8 teams enter knockout round, surprise for Arsenal

The final round (8) of the 2024-2025 Champions League classification stage has officially ended. Liverpool, despite losing 2-3 at PSV, still retained the top spot, as in the match at the same time, Barcelona only managed a 2-2 draw at home against Atalanta.

Kết quả Champions League: 8 đội vào vòng knock-out, bất ngờ với Arsenal- Ảnh 1. — Liverpool (right) lost the last round but still maintained the top position

Liverpool finished the group stage with 21 points after 8 matches, they got the number 1 position on the rankings, 2 points more than the 3 teams below. With the top position in the classification stage, Liverpool won a direct ticket to the round of 16.

Two other English teams, Arsenal and Aston Villa, were also in the knockout stages. Although Arsenal had secured their place and fielded a reserve team, they still dominated their opponents from the start. Trossard almost opened the scoring in the 8th minute while Calafiori was offside when the Gunners scored in the 12th minute. The surprise happened in the 28th minute when goalkeeper Neto made an inappropriate move and gifted Danjuma an easy goal.

Kết quả Champions League: 8 đội vào vòng knock-out, bất ngờ với Arsenal- Ảnh 2. — Ethan Nwaneri (center) scored the winning goal 2-1 for Arsenal

This goal helped the home team play with excitement but their joy did not last long. In the 37th minute, the referee awarded Arsenal a penalty and Jorginho scored from the 11m mark to equalize 1-1. Not stopping there, young talent Nwaneri helped Arsenal take the lead after a great effort in the 42nd minute. 2 minutes later, Trossard hit the crossbar of the opponent's goal.

In the second half, Arsenal took the initiative to slow down the pace and the match had few dangerous situations. In the final minutes, Arsenal was awarded a second penalty. However, Sterling could not beat goalkeeper Lopez. However, the 2-1 victory was enough for Arsenal to be in the top 8 teams after the group stage ended.

Aston Villa finished eighth with 16 points after a 4-2 home win over Celtic. Meanwhile, Man City beat Club Brugge 3-1 to finish 21st in the league, earning them a place in the play-offs for the eight places in the round of 16.

Kết quả Champions League: 8 đội vào vòng knock-out, bất ngờ với Arsenal- Ảnh 3. — Man City have come from behind to secure a play-off place in the round of 16.

Pep Guardiola's side will find out who they face when the draw takes place on January 31. Should they progress through the play-offs, Man City will face either Atletico Madrid or Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16.