Defending champions Real Madrid with record-breaking coach Carlo Ancelotti and surprisingly Benfica with successful coach Roger Schmidt move into the round of 16 of the Champions League as group winners.
Benfica won 6-1 (1-1) at Maccabi Haifa and prevailed in the last minute against the star ensemble Paris St. Germain, who had the same number of points and goals, on the away goals scored. Joao Mario scored in stoppage time.
On the other hand, RB Salzburg’s dream of the knockout round has burst. Austria’s series champion lost the “final” for second place at AC Milan clearly 0: 4 (0: 1). The Europa League remains as a consolation for Salzburg.
Real secured first place in Group F ahead of RB Leipzig with an easy 5-1 (2-0) against Celtic Glasgow at the end of the preliminary round. It was Ancelotti’s 102nd Champions League success – the Italian is now the manager with the most wins in the history of the competition.
PSG narrowly wins at Juventus
Paris with the superstars Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe only managed a narrow 2: 1 (1: 1) at Juventus Turin and had to let an unleashed Benfica pass.
The remaining six group leaders had already been determined before the last matchday – including Manchester City in the Dortmund group. Pep Guardiola’s team underlined their ambitions even without Torgarant Erling Haaland with a 3-1 (0-1) win over Sevilla FC.
Chelsea finished their group with a 2-1 (2-1) win against Dinamo Zagreb.
Champions League draw on Monday
The draw for the premier league round of 16 will take place on Monday (12:00 CET) at UEFA headquarters in Nyon. The first legs increase on 14./15. as well as on 21./22. February, the second leg is for 7./8. and 14./15. March 2023 planned. The group winners have home rights in the second leg.
A duel between the German teams in the round of 16 is not yet possible. Teams from the same country or from the same group can only meet from the quarter-finals onwards.
The 16 qualified teams at a glance:
Pot one: Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Chelsea FC, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, SSC Napoli, FC Porto, Benfica Lisbon
Lot two: Borussia Dortmund, Eintracht Frankfurt, RB Leipzig, Liverpool FC, Bruges FC, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Paris St. Germain.