These clubs winter in the Champions League

After an eventful group phase, the knockouts of the Champions League are already upon us. The cards have been shuffled and the program is promising. Liverpool will, for instance, face the Royal Real Madrid and PSG will compete against Bayern. The most surprising element of the Champions League so far is the still undefeated Benfica.

The surprises in the CL group phase

The group phase of the Champions League has been surprising. Several top clubs were kicked out of the competition, while smaller clubs took their chances and grabbed them.

Stars
The biggest surprises in the Champions League are: Club Brugge, Benfica, Porto and Napoli. The last time the Belgian club played in the knockout phase of the Champions League was in 1991. Club Brugge lost only one match during this year's group phase, and finished in second place above Leverkusen and Atlético Madrid.

Two Portuguese clubs excelled this group phase, as well: Porto and Benfica. The latter won every match in group H; they even won from the powerful PSG and Juventus. The Eagles have remained undefeated in the Portuguese competition, too. Rival Porto also gained success; they won four out of six matches, and they’ll remain head of the group during this winter break.

Juventus is usually the most successful club of Italy, but it seems that Napoli has taken over that role. Luciano Spallettie won easily from Ajax and Rangers and they even won from Liverpool once. They deserved their spot in the knockouts.

Losers
FC Barcelona must be content with a spot in the Europa League, just like last year. Despite of an enforced squad, they didn’t manage to get past neither Inter nor Bayern. Another Spanish club was disappointed: Atlético. The often very disciplined team of Simeone didn’t meet the requirements of the group phase. Atlético Madrid ended last in a group shared with Leverkusen, Club Brugge and Porto.

The ambitious Juventus is another club that should be ashamed of themselves. The Old Lady won just one game and were knocked out of the group phase for the first time since 2013/14.

Draw Champions League round of 16

The 2022/23 Champions League draw for the round of 16 took place at the seventh of November. The away matches will be played on February 14,15, 21 and 22. The returns will take place on March 7, 8, 14 and 15. The following clubs will face each other during the round of 16:

RB Leipzig - Manchester City
Club Brugge - Benfica
Liverpool - Real Madrid
AC Milan - Tottenham Hotspur
Eintracht Frankfurt – Napoli
Borussia Dortmund - Chelsea
Internazionale - FC Porto
Paris Saint-Germain - Bayern Munich

Who will win the Champions League 2022/23?

The Telegraph wrote, in collaboration with Bettingexpert, an article about who’s most likely to win the Champions League season 2022/23. According to the bookmakers, Manchester City has 38 per cent chance of winning the competition. Followed by Bayern, PSG, Liverpool and Real Madrid. These outcomes are based on their current form, the drawings and former accomplishments. The expected top scorer of this Champions League season won't be very surprising: Erling Haaland.