UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Season

[changaa]

Chelsea gained an advantage from having more players on the field from the start of the match, and they made good use of it in this game. Despite that, the game they showed went well. 
Chelsea still has several matches against strong teams in the Champions League. The challenge for them is not over in ensuring qualification for the next round. Hopefully, their performance can be consistent and even better.

Chelsea still have several games ahead of them with big contenders but if they play like this they can do great things both in the league and in Europe, this is a clear example of how a team can be consistent and improve things, it just takes commitment

[Pablo-wood]

Liverpool have a drop in performance, but could this just be temporary? Frankfurt is a very respectable team, but despite this Liverpool have practically silenced Frankfurt.
Buried with 5 goals, he wasn't a good figure, we'll see in the next matches what will happen, if at least he manages to recover from this moral slap.

Future matches will determine whether Liverpool have truly returned to their best form or if Frankfurt were simply a team they could easily take advantage of. Sometimes, coaches intentionally hide their full tactical strength/prowess to prevent opponents from identifying weaknesses or predicting their style of play. I believe this might be the strategy Slot is gradually applying before fully showcasing his plans for the rest of the season.

[AN Then]

Chelsea gained an advantage from having more players on the field from the start of the match, and they made good use of it in this game. Despite that, the game they showed went well.  
Chelsea still has several matches against strong teams in the Champions League. The challenge for them is not over in ensuring qualification for the next round. Hopefully, their performance can be consistent and even better.

Chelsea still have several games ahead of them with big contenders but if they play like this they can do great things both in the league and in Europe, this is a clear example of how a team can be consistent and improve things, it just takes commitment

Chelsea are back in great form now. Although they are a little behind in the points table, there is nothing to be disappointed about.Because the performance he showed against Ajax was truly extraordinary.Moreover, they will have to face stronger teams ahead.If they can continue the performance they showed against Ajax, they will definitely be able to win against strong teams.Moreover, to maintain ourselves, Their must finish every match with a good performance.

[Frankolala]

Chelsea are back in great form now. Although they are a little behind in the points table, there is nothing to be disappointed about.Because the performance he showed against Ajax was truly extraordinary.Moreover, they will have to face a strong team ahead.If they can continue the performance they showed against Ajax, they will definitely be able to win against strong teams.Moreover, to maintain ourselves, we must finish every match with a good performance.

I don't think that Chelsea is in a great form currently, because their performance isn't stable. They can give hope to their fans and disappoint them in the next minutes. Winning their UCL match was what everyone was praying for and the prayer was answered. This was why Ajax got a red card for Chelsea to win the game and they were able to score as many goals as possible.

[martinom]

Real Madrid staying in that position will mean them to win all of their remaining matches they're going to be playing in the group stage. They may have some weak teams to play, but not until they play and prevail against them can we confidently say they'll be at the top of the standings to stand out for qualifying to the knockout phase of the competition. This new method is not an home and away fixture of the same team, it's been shared randomly which means you only have one encounter with a team in this stage and the best you can do is to take home the advantage of prevailing against them as much as you can. No second chance to meet them in this round as they use to before in this new format.

There are certainly easy matches and difficult matches, but noting that the first two are always Real Madrid and Barcelona I think the difficulty is quite relative, I have never seen either of the two teams I mentioned finish in third place at the end of the season, so let's say that for them it is relatively easy.

[RaltcoinsB]

Chelsea are back in great form now. Although they are a little behind in the points table, there is nothing to be disappointed about.Because the performance he showed against Ajax was truly extraordinary.Moreover, they will have to face a strong team ahead.If they can continue the performance they showed against Ajax, they will definitely be able to win against strong teams.Moreover, to maintain ourselves, we must finish every match with a good performance.

I don't think that Chelsea is in a great form currently, because their performance isn't stable. They can give hope to their fans and disappoint them in the next minutes. Winning their UCL match was what everyone was praying for and the prayer was answered. This was why Ajax got a red card for Chelsea to win the game and they were able to score as many goals as possible.

Their next match is against Qarabagh away in Azerbaijan. Having beaten Benfica and Copenhagen, the Azerbaijani team has had a very strong start to the Champions League this year. But frankly, if they can beat a team like Chelsea in Azerbaijan, then we'll consider them in a truly good position. Chelsea currently has a much superior squad, but if you ask about consistency, they certainly aren't. In fact, Chelsea's biggest problem is their inability to achieve this consistency.

[giorgione]

Ajax was able to curtail the strength of Chelsea until the red card on Kenneth Taylor after his horror tackle on Facundo Buonanotte. The match would have been more competitive if not that the Dutch club lost one man early. Enzo Maresca's side took advantage of the chance and scored as much as possible. The pressure was much on the Ajax defence that they were forced to concede two penalties.

Yes exactly, in the end they were no longer able to defend and it was seen then, as you say, the pressure was a lot and this then led to a problem with the defense which led to a problem with everyone, obviously the defense then had to fall back on the problem even spending a red card

[wakier]

Their next match is against Qarabagh away in Azerbaijan. Having beaten Benfica and Copenhagen, the Azerbaijani team has had a very strong start to the Champions League this year. But frankly, if they can beat a team like Chelsea in Azerbaijan, then we'll consider them in a truly good position. Chelsea currently has a much superior squad, but if you ask about consistency, they certainly aren't. In fact, Chelsea's biggest problem is their inability to achieve this consistency.

Didn't they beat Benfica and Ajax?? Chelsea clearly had no trouble against those two clubs because their opponents were in poor form in the Champions League while Qarabag was better than their previous two opponents so I think Chelsea will have a little trouble in the next match even though we know Chelsea is in good form but as you said sometimes Chelsea can't be consistent and sometimes experience unexpected defeats so in the next match I myself am not sure Chelsea will win easily because they will also play away which will definitely put more pressure on them.

[Sexylizzy2813]

With the way the champions league table is at this point,  having Real Madrid occupying the number 5 do we still see them as one of the clear favorite to be in the finals? The Whites have been taking their games slow but not that steady in some games and if it was like 3 seasons ago we would have been seeing them demolishing some of the teams they played against with the fast moves they make but now they are either winning by a goal to nil and it will end that way and in the la Liga they are still slow, can we see them as a threat to the other teams?

Last season, PSG also experienced difficulties in the League Phase but in the end, they managed to secure the trophy. Real Madrid, in my opinion, quite deserves to be on the list of favorite teams this season, they have the complete attributes to make it happen, even though they currently occupy fifth place in the standings. There are five matches remaining in the League Phase, which will determine a team journey to advance to the round of 16.

PSG is the most productive team in terms of scoring goals so far, but in terms of defense, Arsenal and Inter Milan are the better teams as they have not conceded a single goal. So, I think anything can still happen in the future, Real Madrid has the mentality and is very experienced in the Champions League, which sets them apart from most of the other contestants.

You are correct but the PSG squad and that of Madrid are not the same, I'd pick the PSG side ahead of the Real Madrid squad. Like you said Madrid have everything to be included among the favorite but I doubt if they can continue with that winning habit to stay in the first 8 teams on the log, they look like the threat or among the teams to get to the finals but I'm expecting them to lose a game or 2 in their remaining fixtures.
These teams that haven't conceded any goal, the day they'd concede that would be the day they'll lose and I feel it will happen that way. And again, I can't use PSG to compare with Madrid in any way, at this point we can say Madrid have that experience but their experience won't take them any where close to the semis if care is not taken. These sets of players Madrid have sometimes don't play as a unit, they have players who play for themselves more than players who play for the team and you'd agree with me that these players who I said play for themselves are the players who are facing the goalpost to get goals for the club but when you relate it to the PSG side they are completely good, from the back to the front, all the players are goal scores (maybe the goalkeeper will join them some day), with that you don't know who to mark...I still can't wait to see th Madrid side against Barcelona.

[Hvdv]

Their next match is against Qarabagh away in Azerbaijan. Having beaten Benfica and Copenhagen, the Azerbaijani team has had a very strong start to the Champions League this year. But frankly, if they can beat a team like Chelsea in Azerbaijan, then we'll consider them in a truly good position. Chelsea currently has a much superior squad, but if you ask about consistency, they certainly aren't. In fact, Chelsea's biggest problem is their inability to achieve this consistency.

Didn't they beat Benfica and Ajax?? Chelsea clearly had no trouble against those two clubs because their opponents were in poor form in the Champions League while Qarabag was better than their previous two opponents so I think Chelsea will have a little trouble in the next match even though we know Chelsea is in good form but as you said sometimes Chelsea can't be consistent and sometimes experience unexpected defeats so in the next match I myself am not sure Chelsea will win easily because they will also play away which will definitely put more pressure on them.

I'm sure the fans in Azerbaijan will fill the stadium to put pressure on Chelsea. This will make things easier for Qarabağ. However, considering Chelsea are used to such atmospheres in the Premier League, I don't know how much it will affect their performance. Chelsea have currently suffered only one defeat in the Champions League, apart from Bayern Munich. Since Bayern Munich is capable of beating any team they face, Chelsea's defeat is somewhat acceptable. I also think they will win in Azerbaijan.

[Sexylizzy2813]

With the way the champions league table is at this point,  having Real Madrid occupying the number 5 do we still see them as one of the clear favorite to be in the finals? The Whites have been taking their games slow but not that steady in some games and if it was like 3 seasons ago we would have been seeing them demolishing some of the teams they played against with the fast moves they make but now they are either winning by a goal to nil and it will end that way and in the la Liga they are still slow, can we see them as a threat to the other teams?

It seems that the days of Real Madrid and Champions League are fast passing away. I remember when Real Madrid is always counted as the favourites even if they are not in good form, provided that it is champions league. I don't think that that aura is still there. I do not believe that Real Madrid is the favourite to win the champions league of this season. The clear favourites I saw before the start of the season was the favourite of last season who could not win it - Liverpool.

But I am surprised how things are just falling apart for Liverpool this season. I believe there is still time to change the narrative, let's wait and watch how things unfold.

These sets of player Madrid have now are good but they don't have that fighting spirit like the guys who have been in the business for long, that's why the El Clasico isn't as fun as it used to be, a user (@SatoPrincess) said it some days ago and is true. Which ever way they are trying to be at the top I still can't pick them in the top 5 teams to win this season's champions league, Madrid are not capable enough to get that title and they can be kicked into the play off and struggle in that phase, can they even survive it if they are to finish in the play off?
Brother, Liverpool are also struggling, yes they are the clear favorite to win it last campaign but the unthinkable happened and this very season they are not good compared to last campaign, this time around they are still struggling to meet up to that standard that they were last time in the champions league, even with their high score win some days back I still don't see them as the favorite. I'm as surprised as you are because I was expecting Liverpool to have that same energy as PSG, how they started the season but in their own case that's Liverpool, they can't do things right, Slot might lose his job if they continue this way.

[Agbe]

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I'm sure the fans in Azerbaijan will fill the stadium to put pressure on Chelsea. This will make things easier for Qarabağ. However, considering Chelsea are used to such atmospheres in the Premier League, I don't know how much it will affect their performance. Chelsea have currently suffered only one defeat in the Champions League, apart from Bayern Munich. Since Bayern Munich is capable of beating any team they face, Chelsea's defeat is somewhat acceptable. I also think they will win in Azerbaijan.

True Chelsea should be careful with the way they will approach this game. Because this game is a very tricky one for Chelsea Qarabag has been impressive in their last three games in the champions League remember they have won against very tough opponents like Copenhagen and Benfica both at home and away. Qarabag is not a team to joke with in This years champions League as they has the capabilities of winning teams that are rated much stronger than them . Bilbao too struggled at home against Qarabag and playing at home against a team like Chelsea will be another motivation to team to showcase what they have . Because a good performance from any player in games like this will attract attention to himself and get some potential interest from the big clubs that are in Europe, and this type of games offers the opportunity to them And also a win will push them up higher the champions League table.

[abhiseshakana]

Real Madrid staying in that position will mean them to win all of their remaining matches they're going to be playing in the group stage. They may have some weak teams to play, but not until they play and prevail against them can we confidently say they'll be at the top of the standings to stand out for qualifying to the knockout phase of the competition. This new method is not an home and away fixture of the same team, it's been shared randomly which means you only have one encounter with a team in this stage and the best you can do is to take home the advantage of prevailing against them as much as you can. No second chance to meet them in this round as they use to before in this new format.

There are certainly easy matches and difficult matches, but noting that the first two are always Real Madrid and Barcelona I think the difficulty is quite relative, I have never seen either of the two teams I mentioned finish in third place at the end of the season, so let's say that for them it is relatively easy.

Real Madrid have indeed improved compared to last season. They not only have a fairly productive front line, but their back line is now more solid than ever. Dean Huijsen and Alvaro Carreras really bring a new color and besides that, Eder Militao also seems to be returning to his best form, therefore, Real Madrid no longer concedes goals easily. But I doubt if Real Madrid can win all the matches in the league stage, as there are 2 opponents who might trouble Real Madrid.

Real Madrid will face Liverpool in the next match, and even though Liverpool is currently lacking consistency, but the match will be held at Anfield, so the crowd will be an advantage for Liverpool. Real Madrid also still has to face Man City, and I think it will be a tough battle.

[Hvdv]

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I'm sure the fans in Azerbaijan will fill the stadium to put pressure on Chelsea. This will make things easier for Qarabağ. However, considering Chelsea are used to such atmospheres in the Premier League, I don't know how much it will affect their performance. Chelsea have currently suffered only one defeat in the Champions League, apart from Bayern Munich. Since Bayern Munich is capable of beating any team they face, Chelsea's defeat is somewhat acceptable. I also think they will win in Azerbaijan.

True Chelsea should be careful with the way they will approach this game. Because this game is a very tricky one for Chelsea Qarabag has been impressive in their last three games in the champions League remember they have won against very tough opponents like Copenhagen and Benfica both at home and away. Qarabag is not a team to joke with in This years champions League as they has the capabilities of winning teams that are rated much stronger than them . Bilbao too struggled at home against Qarabag and playing at home against a team like Chelsea will be another motivation to team to showcase what they have . Because a good performance from any player in games like this will attract attention to himself and get some potential interest from the big clubs that are in Europe, and this type of games offers the opportunity to them And also a win will push them up higher the champions League table.

I feel like Qarabag focuses better against the big teams. That's why the players will be extra motivated in the upcoming match in Azerbaijan. Winning this match will be their most important opportunity to further establish themselves in Europe. Because if they win, it will be another resounding victory in Europe. While their chances of achieving this seem low, if Chelsea underestimates them, they could be in for a surprise. Therefore, Chelsea should never underestimate them. It's important to remember that Benfica lost to them on their home turf.

[barisbilgili]

Ajax was able to curtail the strength of Chelsea until the red card on Kenneth Taylor after his horror tackle on Facundo Buonanotte. The match would have been more competitive if not that the Dutch club lost one man early. Enzo Maresca's side took advantage of the chance and scored as much as possible. The pressure was much on the Ajax defence that they were forced to concede two penalties.

Yes exactly, in the end they were no longer able to defend and it was seen then, as you say, the pressure was a lot and this then led to a problem with the defense which led to a problem with everyone, obviously the defense then had to fall back on the problem even spending a red card

All of this was due to the pressure Chelsea exerted, so I believe that regardless of the red card, Chelsea would still have won the match. They are indeed superior in quality, and their recent form has begun to improve after a slight slump at the start of the season.

I'm not surprised by Chelsea's victory. In fact, I think if Chelsea can maintain the impressive form they've shown in their last few matches, they'll likely be in a strong position to compete for the title this season.

[satscraper]

Liverpool have a drop in performance, but could this just be temporary? Frankfurt is a very respectable team, but despite this Liverpool have practically silenced Frankfurt.
Buried with 5 goals, he wasn't a good figure, we'll see in the next matches what will happen, if at least he manages to recover from this moral slap.

Future matches will determine whether Liverpool have truly returned to their best form or if Frankfurt were simply a team they could easily take advantage of. Sometimes, coaches intentionally hide their full tactical strength/prowess to prevent opponents from identifying weaknesses or predicting their style of play. I believe this might be the strategy Slot is gradually applying before fully showcasing his plans for the rest of the season.

Yeah, sometimes they do this intentionally, but not prior to home matches, where all rivals are aware of both their strengths and weaknesses. I think Liverpool is currently facing problems with player reseating particularly relevant to Alexander Isak injury that was evident after he was substituted at halftime. It seems like they’ve had no luck with him since they acquired him. :-

[verdinio]

Yea the needed to win the match which they won by just 1goal but we can't set the truth aside, mate RealMadrid didn't do much in that match between them and Juventus, yea Juventus is also a big side but we saw thieir lapses the last time with Como so does it mean that RealMadrid cant capitalize, we understand that football is not as easy as many of us think but men RealMadrid got a team so what, there are more Sophiscated players in that team than Juventus so this might be the reason why a good number of fans or football lovers feel that they didn't do well, when you talk about a lot of injuries in RealMadrid, I don't think it should affect them much because they have replacement for almost all their players, RealMadrid is complete team I must say it, if we talk about their defense then we can discuss that but as for other areas their team seem balanced, although they are also not doing bad after they have been able to keep getting the winning goal even though it is 1.

Real Madrid is known to be a team that lets a lot of players play and it was evident, clearly this led Juventus to believe in it and try at least to equalise, it is clear that this is a great motivation point for them who are then growing game by game

[Phoenix Anka]

Liverpool have a drop in performance, but could this just be temporary? Frankfurt is a very respectable team, but despite this Liverpool have practically silenced Frankfurt.
Buried with 5 goals, he wasn't a good figure, we'll see in the next matches what will happen, if at least he manages to recover from this moral slap.

Future matches will determine whether Liverpool have truly returned to their best form or if Frankfurt were simply a team they could easily take advantage of. Sometimes, coaches intentionally hide their full tactical strength/prowess to prevent opponents from identifying weaknesses or predicting their style of play. I believe this might be the strategy Slot is gradually applying before fully showcasing his plans for the rest of the season.

Yeah, sometimes they do this intentionally, but not prior to home matches, where all rivals are aware of both their strengths and weaknesses. I think Liverpool is currently facing problems with player reseating particularly relevant to Alexander Isak injury that was evident after he was substituted at halftime. It seems like they’ve had no luck with him since they acquired him. :-

Alexander Isak hasn't been in form this year. He's having a hard time adjusting to Liverpool after his time at Newcastle United. We all know Liverpool is a top-quality team. Normally, we'd expect him to create more chances and score more goals, but Isak has fallen far short of expectations. I didn't expect the Swedish striker to be this bad this year.

[Ryu_Ar1]

By the way Xabi seems to have made the right call by giving Arda a bigger role this season as he has truly delivered solid performances to justify the coach's trust. In this match he even earned the Man of the Match which makes me feel that there's no issue at all. However Rodrygo's role has been somewhat overshadowed lately as the competition for his position is currently extremely fierce.

Speaking of Arda I agree that this season when he was given more opportunities he really used them well. Arda's role became quite tactical in the Xabi era because he could indeed be placed anywhere because he could be a playmaker, an attacking midfielder and even a winger.

Actually, it could have been if Xabi wanted to push Rodrygo just like before where he could be used as a winger for 4-3-3 but it seems Xabi has his own way of seeing potential because even if the 4-3-3 formation is done the main options are clearly now Arda and Brahim Diaz but Rodrygo is used as a supersub.
This is understandable because in the end this kind of condition occurs due to a situation where there is intense competition between players and indeed Xabi has his own plans in the scheme.

Not that Rodrygo is also bad in this case but indeed he cannot impose even though he is a very good player it's just that we know that Xabi has his own plans in the game and even from the beginning Rodrygo was not even included in Xabi's future plans and that was proven by him who could release Rodrygo at any time when there was a suitable offer in the summer market.

In this condition Xabi is also smart enough to utilize the capacity and this is what makes Arda's condition better.
His role at Madrid is now more complex compared to the previous Ancelotti era but on the one hand this also makes some players have to make extra efforts to penetrate the core squad of Madrid but that is a very good thing because after all, when you are at a big club like Madrid, competition is not only in terms of the quality of the club but the players must also do their best to be in the squad if they do not want to be wasted.

Rodrygo clearly still has potential even in terms of performance he is also still very good it's just that when his condition does not match what Xabi expects from his future plans then he can only be a rotation option now because forcing it will be difficult when a player is not too prioritized for the club's future plans.

[Wake Up]

We all knew the Champions League was a tough tournament. We anticipated some surprises. My biggest surprise after the third leg was Benfica's side. Benfica suffered three defeats in three matches, diminishing their chances of making the top 24. Now they'll need to win every one of their remaining matches. Considering that this is a very difficult task, three defeats in three matches could potentially lead to Benfica's elimination from the Champions League.