Champions League Knockout Playoffs Recap:

Hello, and welcome back to Football Daily.

 

The UEFA Champions League knockout play-offs happened last week and have delivered fun action and unexpected outcomes, setting the stage for an exciting Round of 16.

For those unfamiliar with the Champions League knockout phase, the competition follows a two-legged format, meaning each playoff tie consists of two matches—one played at each team's home stadium. The team with the higher aggregate score over both matches advances to the next round. If the aggregate score is tied after both legs, the match proceeds to extra time, and if necessary, a penalty shootout determines the winner.

That being said, let's discuss the games I had time to see and briefly recap the rest of the games. 

The first leg game I watched was the Feyenoord vs. AC Milan game. Unfortunately for my boy from Mexico, Santi did, and his new team lost 1-0 to his old team, which is funny. The goal came from Igor Paixão's early third-minute goal, which set the tone. Despite Milan's efforts, they just couldn't find an equalizer, giving the Dutch side a slight advantage heading into the second leg.

I also watched the Celtic vs. Bayern Munich game, which was a thrilling encounter at Celtic Park. Bayern Munich edged out the Celtics with a 2-1 win. Michael Olise started with a banger just before halftime, and Harry Kane extended Bayern's lead early in the second half. Celtic's Daizen Maeda pulled one back in the 79th minute, keeping the Scottish side's hopes alive for the return leg.

However, the most thrilling game of the first leg was, of course, the game between the two giants of Real Madrid and Manchester City. It was a thrilling match in the city of Manchester, as Real Madrid barely edged out Manchester City with a 3-2 win. Erling Haaland netted twice for City, but goals from Kylian Mbappé, Brahim Díaz, and Jude Bellingham in extra time secured the victory for the Spanish side. 

Other games include a 3-0 victory for Paris Saint-Germain, a 2-1 Vicotry for Juventus over Dutch side PSV Eindhoven, a 1-0 defeat for Monaco against Benfica at home, a 3-0 victory for German side Borussia Dortmund against Portuguese side Sporting CP.

The second leg concludes this Wednesday, the 19th, and unfortunately, I only got to watch two games.

Of course, the first game was the second leg of Milan vs. Feyenoord at the iconic San Siro, where AC Milan aimed to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg. Despite a valiant effort, the match concluded in a 1-1 draw, resulting in Feyenoord's surprising advancement with a 2-1 aggregate score. Santi, however, scored, which was his first goal in the San Siro and his third goal for Milan overall, which brings me joy. 

The second game I watched was the Madrid vs. Manchester City clash, which was highly anticipated at the Santiago Bernabéu. Unfortunately, Manchester City did not win the match, with Madrid taking the advantage with a four-minute goal by Mbappe, who had an excellent game with a hat trick.  Manchester City was, however, able to steal one back in extra time thanks to the new transfer of Nico Gonzalez, which made me happy since he was an ex-Barcelona star.

Other games included a 1- 1 tie between Bayern Munich and Celtic, which allowed Bayern to advance, and a 0-0 result between Borussia Dortmund and Sporting CP, which allowed the German side to advance as well. Paris Saint-German outscored Brest 7-0, while PSV got their payback from Juventus with a 3-1 score, advancing them into the next round. Benfica and Club Brugge also scored 3 in the net to allow them to both qualify over Monacos and Atlanta, respectively.    

Looking ahead

Fans can look forward to more captivating fixtures and storylines as the tournament progresses. The Round of 16 draw is scheduled for February 21, 2025, and the advancing teams will learn their next opponents. Personally, I can not wait to see who FC Barcelona plays.