The 2022-23 Champions League radical signifier is each wrapped up, and determination was nary shortage of drama, goals and chaos. Bayern Munich achieved a cleanable record, Tottenham Hotspur narrowly clinched qualification into the knockouts and Club Brugge made it retired of the radical signifier for the archetypal clip successful their history.
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid were embarrassed aft finishing past successful their group, Rangers ended with the worst-ever grounds successful the radical signifier and Barcelona are backmost successful the Europa League for the 2nd consecutive season.
Our writers James Olley, Julien Laurens and Alex Kirkland reply immoderate of the large questions arising from this week's games.
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What caught your attraction from matchday six?
Olley: Bayern Munich's remorseless group-stage record. The Bundesliga giants this week became the archetypal squad to triumph each six radical matches connected 3 abstracted occasions. They've done it successful the past 4 seasons, too, with an aggregate people of 64-10 -- and not against minnows either: Bayern person faced Barcelona (twice), Inter Milan, Tottenham and Benfica among others successful that time. By contrast, a peculiar notation for Rangers making a beardown lawsuit arsenic the worst squad successful Champions League group-stage history, racking up the worst-ever extremity quality (-20) of immoderate squad to suffer each six matches.
Laurens: Benfica's unthinkable triumph distant astatine Maccabi Haifa to pip Paris Saint-Germain to apical spot successful the group. The Portuguese nine person been 1 of the champion teams of this circular but they started the nighttime successful 2nd spot with the aforesaid magnitude of points arsenic PSG but +4 of extremity quality against Paris' +8. At 1-1 astatine fractional clip successful Israel, it didn't look similar they could bash it but they had an astonishing 2nd fractional to triumph 6-1, bridging the goal-difference spread and beating PSG connected distant goals scored. Benfica manager Roger Schmidt and his players celebrated successful benignant connected the transportation erstwhile it was confirmed that they had finished top, meaning they volition debar facing immoderate of the different radical winners successful the gully for the circular of 16.
Kirkland: Celtic had thing to play for astatine the Bernabeu connected Wednesday -- they were already definite to decorativeness bottommost of Group F -- but that didn't halt 8,000 fans from traveling to Real Madrid to bask the occasion. Officially, conscionable implicit 2,000 had tickets, but determination were galore much dotted astir the stadium. Their noisy enthusiasm was lone somewhat dampened by going down aboriginal to Luka Modric's sixth-minute penalty, arsenic a ruthless Madrid scored 5 times -- the outstanding Fede Valverde contributing a long-range extremity and an assistance that was reminiscent of the 1 helium provided successful past season's Champions League last -- earlier Jota rewarded the distant fans with a precocious escaped footwear to spot the crippled extremity 5-1.
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Janusz Michallik reacts to Real Madrid's comfy triumph implicit Celtic to apical Group F successful the Champions League.
Which squad is the acheronian equine successful this year's knockout stages?
Laurens: Eintracht Frankfurt are the astonishment entrants successful the circular of 16, and it is an astonishing story. They are the due acheronian horses with thing to lose. Everything is simply a bonus present for the 2022 Europa League winners. They person a large unit, astonishing squad spirit, are tactically hard to bushed and person large talents similar Randal Kolo Muani, Evan N'Dicka oregon Jesper Lindstrom, experienced players similar Mario Gotze oregon Kevin Trapp. They play with strength and could origin problems for galore clubs with their speedy attacking transitions.
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Kirkland: Does a squad that's apical of Serie A -- and topped Group A up of past season's beaten finalists Liverpool -- number arsenic a acheronian horse? Luciano Spalletti's Napoli person won truthful galore admirers already this play and players similar Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Giacomo Raspadori and Stanislav Lobotka are among the astir amusive to ticker successful Europe. Nobody volition privation to conscionable them successful the circular of 16. Otherwise, Porto looked bully pulling disconnected a singular turnaround successful Group B, recovering from back-to-back losses successful their archetypal 2 games to triumph 4 successful a row, scoring 11 goals and conceding conscionable one.
Olley: It whitethorn look unusual to picture AC Milan arsenic "dark horses" fixed they person won the contention connected 7 occasions, but this is their archetypal quality successful the knockout stages since 2014. They managed to decorativeness 2nd successful a radical containing Chelsea -- winners successful 2021 -- contempt battling a terrible wounded database for overmuch of the radical stage. Winger Rafael Leao is understandably attracting large involvement from immoderate of Europe's powerhouses but they person endowment successful abundance and Stefano Pioli's young radical person country for further betterment arsenic the tourney progresses.
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Craig Burley slams Atletico Madrid's 'archaic' marque of shot aft they crashed retired of the Champions League and besides missed retired connected a Europa League spot.
Atletico finished bottommost of their radical for the archetypal clip successful their history. Is the Diego Simeone epoch coming to an end?
Kirkland: Isn't it always? Midseason crises person go a regular lawsuit astatine Atletico. The squad slump, Simeone comes nether pressure, they bounce backmost to decorativeness successful the apical 4 successful LaLiga and suffice for the Champions League, and connected it goes. But portion they've had European disappointments earlier -- dropping retired astatine the radical signifier successful 2017 -- it's ne'er been this bad. That twelvemonth they won the Europa League. Now there's nary European shot astatine all. The rock-solid, supremely cynical Atletico that played 2 Champions League finals feels similar past history. This latest mentation is fragile successful defence and lacks clarity successful attack. Building a winning squad again mightiness beryllium Simeone's biggest trial yet.
Olley: Atletico are successful the midst of an individuality crisis, present exacerbated by exiting Europe successful this humiliating fashion. A squad founded connected dogged, tireless antiaircraft subject shipped 9 goals successful the radical signifier and 12 truthful acold successful arsenic galore LaLiga games. Simeone has antecedently spoken astir trying to marque Atletico a much expansive squad but they look caught betwixt what they were and what they privation to be, a concern not aided by Joao Felix mostly failing to unrecorded up to his terms tag. It doesn't person to beryllium the extremity of an epoch but Simeone either has to thrust genuine improvement oregon instrumentality this Atletico squad to the principles that enabled them to punch supra their value for truthful long.
Laurens: The rhythm has been implicit for a while. The league rubric 2 years agone was lone owed to the magic of Luis Suarez from the archetypal fractional of the play and that of Jan Oblak successful the 2nd fractional of that campaign. Simeone's tactics are of different clip and with the existent squad helium has astatine his disposal, it is simply a disgrace that they lone won 1 crippled successful a radical featuring Brugge, Bayer Leverkusen and Porto. To decorativeness bottommost of the array and miss retired connected the Europa League spot is humiliating too. The extremity of the play would beryllium the cleanable clip to commencement a caller section and for the nine to portion ways with Simeone who is nether declaration until June 2024. But instead, they are talking astir extending his deal.
Who is your radical signifier MVP?
Olley: Napoli person exceeded each expectations astatine location and overseas this play and Kvaratskhelia is rapidly becoming 1 of Europe's hottest properties. The Serie A broadside reportedly paid conscionable €10m to get the 21-year-old from Dinamo Batuni this summertime but helium has excelled connected the Champions League stage, registering 2 goals and 3 assists from 5 appearances successful a bid of dynamic and exhilarating performances. Real Madrid, Liverpool and Chelsea are conscionable 3 of the clubs tracking the Georgian winger up of a imaginable big-money determination adjacent summer.
Laurens: Even if PSG finished 2nd down Benfica, Kylian Mbappe has been outstanding. He scored 7 goals (his champion grounds successful a radical stage) including immoderate beauties similar the archetypal 1 against Juventus successful Paris and helium gave 3 assists arsenic well. At 23 and 317 days, helium became the youngest subordinate ever to scope 40 goals successful the competition, beating Lionel Messi's record. And contempt each the agitation astir him and his aboriginal successful the past fewer weeks, helium has been playing astatine a apical level passim this radical stages.
Kirkland: Forgive the deficiency of originality, but: Messi. Four goals, 4 assists and a blossoming, deadly concern with Mbappe. Messi is backmost to playing immoderate of the champion shot of his career, and present looks settled and wholly comfy astatine Paris Saint-Germain. This could yet beryllium their year.
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