The Biggest Disappointments From the 2026 UEFA Champions League Round of 16
The Champions League quarterfinals are set.
Wednesday's Round of 16 ties saw Barcelona, Liverpool, Bayern Munich, and Atletico make it through to the final eight, joining Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal, and Sporting in the latter stages.
The two-sided coin of football means these great wins are, of course, reinforced by tough losses. Here, we get a little morbid and consider the biggest disappointments of the ties that just concluded.
Bodø/Glimt's Collapse in the 2nd Leg vs. Sporting
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The fairytale came to an end in the most spectacular way possible against Sporting. Euphoria exchanged for agony in the space of a week. The underdog, sword aloft, foot pressed on the chest of its great foe, unexpectedly struck down while preparing the final blow.
Sporting's 5-0 obliteration of the Norwegian minnows is how things were meant to go. But Bodø haven't played by the script this season: beating Manchester City, Atletico and Inter (twice) before last week's sensational 3-0 win over Rui Borges' men, who simply couldn't deal with the sharp interchanging play of their hosts.
Fearlessness turned to dread in the second leg. Bodo sat deeper, had less of the ball, and couldn't create as many chances. Sporting's confidence grew as it became clear that Bodø were aiming to just survive. Last week, Sporting managed 11 shots on goal. This week it was 36.
And so, the dead end was met for a Bodo team that has genuinely lit up the competition this year. 'Disappointment' says the title - and that may well be true, but only in the context of the frankly ridiculous levels of quality Bodo delivered through their historic run.
Chelsea's Miserable Week Capped Off With Elimination by PSG
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A disastrous week at Chelsea no matter which way you look.
Off the pitch, the spectre of Roman Abramovich's ownership is causing major issues, with the club handed the Premier League's biggest-ever fine and a suspended transfer ban due to alleged secret payments to agents during Abramovich's era, reported by Sky Sports.
The British government is also preparing to sue the Russian billionaire after he reportedly failed to release £2.5 billion from the club's sale, per Sky News.
On the pitch, Liam Rosenior is accumulating more memes than victories at an important stage of the season. Wednesday's 3-0 second-leg defeat to Paris Saint-Germain was a miserable conclusion to a week that also saw the Blues lose ground in the Premier League top-four race and get walloped 5-2 by PSG in the French capital.
Manchester City Getting Walloped by Real Madrid
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It just hasn't happened for Man City this season.
Pep Guardiola's side were completely taken apart by Real Madrid in a tie that looked favourable for them when the draw was made.
Los Blancos struggled through the play-off against Benfica, but as usual, found an extra gear in the competition they dominate like no other team. Last week's 3-0 first-leg victory at the Bernabeu was a stern reminder that even a weaker Madrid side, without Kylian Mbappe, is primed to go far.
Tuesday's return leg pretty much summed up City's drop off. A damp squib, some would say; Bernardo's early red card immediately halting the belief that set off the social media cringe alarm prior to kick off.
For Pep, the European dream is over. The Premier League title race is practically over, despite the January attempts to hunt Arsenal down with the signings of Marc Guehi and Antoine Semenyo.
And while City could lift silverware in the Carabao Cup Final on Sunday, the smart money is on Arsenal to win the trophy. With a quarterfinal FA Cup tie against Liverpool, there's a chance City could end their season trophyless.
No Truly Competitive Ties Outside of Sporting-Bodø
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The closest round-of-16 scorelines had two goals between the teams, but never really felt competitive.
Consider Arsenal's 3-1 win against Leverkusen. The Germans never, ever, looked like they would win, even after the 1-1 draw in the first leg.
Atletico may have only beaten Spurs 7-5 after the second leg in London, but all of the work was done in the first 90 minutes. Spurs huffed and puffed. Did it ever really seem like they would turn it around?
Look further afield, and we start to see a round of fixtures that were never truly competitive. Eight goals separated Bayern and Atalanta. Six separated PSG and Chelsea. Five separated Barca and Newcastle. Four separated Real and Man City. Where's the jeopardy?
It's hard to place exactly why this is. Perhaps it's just the luck of the draw. Perhaps it's UEFA's new format, which salivates at the prospect of putting big teams against each other as early as possible.
While that helps the League Phase, it has led to a lopsided bracket and huge eliminators on paper that haven't delivered the expected competitiveness.
Food for thought on this extended competition, perhaps.
