The Champions League league phase wrapped up with an exhilarating final matchday, as all 36 teams competed simultaneously. Goals rained across Europe, dramatically shifting the standings, including a rare strike from a goalkeeper. Eight teams secure direct entry to the last 16, while 16 others battle in play-offs for the remaining knockout positions.
Powerhouses like Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid enter the play-offs, joined by multiple league champions. Newcastle and Qarabag prepare for their inaugural Champions League play-off clashes. These two-legged ties promise excitement, with straightforward qualification paths. Key numbers highlight five standout matchups.
Galatasaray vs. Juventus
Kenan Yildiz ranks as the second-youngest player to achieve double digits in chances created (12) and completed dribbles (16) this season, trailing only Lamine Yamal. Hailing from Regensburg, he joined Bayern Munich’s academy at age seven before moving to Juventus on a free transfer in 2022. Opting for Turkey internationally, Yildiz drives Juventus’ attacks. He leads Italian clubs with three assists in Europe and boasts eight Serie A goals, second only to Lautaro Martinez’s 14. Yildiz tops charts in combined goals and assists, chances created, passes into the final third and box, plus Serie A dribbles (49), while striking the woodwork five times.
Galatasaray counters with Victor Osimhen, who scores six goals in six Champions League outings this season—behind only Burak Yilmaz’s eight in 2012-13 for the club. They stay unbeaten at home against Italian foes (five wins, three draws) and hold a strong record versus Juventus (two wins, three draws, one loss), including a 1-0 victory in December 2013.
Borussia Dortmund vs. Atalanta
Charles de Ketelaere contributes to 13 goals across 17 Champions League appearances for Atalanta (six goals, seven assists), nearing Mario Pasalic’s club record. Atalanta relies on his creativity and dribbling, with 80 percent of his touches under high-intensity pressure—the highest among attacking midfielders and wingers. Only Kylian Mbappe (22) creates more chances in such scenarios than de Ketelaere (20).
A partial meniscus tear sidelines him until mid-March, thrusting Lazar Samardzic and Giacomo Raspadori into creative roles. Atalanta also misses Gianluca Scamacca and Ademola Lookman, who joined Atletico Madrid. Defensively, they concede the most from errors (five goals). Dortmund exploits pressure with swift transitions, led by Serhou Guirassy’s 29 percent shot conversion rate since October 2020 (18 goals from 62 attempts), best among players with 50-plus shots.
Monaco vs. Paris Saint-Germain
Monaco remains unbeaten in four straight Champions League home games (one win, three draws), posting clean sheets in the last three for 315 scoreless minutes since Erling Haaland’s October strike. Offensively, they struggle with the worst expected-goals differential (-6.5), netting eight from 14.5 xG—fewest among qualifiers.
Maghnes Akliouche logs the most minutes (1,614) and four domestic goals but draws blanks in Europe, leading in xG without scoring (3.0) and shots (25). Folarin Balogun, with three competition goals, provides the main threat and has netted in two of four prior games against PSG. The teams meet for the first time in Europe.
Benfica vs. Real Madrid
Benfica and Real Madrid lead with four goals from direct attacks each. Madrid tops direct attacks (29, or 3.6 per game), Benfica follows (17, or 2.1 per game). Both thrive playing forward quickly into space. Madrid converts 31 percent of high turnovers into shots (18 of 58), despite middling regains.
The Mbappe-Vinicius Junior duo creates 19 chances, most in the competition (10 Mbappe-to-Vinicius, nine reverse). Yet Madrid falters, losing six of 11 recent Champions League games and conceding 13 shots from errors—second-worst. Under Jose Mourinho, Benfica aims to disrupt via possession control and rapid counters. Their January 4-2 league-phase win featured goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin’s 98th-minute winner—Mourinho’s first over Madrid in six tries. Benfica wins three of four prior European ties against them and dominates home games versus Spanish sides (4-0 vs. Atletico, 4-2 vs. Madrid).
Qarabag vs. Newcastle
Newcastle travels 2,529 miles to Baku—the farthest for any English Champions League away game. They face eight matches from January 28 to February 21, seven away, fresh off a 2-1 Tottenham win ending a five-game winless streak. Projections give them an 89 percent advancement chance.
Anthony Gordon and Harvey Barnes feature in 76 percent of goals (13 of 17): Gordon with six goals and two assists (behind only Mbappe, Kane, Haaland); Barnes five goals, one assist. Qarabag concedes two-plus in six straight Champions League games, shipping 21 in the phase—second-worst. Camilo Duran scores four, trailing few Colombians in a single edition. Both teams drop points from leads: Newcastle 19 in Premier League (most), Qarabag eight in Europe (behind only Frankfurt’s nine).
