Predicting the Champions League Last 16 at the Halfway Point of the Group Stage
The Champions League returned this week, with 16 lip-smackingly attractive games played out over Matchday 3.
We are now halfway through the group stage and Groups A-H have started to take shape, but which teams will make it into the next round of the 2014/15 competition?
Over the following slides, we predict which sides will be in the final 16, while taking a look back at this week's goal-filled European ties, including Roma vs. Bayern Munich, Barcelona vs. Ajax and Real Madrid vs. Liverpool.
Feel like making your own predictions for the final 16? Let us know below.
All statistics and match info comes from UEFA.com, unless stated otherwise.
Group A
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Before a ball was kicked on Wednesday evening, the spoils were even in Group A, with each team level on three points after one win and one loss apiece.
Now the standings see Atletico Madrid and Olympiakos out in front with six points each, with Juventus and Malmo in third and fourth place, with three.
Malmo came into their fixture against Atletico Madrid on the back of their first-ever group stage triumph in a UEFA competition, against Olympiakos. However, Diego Simeone's side bagged a resounding win on home soil, the Swedish side beaten by five goals to nil.
Olympiakos took on Juventus at the Karaiskakis Stadium, where they remain unbeaten this season following a 1-0 victory against Massimiliano Allegri's side.
Good at home, the Greek team's 1-0 win has given them a boost, but they do face tough away trips to Italy and Spain, before taking on Malmo at home on December 9.
Despite the current standings, Juve remain a strong contender to go through. The Italian side's Serie A winning streak came to an end with a 1-1 draw against Sassuolo at the weekend; however, they remain unbeaten and are formidable at home.
Juve will host Olympiakos in Turin on November 4, before facing Malmo away from home and then Atleti at the Juventus Stadium on December 9.
Prediction: Atletico Madrid and Juventus to progress to final 16
Group B
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Three wins out of three sees Real Madrid on top of Group B with nine points, with Ludogorets Razgrad, Liverpool and Basel all tied on three.
Carlo Ancelotti's side, the Champions League holders, put three strikes past Liverpool with no reply on Wednesday evening—the Reds failing to bounce back from their 1-0 loss to Basel on October 1.
Los Blancos will host both Liverpool and Ludogorets at the Bernabeu in coming weeks, with an away trip to Basel sandwiched in between. It's difficult to imagine that they will not take maximum points away from their remaining group fixtures.
Strong at home, Basel—who now sit bottom of the group, following their 1-0 away defeat against Ludogorets—will play both the Bulgarian side and Real Madrid at St. Jakob-Park in November, before an away trip to Liverpool in December.
We witnessed the Swiss side beating Chelsea both home and away last season and expect them to progress ahead of Liverpool who look increasingly shaky and unconvincing this term.
Ludogorets have struggled on the road throughout their Champions League qualification and group stage games this season and, despite this week's late win against Basel, are unlikely to go through to the next round with away trips to both Basel and Madrid on the horizon.
Prediction: Real Madrid and Basel to progress to final 16
Group C
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Ahead of this week's fixtures, Group C's top three teams were separated by just one point, with winless Benfica last in the standings.
The Portuguese side remain rooted to the bottom of the group, following their 0-0 draw against Monaco at the Stade Louis II, with home games against Monaco and Zenit St. Petersburg coming up, plus a tricky away trip to face Zenit on November 26.
Monaco, who have managed just three home wins (in all competitions) this season, have scored just one goal during the group stage so far, in a 1-0 win against Bayer Leverkusen in September. And it's Monaco who look most likely to struggle to make it into the final 16, given their upcoming fixtures—away to Benfica and Leverkusen, with Zenit the visitors in their final group game.
Andre Villas-Boas’ side, on a 10-match unbeaten run in the Russian Premier League, failed to get past Leverkusen on Matchday 3.
Leverkusen, who have drawn their last three games in the Bundesliga, managed a 2-0 home win—through goals from Giulio Donati and Kyriakos Papadopoulos. It was important points won for Leverkusen, who have two away games to come against Zenit and Benfica.
Prediction: Leverkusen and Zenit to progress to final 16
Group D
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Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp said that his side had "stopped making sense" this week, according to the Guardian's Raphael Honigstein.
Perhaps, after their 4-0 away win against Galatasaray, things are looking up for the 2012/13 Champions League finalists. Unbeaten in their three Group D games and yet to concede a goal—Dortmund occupy top spot with nine points. Quite different to the domestic front, where BVB sit 14th in the Bundesliga.
Of their remaining games, Dortmund will host Cesare Prandelli's Galatasaray at Signal Iduna Park, before traveling to face Arsenal in London. On the face of it, it appears that the German outfit will do well in their remaining fixtures and it's also likely that they will take full points from Anderlecht in their final group game, Dortmund having already beaten Besnik Hasi's side 3-0 away from home.
Their numbers depleted by injury, Arsenal saw off Anderlecht at the Constant Vanden Stock Stadium with a 2-1 win. The Gunners struggled to get through the play-offs against Besiktas in August and do look unconvincing at times. However, the Premier League team are taking part in their 17th successive group stage campaign and they are well-versed in qualifying for the final 16.
As it stands, Galatasaray are still chasing their first win in Group D and look unlikely to take points from their next fixture, away to Dortmund. Anderlecht, in third place, have just one point.
BVB and Arsenal are leading the group, expect it to stay that way.
Prediction: Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal to progress to final 16
Group E
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In the first tie of Matchday 3, Manchester City drew 2-2 away from home against CSKA Moscow after leading 2-0 at half-time.
Both sides came into the game on the back of big victories in their respective leagues, with City seeing off Tottenham Hotspur 4-1 and CSKA thrashing Kuban Krasnodar 6-0.
After three games, both City and CSKA are still chasing their first wins in Group E, where Bayern Munich and Roma currently top the group on nine and four points, respectively.
Although Bayern's 7-1 demolition of Roma this week provided a lifeline to City, their chances of progressing do appear slim and it could all come down to their final group game against Roma, at the Stadio Olimpico on December 10.
Manuel Pellegrini's side will first host CSKA at the Etihad on November 5, before welcoming Bayern to Manchester on November 25.
With three wins out of three, including their masterclass against Rudi Garcia's side in Rome, Bayern look unstoppable and there is no doubt that they will progress to the final 16. Pep Guardiola's men are unbeaten in the Bundesliga and the Champions League so far this season, and that shows no signs of changing anytime soon.
Prediction: Bayern Munich and Roma to progress to the final 16
Group F
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Barcelona conceded their first home goal of the season at Camp Nou on Tuesday night, when taking on Ajax in Group F.
Beaten just once—by Paris Saint-Germain—in all competitions this term, Barca won this week's Champions League tie with ease, the final score 3-1.
When facing Ajax at the Amsterdam Arena on November 5, Luis Enrique's side could have their progression into the final 16 almost all sewn up, if they can add three more points to the six that they already have on the board. Although, in the same fixture last term, Barca were beaten 2-1 by the Dutch club.
Paris Saint-Germain currently top the group with seven points and, although they face a tricky away tie against Barcelona on December 10, they have two home games to come, against APOEL Nicosia and Ajax, respectively.
It won't be easy for the French side, who continue to miss the presence of injured Zlatan Ibrahimovic. They took their time in taking three points away from Tuesday's meeting with APOEL—their solitary goal coming in the final three minutes of the tie at the GSP Stadium, courtesy of Edinson Cavani.
APOEL have conceded just three goals across their three group stage fixtures and they have made Barcelona and PSG work hard for their points in two 1-0 defeats. They did take a point from their 1-1 home draw with Ajax and could prove a thorn in the side of their opposition in coming games.
However, the Cypriot outfit, with just one point and away fixtures against PSG and Ajax to come, are very unlikely to progress.
Ajax, who will host Lionel Messi and Co in November, before an away trip to PSG and a December fixture against APOEL in the Netherlands, have finished third in their group for each of the last four seasons—expect them to do the same this term.
Prediction: Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain to progress to final 16
Group G
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Maribor, who have taken points from Sporting Clube de Portugal and Schalke in Group G this season, were emphatically beaten 6-0 by Chelsea on Tuesday evening.
The Blues are sweeping all before them under Jose Mourinho this term, both domestically and in Europe, where they are unbeaten on all fronts and top their group with seven points.
Schalke, now managed by former Chelsea boss Roberto Di Matteo, are in second with five.
This is the Bundesliga side's seventh consecutive appearance in the Champions League group stage, and they look likely to progress again this term. An away trip to Sporting—who are unbeaten in the Portuguese Liga this season, yet winless in Group G—will be tricky, with Marco Silva's side perhaps nursing a sense of injustice after their 4-3 defeat.
However, S04 have reached the knockout stage in each of the last four seasons and should be able to see off the Portuguese side before Chelsea come to town on November 25.
Schalke should also emerge victorious from their last group game, against Maribor. The Slovenian side have just one win from their last six games (in all competitions), whereas the momentum appears to be with Schalke who have been buoyed by the arrival of Di Matteo, with two straight wins.
Prediction: Chelsea and Schalke to progress to final 16
Group H
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Not to be outdone by dramatic scorelines elsewhere, Shakhtar Donetsk emerged from their trip to Belarus as 7-0 victors against BATE Borisov on Tuesday night.
Mircea Lucescu's side had warmed up for the game in fine fashion, with a 6-2 win against Volyn in the Ukrainian Premier League. It's fair to say that the tie belonged to Luiz Adriano—the Brazilian put five past the opposition, joining Lionel Messi as the only other player to score five in a Champions League game, as seen in the Guardian.
You could be forgiven for forgetting that there was another game going on in Group H, with FC Porto taking on Athletic Bilbao at the Estadio do Dragao.
Unbeaten in all competitions this season, Porto won 2-1, through goals from Hector Herrera and Ricardo Quaresma. Julen Lopetegui's side now have a two-point lead in the standings, above Shakhtar who have five.
Looking at the remaining fixtures in the group, it's hard to see where the Portuguese side may falter, with away trips to both Bilbao and BATE and one remaining home tie to come against Shakhtar.
Shakhtar, who are unbeaten in the group stage thus far, also promise to build on their 7-0 win and move into the knockout round with ease.
Prediction: FC Porto and Shakhtar Donetsk to progress to final 16
