The group stage of the 2021/22 UEFA Champions League is officially in the books, and the Round of 16 has all of its participants. Now, the tournament gets serious. A few surprising results made the group stage a lot more interesting. Paris Saint-Germain finishing second in the group was a surprise. In addition, Borussia Dortmund being relegated to the Europa League is quite a shocker. Shockers and surprises are truly what the Champions League is all about.
The draw for the Round of 16 takes place next Monday with the Round of 16 beginning in February. With the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, and Juventus all considered favorites, the real competition is soon beginning. There are many big clubs, but only one will win it all.
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Barcelona will play in the Europa League in 2022 😳 pic.twitter.com/b6Qp0IDF9k
— GOAL (@goal) December 8, 2021
Atlético Madrid Pulled Off A Miracle
There was a high chance that Atlético would finish at the bottom of the group, meaning they’d be out of the Champions League as well as the Europa League. Coming into matchday six having lost their previous three group games, they still had a chance to secure a second-place finish.
Liverpool’s win against AC Milan did help Atlético. However, Atlético’s win over Porto solidified their spot in the Round of 16 since a draw would not have helped Atlético in any way. Atlético pulled through when it mattered most and with an assist from Liverpool, they went from being buried in last to finishing second in their group.
However, it’s too early to declare that Atlético has truly redeemed themselves. In order to redeem themselves, Atlético must have a deep run in the Champions League knockout stage.
Barcelona Is OUT of The Champions League
For the first time in 21 years, Barcelona will not advance to the Champions League knockout stage. Barcelona is being relegated to the Europa League for the first time since 2004.
2021 has been the worst year for Barcelona. The departure of Lionel Messi was just the beginning. Soon, the team would perform so badly that Barcelona had no choice but to make a managerial change, however, so far it’s not going very well. In addition, Barcelona is sitting seventh in the La Liga standings and sixteen points behind Real Madrid who’s on top of La Liga.
Barcelona is fortunate to still be competing for a title. However, the club is far from being at the level of a true title contender.
Chelsea Allowed Juventus To Win The Group
All Chelsea had to do was win their final group game and they would have won the group. But they could not take care of business against Zenit Saint Petersburg. Juventus’s win over Malmö FF sealed Chelsea’s fate. Had Chelsea and Juventus both won, Chelsea would have topped the group via goal differential.
Last weekend, Chelsea suffered an upset loss against West Ham United. Chelsea’s allowing Zenit to tie the game deep in stoppage time is very frustrating for the defending champions. The fact that Chelsea had the group won only to cough it up in the closing game is embarrassing. However, they need to accept defeat and prepare for the knockout stage.
Lille Wins Group G
Lille overcame insurmountable odds to win their group. A win is what Lille needed in order to secure the top spot of Group G. After amassing only two points after their first three group games, Lille was in trouble. However, by winning their next three, Lille proved themselves as resilient and respectable.
Lille’s winning streak started with a hard-fought 2-1 on the road against Seville. Seville was heavily favored to win the group, and instead, they finished third, meaning they’re being relegated to the Europa League. Although Lille won Ligue 1 last season, they’re currently eleventh in the standings. On the bright side, they’re in the knockout stage of the Champions League.
From this point on, nothing gets easier for Lille. Their odds of climbing back up in the Ligue 1 standings seem rather scarce. Regardless, they need to finish it out as best as they can.
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