory means Xabi Alonso's Leverkusen are through to the quarterfinals, while Bayern Munich's quest for a record 21st German Cup title will have to wait.