MANCHESTER: Premier League teams are powering ahead in the Champions League with five of England’s top flight clubs in position to advance to the round of 16.
Arsenal tops the standings and has already secured its place in the next round, while wins for Liverpool, Newcastle and Chelsea on Wednesday saw them move into the top eight automatic qualifying positions with one game of the league phase to go.
Tottenham is fifth, with Manchester City the only English team in the playoff positions going into next week’s matches.
Liverpool is fourth after a 3-0 win at Marseille. Newcastle beat PSV Eindhoven by the same score and Chelsea won 1-0 against Pafos.
Bayern Munich is second and joined Arsenal in advancing to the round of 16 with Harry Kane scoring twice in a 2-0 win over Union Saint-Gilloise.
Barcelona is in ninth place after a 4-2 win at Slavia Prague and risks having to go through the playoffs to advance.
But there is much to play for in the final round of league phase games with just three points separating third place Real Madrid and Juventus in 15th.
The top eight qualify directly to the round of 16. Teams placed from nine to 24 enter a two-legged playoff to advance.
Prepare for a dramatic final round of games before the knockouts.
While the remaining six automatic qualification spots are still up for grabs, just two points separate the last of the playoff places and Ajax, placed 32nd in the standings.
One standout game sees Italian champion Napoli host Chelsea. Napoli is 25th - one place below the playoffs.
Defending champion Paris Saint-Germain host Newcastle and dropped points for either team could see them fall into the playoffs.
Man City’s home game against Galatasaray also has much riding on it if the 2023 European champions are to avoid the danger of the playoffs.
Jose Mourinho needs a win at his former club Madrid to give Benfica any chance of making the playoffs.
Liverpool topped the league phase last year - only to be eliminated by PSG in the round of 16.
Arne Slot’s team has made hard work of it this time around, but victory in Marseille leaves the Premier League champion in a strong position going into its final game at home to Qarabag.
Dominik Szoboszlai’s free kick put Liverpool ahead in the first half. A Geronimo Rulli own goal doubled the advantage and Cody Gakpo sealed the win that also saw Hugo Ekitike hit the bar and Mohamed Salah miss a golden chance.
Newcastle cruised past PSV at St James’ Park, with Yoane Wissa, Anthony Gordon and Harvey Barnes on the score sheet, while it took a Moises Caicedo header to see Chelsea break down a stubborn Pafos.