Manchester City secured their place in the Champions League knockout phase after a comeback victory against Club Brugge on Wednesday. Paris Saint-Germain also advanced, while Arsenal earned direct qualification to the last 16 in the final round of league-phase matches.
Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, Lille, and Aston Villa joined Liverpool and Barcelona in securing top-eight finishes, allowing them to bypass the new play-off round.
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The evening was filled with tension as 16 out of 18 games had significant implications. Manchester City avoided elimination with a 3-1 win over Club Brugge. The Premier League champions will now face either Real Madrid or Bayern Munich in a crucial play-off match next month.
“In the second half we lifted our soul and our hearts were free. For today we are in the next round, that’s good,” said City manager Pep Guardiola to TNT Sports.
PSG displayed impressive form with a 4-1 victory at Stuttgart. Arsenal secured their last-16 spot with a 2-1 win against Girona, courtesy of goals from Jorginho and Ethan Nwaneri.
“Hopefully more belief in that dressing room that we are a good team and can face anyone and still perform and win games,” said Gunners manager Mikel Arteta.
Inter Milan claimed fourth place after defeating 10-man Monaco 3-0. Atletico Madrid continued their strong run with a 4-1 win against Salzburg in Austria.
Bayer Leverkusen advanced with a 2-0 victory over Sparta Prague. Lille emerged as the only French team to secure a top-eight position after defeating Feyenoord 6-1.
Aston Villa, in their first Champions League appearance in 42 years, clinched eighth place with Morgan Rogers scoring a hat-trick in their 4-2 victory over Celtic.
Atalanta, Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid, Bayern, and AC Milan finished just one point short of the top eight positions.
The play-off draw on Friday will include PSV Eindhoven, Benfica, Monaco, Brest, Feyenoord, Juventus, Celtic, Sporting Lisbon, and Club Brugge.
The new 36-team format created significant suspense, though all major teams secured positions in the top 24 to remain in the competition.
Man City survive scare
Manchester City faced a challenging situation when Raphael Onyedika scored for Brugge just before halftime. However, Mateo Kovacic equalised after the break, followed by Joel Ordonez’s own goal and Savinho’s late strike.
Despite their loss, Brugge qualified for the play-offs and will face either Atalanta or Dortmund.
PSG dominated their match in Germany as Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele’s double put them three goals ahead within 35 minutes. Dembele completed his hat-trick before Chris Fuehrich scored for Stuttgart.
“We’ve been doing very well for some time now, playing well, controlling possession and winning our games,” Dembele told Canal+.
PSG finished 15th, extending their knockout stage qualification streak to 13 consecutive seasons, despite being outside the top 24 after six matches.
“We’re delighted to have qualified for the play-offs,” added Dembele.
PSG will face either Monaco or Brest in their bid for a last-16 spot, while Stuttgart was eliminated.
Milan settle for playoffs
AC Milan’s hopes for a top-eight finish ended with a 2-1 defeat at Dinamo Zagreb, significantly impacted by Yunus Musah’s red card in the 39th minute.
Dinamo’s elimination was confirmed when Conrad Harder scored an equaliser for Sporting in their 1-1 draw with Bologna.
Milan will compete against either local rivals Juventus or Feyenoord in the play-offs.
A much-changed Liverpool finished top even though they lost 3-2 at PSV Eindhoven, as second-placed Barcelona drew 2-2 with Atalanta, who finished ninth match having started the evening in seventh place.
Champions League last-16
Qualify automatically: Liverpool, Barcelona, Aston Villa, Lille, Bayer Leverkusen, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Arsenal
Play-offs: Atalanta, Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, AC Milan, PSV Eindhoven, PSG, Benfica, Monaco, Brest, Feyenoord, Juventus, Celtic, Man City, Sporting CP, Club Brugge
Eliminated: Dinamo Zagreb, Stuttgart, Shakhtar Donetsk, Bologna, Red Star Belgrade, Sturm Graz, Sparta Prague, Leipzig, Girona, Salzburg, Slovan Bratislava, Young Boys.
