Champions League – Barça on the brink, Atlético in danger, OM in the balance: update on the groups

Group A: Liverpool are one step away

The hierarchy seems clear: Napoli in front, the others behind. With four wins in four matches, the Italians have already qualified but have sent a message to Europe. They can already validate first place on Wednesday in the event of a victory against Rangers, combined with a draw or a defeat for Liverpool. But the Reds will mainly play the qualifier against Ajax: a victory and the suspense in this group would be over. For the place in the Europa League, Ajax is better off than Rangers.

Classification

1. Napoli (12 points)
2. Liverpool (9 pts)
3. Ajax (3 pts)
4. Rangers (0 pt)

The matches

• Naples – Glasgow Rangers (21h)
• Ajax Amsterdam – Liverpool (21h)

Group B: Behind Bruges, it will be hard

This is one of the sensations of this Champions League: With 10 points in 4 matches, Club Brugge has already validated its ticket for the round of 16. A draw against Porto on Tuesday could even already guarantee first place in a very open group behind.

FC Porto has a mattress of two points on Atlético and on Bayer Leverkusen, in difficulty since the start of the season. But everything is still possible. A victory for the Portuguese on the Belgian ground, however, would put immense pressure on the Colchoneros. What to consider a burning final on the last day between the team of Sergio Conceicao and that of Diego Simeone.

Classification

1. Le Club Bruges (10 pts)
2. Porto (6 pts)
3. Atlético (4 pts)
4. Leverkusen (3 pts)

The matches

• Club Bruges – FC Porto (18h45)
• Atletico Madrid – Bayer Leverkusen (21h)

Group C: Barça eliminated on Wednesday?

Will Barça come out of the pools for the second time in a row? It’s the fear in Catalonia ahead of a Wednesday that could prove disastrous for the Blaugrana. The equation is simple: Barça is dependent on Inter, which receives Viktoria Plzen from 6:45 p.m. A victory for the Interistes and it is the Europa League which will welcome the Catalan giant next spring.

In the event of a poor performance, it will take a hell of a match for the Barcelonans against the invincible Bayern, already qualified, to hope for a miracle in this group C. In short, it smells scorched for Barça, which does not have its destiny in the hands. The Bavarians, by the way, can validate the first place if they do not lose against Barça or if Inter do not win against Viktoria Plzen.

Classification

1. Bayern Munich (12pts)
2. Inter Milan (7 pts)
3. FC Barcelona (4 pts)
4. Viktoria Plzen (0 pts)

The matches

• Inter Milan – Viktoria Plzen (18h45)
• FC Barcelona – Bayern Munich (21h)

Group D: OM qualified on Wednesday?

They were one of the most open groups in this group stage and they lived up to their promises. Before the matches of this Wednesday, the four teams can still believe in the qualification in 8th. With a point ahead of OM and Sporting, Tottenham can validate their ticket in the event of victory against the Portuguese. A situation that would open the door wide for the Olympians: in the event of victory on the ground in Frankfurt, they would also qualify in 8th.

Any other scenario would make it impossible to draw definitive conclusions. And it is at the Vélodrome, against Tottenham on the last day, that Marseille will play its European future.

Classification

1. Tottenham (7 points)
2. Marseille (6 pts)
3. Sporting Portugal (6 pts)
4. Eintracht Francfort (4 pts)

The matches

• Tottenham – Sporting Portugal (21h)
• Eintracht Francfort – OM (21h)