Five games deep in the UEFA Champions League, the picture is becoming clearer in the league phase as we come into the sixth round of play. Liverpool are the only team to have won all five of their games for a total of 15 points which places them two clear of unbeaten Inter. Although 10 points is expected to be enough for a top 24 finish and therefore a UCL knockout berth, there is no guarantee because this is a brand new format which is playing out for the very first time right now. Arne Slot's men have booked at least that and should be joined by the Nerazzurri, Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund and undefeated Atalanta BC. Bayer Leverkusen, Arsenal, AS Monaco, Aston Villa, Sporting CP, Stade Brestois 29 and Lille OSC are also well positioned to advance beyond the league phase. However, some big names occupy the wrong end of the table with Paris Saint-Germain currently in an elimination berth while Real Madrid are barely in the top 24 with both having suffered three losses. Red Bull pair Leipzig and Salzburg are also surprisingly low while VfB Stuttgart, Bologna and Shakhtar Donetsk might surprise some.
We take a closer look as the three remaining games edge closer.
Qualified teams
Liverpool: So far, the Premier League-leading Merseysiders are the only team to be guaranteed of at least a playoff spot although they might yet -- and almost certainly will -- book an automatic round-of-16 berth through a top-eight finish. With Girona (away), Lille (home) and PSV Eindhoven (away) to come, it is hard to see Slot's side not marching on automatically and the more pertinent question might be whether or not the Reds end up winning all of their games or at least remaining unbeaten.
Surprise performers
Liverpool leading the way is not really a huge surprise but their combined Premier League and Champions League form does merit further mention given Slot's seemingly seamless transition into life at Anfield. Of the top eight, few would have bet on Monaco of Ligue 1 being up there while Atalanta forming part of an unbeaten Serie A pairing with Inter also warrants praise. From ninth downwards, Aston Villa are still within touching distance of the top eight along with Sporting CP, Brest and Lille which is arguably where most of the surprise lies in terms of teams punching above their weight. Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid and Milan are also upwardly mobile and correcting unexpected sluggishness after recent upticks in continental results.
Surprise strugglers
There is no getting away from the fact that PSG are the standout name here with Luis Enrique's men beaten by Arsenal, Atleti and now Bayern as well as being held at home by PSV Eindhoven. With games against Salzburg, an unexpectedly vulnerable Manchester City and Stuttgart, there is a major possibility that the French giants do not even advance to the knockouts. Ligue 1 is currently being buoyed by Monaco, Brest and Lille and Paris dropping out so prematurely would be an enormous blow to France's UEFA coefficient performance which had been respectable up until very recently. Real occupying the final of the top 24 places was not at all expected but they are two points better off than PSG while City and Juventus are within two points of the defending UCL titleholders. The early evidence is that UEFA's format shakeup is actually making things interesting and the final three games will be extremely high stakes for the likes of Les Parisiens.
Coefficient storylines so far
How the league phase is impacting that UEFA coefficient system has become something of a three-horse race of late with England romping away in top spot in terms of a potential additional Champions League spot followed by Portugal and Italy. The seven EPL sides have an advantage over their five Portuguese rivals but the eight Italian representatives could well turn that tide even though Bologna look likely to drop that number to seven. Germany's Bundesliga, Spain's La Liga and France's Ligue 1 are scrapping away at fairly even standings to Belgium and Czechia in the chasing pack but it will be tough to reel in all three of the leaders even at this early stage -- especially the English -- with even the Germans a fair way back in fourth from second or even third.
Key 6th round games
All 3 p.m. ET
- Tuesday, Dec. 10: Atalanta vs. Real Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen vs. Inter and RB Salzburg vs. PSG.
- Wednesday, Dec. 11: Arsenal vs. Monaco, Borussia Dortmund vs. Barcelona and Juventus vs. Manchester City.
The sixth round of games promises some absolute crackers with unbeaten Atalanta a really tough task for struggling Real on Tuesday while Leverkusen tackling Inter could have ramifications in the top eight and PSG play for their UCL lives away at lowly Salzburg in Austria. On Wednesday, some of the most in-form sides go up against each other with Arsenal hosting Monaco and Dortmund being visited by Barca is of importance to the top eight while Juve vs. City is surprisingly a mid-table contest coming into this one.
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 CP | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 10 |
| 11 | Brest | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 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 | 8 | +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 Brugge | 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 | PSG | 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 Praha | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 14 | -9 | 4 |
| 29 | SK Sturm Graz | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 6 | -4 | 3 |
| 30 | Girona | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 9 | -5 | 3 |
| 31 | Red Star Belgrade | 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 | Slovan Bratislava | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 18 | -14 | 0 |
| 36 | Young Boys | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 17 | -15 | 0 |
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