Champions League Round of 16 Clubs Are Set, Matchups to Be Determined
The final 16 European clubs of the Champions League have advanced, with the Round of 32 matches ending in dramatic fashion. The league saw multiple upsets across the table as Club Brugge knocked off Atalanta, Feyenoord eliminated Milan, and PSV Eindhoven moved past Juventus with a stunning victory. Germany's favorite, Bayern München, snuck past Celtic with a 3-2 aggregate win that came down to the last minute of their second leg match. Another surprise coming out of Manchester City, as they were eliminated by Real Madrid for the second year in a row. France superstar Kylian Mbappé ran circles around the club from England, scoring one goal in the first leg and a dominating hat trick effort in Wednesday’s second leg. Manchester City’s young star, Erling Haaland, was unable to suit up for the match after he sustained an injury earlier in the round. Real Madrid upset Manchester City during last year’s Semifinal after a nail-biting penalty shootout.
Underdog stories are the headline in this year’s Round of 16, as Feyenoord has made their appearance in the Round of 16 for the first time in 50 years. They defeated Milan, which is a great club in Italy that was favored to win this matchup. Feyenoord will face either Arsenal or Inter to begin their fight for the Quarterfinals. Club Brugge is making their second appearance in three years in the Round of 16, upsetting Italian powerhouse Atalanta 5-2 on aggregate. They began the first leg up 2-1, then followed that up by silencing the Atalanta faithful 3-1 in the second leg. The Belgium club last made this Round of 16 in 2022-2023 with a loss to Benfica. They will move on to face Aston Villa or Lille. PSV Eindhoven is arguably the biggest surprise of the week, advancing into the Round of 16 for the first time since 2015-2016. They beat Italy’s proven club, Juventus, with a dominant 3-1 second leg performance, entering the matchup down 2-1 after the first leg. They will play either Arsenal or Inter as their quest continues.
The Round of 16 fixtures is scheduled to begin March 4th and 5th, with the second legs continuing March 11th and 12th. Head-to-head matchups have yet to be determined, as the Round of 16 draw will take place on February 21st at 6 a.m. EST. Major clubs such as Liverpool, Barcelona, Arsenal, Inter, Atletico Madrid, Leverkusen, Lille, and Aston Villa have been eagerly waiting since late January for the next round to kick off. The round will be highly anticipated as the league has a mix of historic clubs paired with Cinderella stories looking to solidify their clubs for years to come.
