How do we feel about the revamped UEFA Champions League format now?
The first Matchday 8 in competition history was already unprecedented, with all 36 teams in action on Wednesday and plenty of spots — both in the round of 16 and in the two-leg playoffs that will decide which clubs will join those already qualified for that stage.
The action in the 18 games across Europe, which were all contested simultaneously, was worthy of the stakes.
Here are the three biggest takeaways from Wednesday’s jam-packed slate of games.
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Liverpool finishes on top despite suffering its first defeat
Having already punched their ticket to the last 16, Liverpool manager Arne Slot rested almost all of his usual starters for Wednesday’s trip to PSV Eindhoven. The move was understandable but risky; not only did it put the Reds’ perfect record through the first round in jeopardy, but first place in the standings, too.
In the end, Slot’s gamble paid off. Sure, Liverpool dropped points for the first time in Champions League play this season, with U.S. men’s national team striker Ricardo Pepi scoring the winner for PSV just before halftime after the hosts had trailed twice earlier.
But Liverpool remains the top seed thanks to Barcelona’s failure to beat Italian side Atalanta at home. After going 7-0 through their first seven games, it’s hard to suggest that the Reds don’t deserve to be the favorites heading into the business end of the tournament. That’s no small achievement for the English Premier League leaders.
As for PSV, while the Dutch masters were already almost guaranteed a playoff spot before Wednesday’s match, topping the No. 1 seed has to be a confidence-booster. The same goes for Pepi, who also had an assist and who proved on the biggest stage in club soccer that he’s more than capable of leading the line for one of Europe’s 15 best sides.
Manchester City (eventually) takes care of business
Perhaps the biggest story line heading into the final round of fixtures was the fate of the 2023 Champions League winners and four-time defending Prem champs. A dreadful run of form in both competitions over the last two months had City in the elimination places when the whistle blew against Club Brugge, though they knew a win at home over the Belgians would be enough to survive and advance.
By slowly coming out of their funk in recent weeks, Pep Guardiola had to like the Sky Blues’ chances of taking all three points over — let’s be real — an inferior foe, even one as impressive as Brugge (which had already booked a playoff place) has been throughout the league phase.
Falling behind to the visitors early in the first half certainly wasn’t in the script. And given the way their season has largely, inexplicably gone off the rails, Cityzens fans probably expected the worst. Instead, the hosts’ all-planet quality shone through, though the own goal by Brugge defender Joel Ordóñez that put them ahead for good just after the hour mark helped. Savinho made it 3-1 before it was over, vaulting City into 22nd place — just two spots ahead of the cutoff.
That’s obviously not acceptable for one of the leading clubs in the sport. Guardiola will still no doubt take it, especially over the alternative. No team will want to face City in the playoffs or beyond. And with a fifth straight English crown well out of reach, the iconic manager can now rally his troops around lifting the most coveted trophy in the club game for just the second time in City’s history. What a terrifying prospect for the rest of the field.
A great day for England’s other teams, too
Arsenal and Aston Villa also won on Wednesday — at Girona and against Celtic, respectively — to make it three Premier League teams in the top eight. Only Spain (Barcelona, Atlético Madrid) has more than one. The other teams automatically in the round of 16 are Italy’s Inter Milan, France’s Lille and Bayer Leverkusen of Germany.
The 16-team playoffs are sure to be intriguing, too. There’s plenty of star power there, not the least of which belongs to City and last year’s titlist (and record 15-time winner) Real Madrid. Nine other former European champions now also face a two-leg test for the right to contest a spot in the quarterfinals, including brand names like AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Juventus.
Doug McIntyre is a soccer writer for FOX Sports who has covered the United States men’s and women’s national teams at FIFA World Cups on five continents. Follow him at @ByDougMcIntyre.
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