With 25 teams still in the fight, the seventh matchday of the UEFA Champions League has left the table fascinating heading into the final round of the tournament.
Matchday 7 of the Champions League is now in the books, and 25 out of 36 teams are still waiting to discover their fate in this new tournament format, with each team having played eight games. This matchday brought expected results, surprises, and most importantly, epic moments of football.
The top eight direct qualifiers
Liverpool leads Europe as the only team to have won all seven of their games, accumulating 21 points. Behind them is Barcelona, who, with a stunning comeback against Benfica, secured 18 points. Both teams have already secured direct qualification to the knockout stages, regardless of the result in their final group match.
In third place, Arsenal holds 16 points, with a goal difference of +12, which gives them a significant advantage to stay among the top eight. While mathematically not yet guaranteed direct qualification, it seems unlikely they won’t make it into the elite group of teams advancing to the next round.
Next in the table, Inter is fourth with the same 16 points, while Atlético Madrid and AC Milan follow in fifth and sixth place, respectively, both with 15 points. Atalanta is seventh with 14 points, and Bayer Leverkusen is eighth with 13 points and a +6 goal difference.
A fierce battle for direct qualification to the knockout stage
Excitement picks up from ninth to eighteenth place, as these teams have secured their playoff spots. However, Aston Villa, Monaco, Feyenoord, LOSC Lille, and Brest, with 13 points; Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Juventus, and Celtic, all with 12 points, still have a great chance to secure a top-eight spot with a win. This section of the table promises to be a thrilling spectacle as we see who can earn direct qualification and who will have to settle for a playoff spot in the final matchday.
Teams fighting for playoffs
PSV and Club Brugge, with 11 points in 19th and 20th place, respectively, still have a chance to make it into the top eight, but it looks very difficult for them to achieve this feat. A win, however, would almost guarantee their place in the playoffs.
Benfica, PSG, Sporting Club, and Stuttgart, each with 10 points, are next and will only be focused on securing their playoff spot in their final match.
Meanwhile, Manchester City in 25th, Dinamo Zagreb in 26th, both with 8 points, and Shakhtar in 27th with 7 points, must win at all costs and hope for favorable results from the teams above them to have a chance at the playoffs.
Eliminated teams
Finally, the teams already eliminated, ranked 28th to 36th, are Bologna, Sparta Prague, RB Leipzig, Girona, Red Star Belgrade, Sturm, RB Salzburg, Slovan Bratislava, and Young Boys.
