The group stage of the 2023-24 UEFA Champions League is complete following the final eight first-round games that were played across Europe on Wednesday.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the back half of Match Day 6.
AC Milan’s second-half comeback eliminates Newcastle
Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah and the rest of the Rossoneri needed a win in England and for Paris Saint-Germain to lose in Germany against Borussia Dortmund to advance to next year’s knockout stage.
AC Milan did its part, with Pulisic’s second half goal starting a comeback that gave the visitors a 2-1 victory on Tyneside, a result that knocked the Magpies — who at one point on Wednesday were in position to finish second in Group F behind already qualified Dortmund — out of both the world’s top club competition and also Europa League contention.
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The three points alone weren’t enough in the end. That’s hugely disappointing for Milan, which was hoping that the addition of Pulisic, Musah and several other recruits could propel the seven-time European champions one step further than the semifinal stage it reached last spring before being eliminated by crosstown rival Inter Milan.
But given the fact that Milan seemed destined to be done with international competition altogether this season for the agonizing 26 minutes they trailed on Wednesday, a spot in the Europa League doesn’t seem like the worst consolation prize.
Newcastle, by contrast, have to be kicking themselves. In the space of 25 minutes, the Magpies went from a spot among the last 16 teams standing to being out of European competition before Christmas — a tough way to end 2023 for a club with the loftiest of throphy ambitions.
Paris Saint-Germain hangs on against Dortmund to advance
Unlike AC Milan, PSG was in total control of its own destiny ahead of Wednesday’s finale at the massive, iconic Westfalenstadion. Not only would a win ensure that Kylian Mbappé & Co. would advance to the second round and remain in contention for the continental title it so desperately wants, it would also see them finish in first place.
The Parisians easily handled the Black and Yellow in the French capital in September, a 2-0 triumph in which Mbappé scored the winner from the penalty spot. But the hosts had the upper hand for most of the rematch, and PSG was probably lucky to salvage the point it needed after 17-year-old Warren Zaïre-Emery canceled out BVB’s opener four minutes after Karim Adeyemi put Dortmund in front.
Failing to reach the round of 16 would’ve been a disaster for PSG, a club that wants to claim the Champions League more than ever after Manchester City finally got over the hump last season. Whether they’re good enough to go all the way remains to be seen. Still, you have to be in it to win it.
Barcelona stunned by last gasp loss at Royal Antwerp
When Arthur Vermeeren gave the home side the lead against the five-time European champs less than two minutes in, it felt like it could be a historic night in Belgium. That feeling only grew in the second half, when Vincent Janssen put Antwerp ahead 2-1 — a lead they held all the way until stoppage time.
Then already-qualified Barcelona equalized in the 91st minute via 17-year-old Marc Guiu. So much for that, right? But implausibly, Mark van Bommel’s team had one more moment of magic left, with George Ilenikhena scoring the unlikely game-winner almost immediately after Guiu’s leveler. After beginning its maiden Champions League campaign with five consecutive losses, Antwerp ended it by taking all three points from one of Europe’s most celebrated clubs.
Doug McIntyre is a soccer writer for FOX Sports. Before joining FOX Sports in 2021, he was a staff writer with ESPN and Yahoo Sports and he has covered United States men’s and women’s national teams at multiple FIFA World Cups. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.
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