The new-look league phase has officially caused plenty of drama in the UEFA Champions League, leaving several European heavyweights in perilous position with three games left to book a spot in the knockout rounds.
Even though the league phase guaranteed stiff competition for teams of all strength levels, few would have anticipated that Real Madrid and Manchester City would be in tricky spots after Matchday 5. They are far from the only ones, though, whose hopes of advancing might go down to the wire – Paris Saint-Germain are surprisingly outside the top 24, while RB Leipzig are somehow still waiting for their first point in the Champions League this season.
Those who are in the top eight at this point – including top sides like Liverpool and Barcelona and surprise contenders like Monaco and Atalanta – have the knockouts in their sights, but for the rest, there’s still much work to do. There are reasons to panic for many teams sitting outside the top eight, but their worries definitely vary.
As the league phase inches closer to its conclusion, here’s how panicky Europe’s top teams should be.
Champions League standings
Key: Positions 1-8 qualify for Round of 16 while positions 9-24 qualify for Knockout Phase Play-Offs and positions 25-36 are eliminated.
| Pos | Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 | +11 | 15 |
| 2 | Inter | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | +7 | 13 |
| 3 | Barcelona | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 5 | +13 | 12 |
| 4 | Borussia Dortmund | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 6 | +10 | 12 |
| 5 | Atalanta | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 1 | +10 | 11 |
| 6 | Bayer Leverkusen | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 5 | +6 | 10 |
| 7 | Arsenal | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 10 |
| 8 | Monaco | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 7 | +5 | 10 |
| 9 | Aston Villa | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 10 |
| 10 | Sporting Lisbon | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 10 |
| 11 | Brest | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | +3 | 10 |
| 12 | Lille | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5 | +2 | 10 |
| 13 | Bayern Munich | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 7 | +5 | 9 |
| 14 | Benfica | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 9 |
| 15 | Atletico Madrid | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 9 | +2 | 9 |
| 16 | AC Milan | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 9 | +2 | 9 |
| 17 | Manchester City | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 7 | +6 | 8 |
| 18 | PSV | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 8 |
| 19 | Juventus | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 5 | +2 | 8 |
| 20 | Celtic | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 8 |
| 21 | Feyenoord | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 13 | -3 | 7 |
| 22 | Club Bruges | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | -3 | 7 |
| 23 | Dinamo Zagreb | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 15 | -5 | 7 |
| 24 | Real Madrid | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 6 |
| 25 | Paris Saint-Germain | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 6 | -3 | 4 |
| 26 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 8 | -4 | 4 |
| 27 | Stuttgart | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 11 | -7 | 4 |
| 28 | Sparta Prague | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 14 | -9 | 4 |
| 29 | Storm Graz | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 6 | -4 | 3 |
| 30 | Girona | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 9 | -5 | 3 |
| 31 | Red Star | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 17 | -8 | 3 |
| 32 | RB Salzburg | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 15 | -12 | 3 |
| 33 | Bologna | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 7 | -6 | 1 |
| 34 | RB Leipzig | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 10 | -6 | 0 |
| 35 | Slavic Bratislava | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 18 | -14 | 0 |
| 36 | Young Boys | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 17 | -15 | 0 |
Let’s assign levels of panic for the big dogs that are struggling. One is very little reason to worry while 10 is full panic mode with changes needed immediately.
Bayern Munich
Remaining schedule (all times U.S./Eastern):
- Dec. 10, 3 p.m.: Shakhtar Donetsk vs. Bayern Munich
- Jan. 22, 3 pm: Feyenoord vs. Bayern Munich
- Jan. 29, 3 pm: Bayern Munich vs. Slavic Bratislava
It has not exactly been smooth sailing for Bayern Munich so far in the league phase, but outside their 4-1 loss to Barcelona, they have generally been the better team in each of the games they have played so far. They have earned a firm spot in the top 24 and the top eight is still well within touching distance, putting them in strong position to advance. That’s without glancing at their upcoming schedule, which is very favorable to the German giants.
Panic level: 4/10
Real Madrid
Remaining schedule (all times U.S./Eastern):
- Dec. 10, 3 p.m.: Atalanta vs. Real Madrid
- Jan. 22, 3 p.m.: Real Madrid vs. RB Salzburg
- Jan. 29, 3 p.m.: Brest vs. Real Madrid
Earning just six points from 15 and sitting 24th, a spot in the top eight feels out of reach at this point, even if a spot in the knockout rounds are well within grasp. The good news for Real Madrid is that they are undoubtedly good enough to win any of their remaining games, even if Atalanta surprisingly snuck into the top eight and Brest are not far behind in 11th. The bad news is that the reigning European champions are not playing like a heavyweight, and they need to figure out how to fix that in order to actually capitalize on the opportunity in front of them.
Panic level: 7/10
Manchester City
Remaining schedule (all times U.S./Eastern):
- Dec. 11, 3 p.m.: Juventus vs. Manchester City
- Jan. 22, 3 p.m.: Paris Saint-Germain vs. Manchester City
- Jan. 29, 3 p.m.: Manchester City vs. Club Brugge
Manchester City are doing slightly better than Real Madrid with eight points, but the situation is awfully similar – the 2023 champions have the ability to beat anyone but certainly are not playing like it. Unlike Madrid, though, City’s remaining schedule is full of some obvious challenges. Juventus have conceded just five goals this season, which could make things difficult for an increasingly stifled City offense, while Paris Saint-Germain’s desperation for points could make their Matchday 7 meeting interesting. Pep Guardiola and company have enough to dig themselves out of this hole, but they are really going to need to prove it with three games left in the league phase.
Panic level: 8/10
Paris Saint-Germain
Remaining schedule (all times U.S./Eastern):
- Dec. 10, 3 p.m.: RB Salzburg vs. Paris Saint-Germain
- Jan. 22, 3 p.m.: Paris Saint-Germain vs. Manchester City
- Jan. 29, 3 p.m.: Stuttgart vs. Paris Saint-Germain
If there was an award for the surprise team outside the top 24, PSG would be the obvious choice. They were arguably dealt the worst hand after being signed up to face Arsenal, Bayern and Manchester City in the league phase, but there have been few positives to take from this season so far in the Champions League. They have just one victory in five, doing little to inspire confidence in Luis Enrique’s post-Kylian Mbappe rebuild, even in the one game they won. They can still turn things around and find a spot in the top 24, but they have no points to waste with three games to go and so the games against RB Salzburg and Stuttgart are essentially must-wins. PSG, though, might also need to hope that City’s form continues for another two months because they might need something out of that crucial game, too.
Panic level: 9/10
