So now the Champions League can really begin. Regular readers of the SBOTOP blog know my views of the new-fangled group stage which ran for five months (almost half a year!) from September to late January and the reality it caused.
No, not better quality football, but, in fact, more fatigued players, more injuries, and a format that did exactly what was intended – increase the chances of the European superpowers qualifying for the knockout stages. That, presumably, is what many backers of the crassly thought-out Super League in 2021 wanted, as opposed to the inconvenience of entertaining the smaller fry.
Alas, now the play-offs have concluded we can look forward to the knockout stages proper, and what I’m sure will be intriguing ties thrown up in Friday’s draw.
Of course, we know one big player is missing following a clash of familiar foes for the fourth successive season in the competition.
In the end, it was easy to put this down to two men – arguably the two best front men in world football – but the difference was telling as one played a starring role, and the other was left on the substitutes’ bench.
Whether or not Erling Haaland, who scored both Manchester City’s goals in the first leg, had a knock is unclear but, if not; it was certainly a surprise to see him left out of the starting XI.
That meant that, by contrast, all the Champions League 2025 highlights belonged to Kylian Mbappe, who proved on the biggest stage why Real Madrid waited so patiently to secure his services.
As starts go, it was a dream for the hosts and a nightmare for the visitors in the Bernabeu. Within six minutes, Mbappe had capitalised on a mistake to lob the opener before City centre-back John Stones, whose campaign has been disrupted by injury, left the field after suffering another setback.
When the French captain produced another clinical finish just after the half hour mark, the tie was over. How he loves this competition. How he would love to win it after failed attempts at PSG. How he would have enjoyed completing his hat-trick.
It came just past the hour and was a piece of skill and precision finishing from the edge of the box which made him look a cut above his markers.
Still, Haaland watched on from the bench. There was nothing for him to salvage by this point anyway. Their only bright spot for Pep Guardiola came in the closing seconds when two new signings combined as Omar Marmoush hit the woodwork with a free-kick and Nico Gonzalez pounced to touch home the rebound.
The Champions League 2025 betting odds on Real should now close dramatically – no wonder when the holders have another superstar in their ranks. No player has more goals in the knockout stages of the Champions League since 2016-17 than Mbappe (24).
Amongst the other highlights of the play-offs, a battle between Europa League holders Atalanta and plucky Belgians Club Brugge.
Trailing 2-1 from the first leg, Gian Piero Gasperini’s men were still big favourites but they had more injury issues to contend with on the eve of the contest with centre-back Isak Hien the latest facing a spell on the sidelines.
He joined Giorgio Scalvini (who has a shoulder injury, shortly after recovering from an ACL), fellow defender Odilon Kossounou, new signing Daniel Maldini, and Gianluca Scamacca out of action.
On the upside, La Dea welcomed back Sead Kolasinac and Ademola Lookman into the squad with the latter deemed fit enough for the bench and he made an instant impact when called upon.
The only issue for the hosts was, by that stage, they were 3-0 down, 5-1 behind on aggregate and all but out. The Nigerian pulled one back straight away and could have had another but saw a penalty saved by goalkeeper Simon Mignolet.
Even had he scored again, it was highly unlikely the home side would have grabbed two more goals, but the fallout from the missed spot kick is what was dominating some of the Italian media in the immediate aftermath.
The comments of coach Gian Piero Gasperini, who described Lookman as “one of the worst penalty takers” he had ever seen were, said the striker, “deeply disrespectful and hurtful.” It’s hoped their relationship can overcome this setback or it may prove to be the end of what has been a fruitful partnership.
As for Club Brugge, few expected them to win this tie, and they deserve great credit after scoring three first-half goals in the Gewiss Stadium.
Chemsdine Talbi netted their quickest ever goal in the competition inside the opening three minutes, slotting into the bottom corner, and the same player pounced from close range to put the Belgians firmly in control after a Christos Tzolis shot was parried into his path.
When Ferran Jutgla produced a fine finish into the bottom corner to round off a scintillating counterattack, this after the hosts’ Davide Zappacosta and Juan Cuadrado hit the post in quick succession, Brugge were home and hosed and Atalanta must have realised it wasn’t to be their day.
It was a bad week for Italian clubs as Juventus bowed out to PSV after extra-time and counterparts, Milan, suffered a surprise aggregate defeat to Dutch champions Feyenoord.
It took the Italians just 36 seconds to wipe out a 1-0 first leg deficit as Santiago Gimenez netted against his former club with the fastest goal in this season’s competition.
The dismissal of home full-back Theo Hernandez for a second yellow card six minutes after the restart was key, and Feyenoord sub Julian Carranza headed in the decisive 73rd minute goal to seal a 2-1 aggregate success.
Despite being reduced to 10 men themselves in stoppage time, they are through to the last 16 for the first time since 1974 (which was a vintage period for Dutch football).
In Germany, “Scotland the brave” (in the shape of Celtic) were facing Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich and, despite a spirited first leg display, I could not imagine anyone expecting anything but progress from the Bavarians.
For Celtic to be seconds away from taking the contest to extra-time was quite something, but did anyone really expect any other result than a German success?
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