UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Season

[verdinio]

It must be admitted that Benfica deserved the win, and Mourinho was indeed able to read Real Madrid's strategy very well. Mourinho was also very motivated going into the match because besides wanting to win, he was also ambitious to qualify his team for the next round. What happened was very dramatic until the final seconds. Real Madrid does have a good squad, but Arbeloa was unable to control his squad and he appeared nervous, which made his team's play disoriented.

Benfica played an excellent game that was very prolific for them reaching the playoffs but let's say that there was also some demerit from the Real Madrid players who did not assert themselves in this game and prostrated themselves to Benfica's incessant attacks!

[MinoRaiola]

Benfica played an excellent game that was very prolific for them reaching the playoffs but let's say that there was also some demerit from the Real Madrid players who did not assert themselves in this game and prostrated themselves to Benfica's incessant attacks!

Real Madrid has fallen back to 9th place in the CL-League. If they won the game, the third place would been possible. If Real Madrid doesnt win any titles this year, there will definitely be a new coach. They are out of the Copa del Rey, they are behind Barcelona in La Liga, and they are currently in the Champions League, but they cant lose any more games. So Real needs to win more games, or Arbeloa Alvaro will have a very difficult time.

[Joy- maker]

Many predicted that Real Madrid would win the match against Benfica due to their superior strength. Ultimately everyone was surprised by the result which was won by Jose Mourinho's team with a score that was quite embarrassing for a team of Real Madrid's stature known for its many young players with better reputations than Benfica's.

This was clear because Benfica has a coach who also previously coached Real Madrid so Mourinho was somewhat familiar with the rhythm of their game, especially with Arbeloa. However with this result Real Madrid was assured of progress to the next round. Although they lost their points total was certainly enough to advance.

That is why I always say that football matches can be unpredictable sometimes, the team you expect to win the other team will end up losing to the team you felt they will outperform. The match between real Madrid and Benfica was an interesting one, both teams performed very well, but luck ran out of real Madrid and they where defeated by Benfica. Before the match day a lot of persons already concluded that real Madrid will beat Benfica which i believe that larger numbers of person's bet on real Madrid to win Benfica, but the table ended up turning around and the opposite happened.

I can't agree less on your second paragraph, because there is Some truth in what you just said. Since coach Mourinho has once coached real Madrid there is a possibility that he might have become familiar with the rhythm of their game just as you said. But that's by way because the deed has already been done. Let's just look forward and see how real Madrid will perform in their next match.

[giorgione]

mbappé played seven matches in the champions league group stage this season, scoring a total of 13 goals and contributing to the score in five of those matches. no matter how you look at it, this is an incredible statistic. a detailed breakdown of his goals is as follows:




madrid finished the league stage in 9th place, so they will also play in the playoffs, and i think mbappe could break the champions league scoring records this season. madrid is a strong team in the knockout stage, and if they don't get eliminated in the quarterfinals, the number of games they play will increase, which could be an opportunity for mbappe.

Mbappe is a truly incredible player and it seems to me that he has also broken the record of Cristiano Ronaldo who held that record or 13 goals in the initial phase of the Champions League, so really hats off to this player who despite everything is very strong and is doing everything on his own.

[Zlantann]

Benfica? again? lol
Absolute cinema, this will only cause more pain if Real Madrid can't beat Benfica. It's quite surprising because among the other matches, this is the only one that worries me.
The pressure was on Madrid, as they were treating the match as a revenge match, a worst-case scenario where Benfica was able to play on their players' mentality.

Benfica might not survive this time. Real Madrid will be coming for revenge after they were beaten mercilessly. Jose Mourinho has a good team but they are no match for Real Madrid. The Spanish club is lacking a sound tactical coach who can maximise the quality players at his disposal.

I am not happy that PSG was paired with another French club. This means that only one Ligue One club would compete for the UCL trophy. Thesame thing happened last season when both French sides (Brest and PSG) met in the playoffs. Are there no means by which this issue can be handled?

[ajanwalker]

Galatasaray has been drawn against Juventus in the Round of 16 play-offs. Juventus has a bad history with Galatasaray in this regard. I can say that this is the ideal opponent for Galatasaray.

Juventus has a name. I watched their Monaco match. There was no memorable attacking organization or anything else. Galatasaray's chances of advancing are 51%.

[Sarah Azhari]

here we go guys - the play-offs have just been drawn!!!

Real Madrid fans are surely nervous about seeing the playoff draw. Some may think or even resign themselves to the fact that Real Madrid won't advance to the round of 16, given their humiliation at the hands of Benfica. This is not without reason, as Real Madrid performed poorly in the previous match, and Arbeloa is not a qualified coach. Furthermore, Real Madrid will be without Asencio and Rodrygo in the first leg due to red cards. So, Real Madrid fans are bracing themselves for a first-leg defeat at Benfica home ground.

[Pjcr7]

here we go guys - the play-offs have just been drawn!!!

Just as I anticipated, Real Madrid got Benfica and PSG got Monaco. If it was a bet I will be seeing green right now because these were my two best candidates. Real Madrid Vs Benfica and PSG Vs Monaco fixtures. I want to see the extent of Real Madrid's revenge against Benfica for making them finish 9th just one spot below the automatic qualification or Benfica will be stubborn again and knock them out and PSG to demolish another League One side just as they did last season at the stage too.

[dollyamo]

Benfica soon got their chance to an equalizer, later took the lead with a penalty and got a 3rd goal with yet another swift ball shot to the far corner. That was when, I knew it was over for Real Madrid because, Mourinho could be very defensive in his strategy although, he was out for Real Madrid yesterday and the goalkeeper even got a goal.

Kudos to Benfica who managed to defeat a very nervous Real Madrid.
Honestly, i was disappointed with Real Madrid's behavior and performance.
I wouldn't have expected such a bad game from them.
I didn't think they could play that badly. Happens

[KTChampions]

here we go guys - the play-offs have just been drawn!!!

Benfica probably feels like they're in a horror movie, the standard scenario: you kill the monster, but then that monster is back in front of you and it's twice as hard to kill  
In general, unfortunately, there is only one even pair: Dortmund - Atalanta, maybe also Galatasaray - Juventus. In the rest, the outcome is clear in advance, although something funny like Monaco winning over PSG could happen, I think Monaco has no fear of PSG since they play against them at least twice a year.

[hyudien]

Galatasaray has been drawn against Juventus in the Round of 16 play-offs. Juventus has a bad history with Galatasaray in this regard. I can say that this is the ideal opponent for Galatasaray.

Juventus has a name. I watched their Monaco match. There was no memorable attacking organization or anything else. Galatasaray's chances of advancing are 51%.

Seriously? I think Galatasaray is lucky enough to get an opponent like Juventus in the knock out phase later, not to underestimate, but as you have explained, that Juventus really performed poorly in the last match, this indicates that Juventus is in inconsistent performance, besides that Galatasaray has a name like Osimhen, who has experience against teams from Serie A, incidentally Galatasaray so far has the ability when facing opponents higher than them, this is just a matter of preparation, if they find the right tactics, the chance of qualifying is not impossible.

[giammangiato]

Benfica played an excellent game that was very prolific for them reaching the playoffs but let's say that there was also some demerit from the Real Madrid players who did not assert themselves in this game and prostrated themselves to Benfica's incessant attacks!

Real Madrid has fallen back to 9th place in the CL-League. If they won the game, the third place would been possible. If Real Madrid doesnt win any titles this year, there will definitely be a new coach. They are out of the Copa del Rey, they are behind Barcelona in La Liga, and they are currently in the Champions League, but they cant lose any more games. So Real needs to win more games, or Arbeloa Alvaro will have a very difficult time.

Before the need to win he needs to get off to a good mental start, is it always the coach's fault? The whole mechanism that is not good is to blame.
Benfica deserved to win, they kept Real Madrid under pressure the whole time, who for this season I don't see materially much chance of recovery to regain what they lost.

[Bobrox]

here we go guys - the play-offs have just been drawn!!!

The playoff round match drawing looks PSG, Newcastle, Inter and Leverkusen has advantage because facing not quite top teams than other teams have to face difficult opponent teams such as Madrid have revenge against Benfica, Juventus has difficult match by facing Galatasaray and quite strong both teams Atalanta and Dortmund have fight each other at playoff round match.
Madrid fans can't forget yet have to face Benfica at the playoff round after losing last phase league round match from Benfica and if want to revenge is great moment for Madrid, sadly for the first leg match have to face Benfica at their home and wish Madrid's player can forget how bad result last match when defeating 4-2.

[rangga28]

here we go guys - the play-offs have just been drawn!!!

Benfica probably feels like they're in a horror movie, the standard scenario: you kill the monster, but then that monster is back in front of you and it's twice as hard to kill  
In general, unfortunately, there is only one even pair: Dortmund - Atalanta, maybe also Galatasaray - Juventus. In the rest, the outcome is clear in advance, although something funny like Monaco winning over PSG could happen, I think Monaco has no fear of PSG since they play against them at least twice a year.

That's a very unique draw and fits your point perfectly,  . Of course, the match between Benfica and Real Madrid will attract a lot of attention, and the media will be more involved, and Mourinho will likely make another sharp statement, making the match even more interesting. The other draws aren't as trending as they could be considered mid-table matches.

[Lillominato89]

Benfica played an excellent game that was very prolific for them reaching the playoffs but let's say that there was also some demerit from the Real Madrid players who did not assert themselves in this game and prostrated themselves to Benfica's incessant attacks!

Real Madrid has fallen back to 9th place in the CL-League. If they won the game, the third place would been possible. If Real Madrid doesnt win any titles this year, there will definitely be a new coach. They are out of the Copa del Rey, they are behind Barcelona in La Liga, and they are currently in the Champions League, but they cant lose any more games. So Real needs to win more games, or Arbeloa Alvaro will have a very difficult time.

Real Madrid's decisions this year have been somewhat questionable, from the decision to hire Xabi Alonso to his subsequent dismissal!
I understand that being the manager of Real Madrid must be a considerable burden, but personally, I would have kept Xabi Alonso until at least the end of the season, then considered a new manager.
I have never been in favour of changing managers during tournaments.
The match against Benfica is an example of how Alonso's dismissal has not been fully accepted by the players.

[bastisisca]

Arsenal are the bookies favourites too, but that doesn't leave the result certain.
Bookmakers are organized by people and evaluate the circumstances of the game and statistics, but even they can be wrong, no one has the ability to predict a result with certainty. Mistakes are actually not as rare as you mean.

We knew this and it is also quite obvious that Arsenal are favored by bookmakers, because they certainly don't make random odds, but the odds allow them to randomly bring the normal profit they expect. So honestly for me too, Arsenal are the favourites.

I know, mistakes happen.

[cande86]

Thus is something that needs to be confronted and addressed by the president of Real Madrid and if it is not, they'd most likely end up going trophyless again this season.
Player power being given to players in the dressing has been causing a whole lot of disagreement. We all saw how it played down with Xabi Alonso,  if Arbeloa fails to handle the situation well enough, they'll lose games and more trophies. It sad thing is that, a player like Vinicius will be used as a scapegoat  ( he'll be sold ).

Real Madrid will most likely end up without winning much, i see it very hard for them in the last few they have not done much to improve the situation, Xabi was convinced that with that technique they would have won more, but he was wrong and only lost the appeal to the players.

[whiteblue]

The result that was very unexpected by anyone in this match was the final point 4- two goals difference with Benfica and what must be regretted is that with this defeat Real Madrid had to enter the Play Off qualifying round, this is a very big loss for them because they only have a difference of 1 point with the eighth position to enter the Play Off directly, now they have to work harder to continue the Champions League, people who bet on Madrid I think they will feel deep pain from the results of this match, and what is actually underestimated is that Manchester City can successfully enter the Play Off, Manchester City must thank Real Madrid, because if Real Madrid does not lose then Manchester City does not have that chance.

It was actually very difficult to predict that Real Madrid would lose this match because Benfica wasn't playing well in the Champions League. Many people naturally considered Real Madrid the favorites before the match, but Benfica later staged a magnificent comeback and had already secured the win. Furthermore, there was one more goal needed to secure qualification for the top 24 teams, and even goalkeeper Trubin joined the final attack to try and put pressure on the nine-man Real Madrid defense. That's when we saw one of the most beautiful aspects of football: the goalkeeper scored a magnificent header to secure his team's playoff spot. It was one of the most enjoyable matches I've watched recently.

If you know behind Benfica is a figure who has shaken many leagues with his team in the past, namely Maurinho, now holding Benfica in his hands, with his ability can certainly make an unstable team like Real Madrid defeated, even he knows to tell the goalkeeper to go to the front line to take advantage of the last chance because with only a goal more they can qualify for the play-off qualifying round, if we look at the points obtained by Maerseille, Pafos and Unions Saint-Gilloise.



Therefore Benfica had to score 4 goals and yes they managed to score a perfect win here although there must be a lot of disappointment in Real Madrid, Arbeloa probably forgot his opponent was Maurinho, obviously from a much different experience in handling a team.

Mourinho is indeed a skilled coach who can defeat anyone, no matter how small their strengths, so he probably planned this match very well, calculating the chances he could create against a giant who had lost his leg. He knew the weaknesses Arbeloa had created, giving him a greater chance of victory. Meanwhile, Arbeloa was unaware of his full potential.

Those four goals were enough to qualify for the qualifying round. It's no wonder Mourinho was chasing that spot. Four goals was a price to pay, as Madrid also scored. 2-0 should have been enough, right?

[SUPERSAIAN]

It must be admitted that Benfica deserved the win, and Mourinho was indeed able to read Real Madrid's strategy very well. Mourinho was also very motivated going into the match because besides wanting to win, he was also ambitious to qualify his team for the next round. What happened was very dramatic until the final seconds. Real Madrid does have a good squad, but Arbeloa was unable to control his squad and he appeared nervous, which made his team's play disoriented.

Benfica played an excellent game that was very prolific for them reaching the playoffs but let's say that there was also some demerit from the Real Madrid players who did not assert themselves in this game and prostrated themselves to Benfica's incessant attacks!

I have no doubt that Mourinho is a good manager he has won many important championships with various clubs in the past. I also saw him at Fenerbahçe, but things didn't go exactly as planned there. He caught Real Madrid at a time when they were having a bad game. However, it must be said that Mourinho understood Real Madrid's tactics well and deserved to win the match.

[m4r1o]

Week 8 of the standings changed quite drastically and this is something that Madrid did not expect because with this defeat the position that was previously comfortable and could qualify directly in the end had to be left alone which made them have to go through the play off phase but the good thing is that this is an opportunity for Mbappe to score more goals.

Now if we want to see a positive side for Real Madrid, they have more time to focus on La Liga, where they have arch-rival Barcelona just one point away, one single point

This way you can focus on this goal and concentrate better both physically and mentally.