Winners & Losers of UEFA Champions League Matchday 5
By: Anthony Tazbaz
Image Credit: Janosch Diggelmann
It is time to take out the pens and start grading because UEFA Champions League (UCL) Matchday 5 is officially in the books!
Tuesday's and Wednesday's matches included many close ties and several impressive comebacks. The standings also provide a strong outlook for the remainder of the group stage.
A Deep Dive
First, Turkish club Galatasaray rallied from a 3-1 deficit (2-0 earlier in the match) and tied against Manchester United. The Turkish club accumulated four out of a possible six points against the English club. Second, Inter Milan came back from an early 3-0 deficit — thanks to Joao Mario's hat-trick — against SL Benfica. The comback — along with real Sociedad's 0-0 draw against Austrian club RB Salzburg — allows Inter Milan to maintain the status quo at a tie for the top of Group D. Finally, PSV Eindhoven also came back from a 2-0 deficit to claim three points against Sevilla FC.
As well, several clubs officially qualified for the Round of 16. Bayern Munich, Arsenal, PSV and Real Madrid all advanced from Groups A-C, with Bayern, Arsenal and Madrid all confirmed at #1 of their respective groups with one match remaining. Real Sociedad and Inter Milan both qualified from Group D, whereas Atlético Madrid and Lazio both qualified from Group E following both clubs' wins against Feyenoord and Celtic, respectively. Both Manchester City and RB Leipzig also became the two clubs from Group G to advance to the Round of 16, with defending UCL champions Manchester City confirmed as #1 of the group.
Other clubs confirmed for a Round of 16 fixture will be mentioned below.
Winners
Now let's determine the top three winners, shall we?
PSV Eindhoven: Speaking of comebacks, PSV may have had the best one. Going down 2-0 against Sevilla FC in a crucial match, the Dutch club clawed back with two second-half goals before American international Ricardo Pepi scored the go-ahead goal (no pun intended) to propel PSV to the Round of 16 for the first time since 2015-16. Sevilla's Lucas Ocampos's red card constituted a key factor and the turning point in the match, which led to goals in the 68th and 81st minutes by Ismael Saibari and Nemanja Gudelj before Pepi's heroics. Although not favoured by many to advance, the Dutch club ultimately joins Arsenal as Group B winners in the Round of 16 draw.
Borussia Dortmund: The Black and Yellow continues its excellent form after defeating AC Milan 3-1 at San Siro. The German club officially clinches a position in the Round of 16 and now finds itself in the driver's seat to clinch first place in the "group of death" (Group F). German international Mats Hummels continues to lead the backline, who is complemented by excellent goalkeeping at the hands of Swiss international Gregor Kobel. Marco Reus's leadership also continues to prove invaluable for the club and players — such as Karim Adeyemi and 19-year-old Jamie Bynoe-Gittens — who continue to reach new heights with respect to their consistent performances. Borussia Dortmund are favourites to win the group, with a draw being sufficient. However, the club will need to exert revenge on Paris Saint-Germain, who blanked the Black and Yellow in the Champions League opener by a 2-0 score at Parc des Princes.
FC Barcelona: Despite struggling to repeat last year's excellent performances in La Liga, Barcelona's 2-1 win against FC Porto enabled the Catalan club to clinch a berth in the Round of 16 for the first time since 2020-21 — a first since Lionel Messi's departure. The Joaos — Portuguese newcomers Joao Félix and Joao Cancelo — continue to impress and both scored to secure three points. First place in Group H should now be sealed for Barcelona, who will face off against Royal Antwerp on the final matchday.
Losers
And now the losers.
Manchester United & André Onana: Another Champions League match, another blunder for manager Erik Ten Hag and goalkeeper André Onana. Despite taking an early 2-0 lead against Galatasaray — and eventually 3-1 — the Red Devils crumbled, thanks in part to Onana's pitiful performance and major blunder that allowed Hakim Ziyech to score a total of two goals. Galatasaray's comeback signifies Manchester United's Champions League woes under manager Ten Hag, who is flirting with both Europa League and a potential sacking by the end of the season (at the latest). However, that fate could come earlier should Manchester United finish fourth place, the club's current standing in Group A. It will be incredibly difficult for Man U, who play against a dominant Bayern Munich at Old Trafford, to whom the club fell by a 3-2 score on opening matchday. Galatasaray and Copenhagen — facing off at the Parken — will each aim to finish second or settle for third place and have a genuine shot at European glory.
AC Milan: The mighty AC Milan from last year has fallen. The Rossoneri's 3-1 home loss against Borussia Dortmund puts them in a heap of trouble. The club now finds itself in a must-win scenario ahead of the final matchday against Newcastle United at St. James' Park. Anything less than a win will guarantee the Italian club a last-place finish in Group F, which means that the club cannot even salvage European success in the Europa League. To qualify for the Round of 16, Stefano Pioli's side will need to win against an in-form Newcastle squad and rely on PSG to lose against Dortmund. A loss will undoubtedly put Pioli's job in jeopardy and could trigger a sacking as early as the following day from Matchday 6.
SL Benfica: Similar to AC Milan, (one of) last year's surprise success stories is now facing the possibility of playing either in Europa League or crashing out of Europe altogether. After losing its first three matches, the Lisbon club took an early 3-0 lead against Group D favourites Inter Milan only to squander it in the second half. Despite surrendering two points, Benfica can express relief due to the 0-0 draw between RB Salzburg and Real Sociedad, which maintains the status quo and keeps Benfica alive in the hopes of qualifying for Europa League. Having lost 2-0 on Matchday 1 against the Austrian club, however, Benfica will have to win by a large score to relish any chance at playing knockout stage football in February.
At the End of the Day
With five matches in the books, very few clubs remain in the mix to qualify for the Round of 16.
In Group A, it remains a three-way race to second place. Following a 0-0 draw against German giants Bayern Munich, Danish club FC Copehagen currently holds second place with five points and a better goal differential than Galatasaray by one goal and with a one-point lead over Manchester United, whom the Danish club defeated on Matchday 4. Copenhagen will play a Matchday 1 rematch against the Istanbul club, which resulted in an entertaining 2-2 draw.
Meanwhile, fourth-place Manchester United will have to fight for second or third place against Bayern Munich at Old Trafford. Manchester and manager Erik Ten Hag will undoubtedly feel the pressure, particularly since the club may suffer outright elimination from all UEFA competitions.
Group C will include either Napoli or Portugal's SC Braga joining Real Madrid in the Round of 16. Both clubs will battle for that position next week at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in southern Italy. Napoli currently boasts a three-point lead with a superior goal differential. It would require a win by two goals for Braga to defeat the Italian club, who are under new management led by Walter Mazzarri. He led Napoli to a win against Atalanta in his debut but lost 4-2 against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu. A Braga win and progress to the Round of 16 would certainly be the biggest upset of the 2023-24 edition of UCL.
The "group of death" lived up to its names, with all positions in the group still up for grabs. Although Dortmund sits atop of the group, Paris Saint-Germain could still catch up. Conveniently, both clubs will face off on the final matchday at the Signal Iduna Park in Germany. The winner clinches top spot, whereas a draw guarantees Dortmund to finish as #1 and a Dortmund loss would force the German club to drop to #2.
However, a loss or a draw for PSG may put the French club at risk of dropping to Europa League should either AC Milan or Newcastle United win the final duel at St. James' Park. Both clubs battled to a 0-0 stalemate on opening matchday. Paris claimed a 2-0 victory at the Parc des Princes against Dortmund on the same day.
Finally, FC Porto and Shakhtar Donetsk will fight for a position in the Round of 16. Considering that Barcelona may likely defeat Royal Antwerp — sitting at the bottom of Group H with zero points from five matches — both Porto and Shakhtar will likely have to settle for second place and a home match in the first leg, rather than the second leg.
Stay tuned for the sixth and final matchday next week, and the final group stage evaluation in two weeks from today!
