UEFA Champions League Semifinal Scenarios: How Each Team Can Advance

The final four teams in the 2018-19 UEFA Champions League are 90 minutes away from a trip to Madrid for the final. The spots will be sealed this week: one Tuesday and one Wednesday.

Barcelona defeated Liverpool 3-0 at the Camp Nou last week to take a commanding lead heading into the second leg at Anfield on Tuesday. Ajax continued its splendid away form with a 1-0 win in Tottenham's new stadium before hosting Wednesday's second leg.

Below are the scenarios and scores that each of the clubs need in the second leg in order to advance to the Champions League final, information on how to watch the UCL semifinals this week, and highlights and match previews from both ties.

Semifinal Scenarios: Scores needed to advance

Liverpool (0) vs. Barcelona (3); Tuesday, 3 p.m. ET

There's never a good time to go down three goals after one leg, but maybe there are good teams to do it against. Since PSG is already out, Barcelona's recent Champions League history suggests that the deal is not yet sealed in this matchup.

But even despite Barca blowing a 4-1 first-leg home win against Roma in the UCL knockout stage last season, Liverpool will still need to bring a high-level performance to give itself any chance of the comeback.

Liverpool has to score at least three goals. If Barcelona gets just one, the Reds' requirement bumps up to five because of the away-goals tiebreaker. As the grid below illustrates, the deck is stacked in favor of the La Liga champions.

B/R Live

A 3-0 Liverpool win in Leg 2 sends the match into extra time. However, the away-goals rule will still apply, meaning that each team could score in extra time, in this example making the aggregate score 4-4, and Barcelona would still advance without having to go through penalty kicks. PKs will only be reached if both the aggregate score and away goals are even.

FiveThirtyEight gives Barcelona a 93 percent probability to advance to the final.

Ajax (1) vs. Tottenham (0); Wednesday, 3 p.m. ET

This second leg is more wide-open than the one preceding it. The Dutch side has the away goal, but Spurs only need to find the back of the net once to cancel it out. And if Tottenham gets that first one, the momentum swings back to the London club, as a second away goal will both eliminate the possibility of extra time and and force Ajax to score multiple goals.

B/R Live

And while the aforementioned swing of momentum could well happen for Tottenham, the other side of the spectrum is that Ajax scores early and makes the uphill climb even greater. Spurs did advance through the quarterfinals with three away goals at Manchester City in that thrilling second leg.

FiveThirtyEight still projects Ajax to have a 75 percent chance to go through.

Semifinals Leg 2: How to watch

Each semifinal second leg begins at 3 p.m. ET, which can be streamed on B/R Live and will be broadcast on TNT. Coverage begins each day with B/R Football Matchday at 2 p.m. on both platforms and ends with the B/R Football Post-Match Show on TNT and the managers' press conferences on B/R Live.

Watch Liverpool vs. Barcelona on B/R Live

Watch Ajax vs. Tottenham on B/R Live

Semifinals Leg 2: Highlights and Previews

Liverpool vs. Barcelona

The Reds will be without Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah, per the BBC, with the latter sustaining a head injury in Premier League play over the weekend. The absence of two-thirds of their high-powered front line makes overcoming the existing deficit an even more considerable challenge.

A positive sign for the Reds is they haven't conceded at home in four straight Champions League matches. However, Barcelona have won its last two trips to Anfield and bring the competition's leading scorer into the second leg on the back of a phenomenal performance to seal the first-leg win. You may have heard of him:

Ajax vs. Tottenham

The Dutch side's midfielders made all the difference in the first leg, with Donny van de Beek scoring and Frenkie de Jong controlling that part of the pitch.

Tottenham get a shot in the arm with Heung-Min Son's return from suspension, with just one Spurs goal putting them right back into the tie. As good as Ajax has been on the road in the UCL knockout round, it's winless in its last three matches, while Spurs were able to eliminate Manchester City on the favorites' pitch. Based on some of the second legs these squads have played, we are in for a treat Wednesday.