As the Champions League group phase trickles toward a conclusion, our attention turns to the progress of the United Kingdom’s contingent of teams in the tournament.
Premier League giants Arsenal and Manchester City have punched their tickets to the knockout stage as group winners, extending their domestic dominance to the continental stage.
By contrast, Manchester United and Newcastle United are teetering on the brink of elimination, with their fate hanging in the balance ahead of the crucial final group stage fixture.
While they could still join their Premier League counterparts in the last-16, Scottish Premiership club Celtic have already exited the competition.
Manchester United
Man United kicked off Group A as one of the bookmakers’ favourites to secure a last-16 spot alongside German juggernauts Bayern Munich, but they’ve had a tournament to forget.
With just one win from five group stage games, United’s last-16 chances hinge on collecting maximum points in their final fixture against Bayern while hoping FC Copenhagen and Galatasaray share the spoils.
In their penultimate match against Gala, the Red Devils established a 3-1 lead heading into the hour mark only to falter as the Turkish champions orchestrated a dramatic comeback to draw 3-3.
United’s performance against Gala left a lot to be desired about their chances of ousting the already qualified Bayern, who are unbeaten in their last 39 group-stage games.
<h2>Arsenal</h2>
After a six-year hiatus from Europe’s top-tier club tournament, Arsenal marked their return to the Champions League with an emphatic 4-0 victory over PSV Eindhoven.
Although they stumbled to a shock 2-1 defeat to Ligue 1 high flyers RC Lens in their next fixture, the Gunners subsequently claimed three consecutive wins to secure qualification.
Their winning streak included retribution against Lens, decimating the French runners up 6-0 in their reverse encounter at the Emirates Stadium – a riot that saw six different scorers etch their names on the scoresheet.
Arsenal were always favourites to qualify from Group B as leaders, and they’ve lived up to expectations. But Mikel Arteta will demand another five-star performance when his side take on PSV in their final contest.
Celtic
Celtic’s Champions League journey has been a huge disappointment, with Tuesday’s 2-0 defeat at Lazio confirming their elimination from the tournament.
Having seen their side exit the Champions League, Celtic’s sizeable fanbase in Scotland and Ireland will be hoping to gain some recompense by backing their team to retain their domestic title.
Online bookmakers rate them as the favourites to retain their Scottish Premiership title and earn another tilt at UEFA’s top club competition next season, where they’d be keen to put up a better performance.
Leading betting apps list them at odds of 1.20 to finish ahead of arch-rivals Rangers and successfully defend their Premiership crown, and it would be a major surprise if they fail to get the job done.
Newcastle United
After a two-decade absence, Newcastle marked their Champions League return with a goalless draw against AC Milan before turning heads with a remarkable 4-1 victory over Paris Saint-Germain.
However, they’ve struggled to build on the historic triumph over the French heavyweights, collecting just one point from their subsequent three games.
Newcastle have fared reasonably well in the acclaimed ‘Group of Death,’ considering the current crop of players had no European experience heading into the campaign.
They were unfortunate to emerge from their recent PSG clash with only a point, thanks to a VAR controversy that allowed Kylian Mbappe snatch a 1-1 draw from the penalty spot.
However, to further their European dream, they must find a way past Milan in two weeks and hope the already qualified Borussia Dortmund beat PSG at Signal Iduna Park.
Manchester City
Man City have blitzed through opening phase without breaking a sweat, with none of their Group G counterparts matching up to the formidable treble winners.
RB Leipzig came closest to denting City’s perfect record but failed to see out a two-goal lead as Pep Guardiola’s side secured a comeback 3-2 win at the Etihad Stadium.
The Premier League champions take on Red Star Belgrade in their ultimate group phase contest, and they are expected to maintain their spotless record heading into the last-16.
They are 2/1 favourites to win the Champions League for the second successive year, but will face stiff competition from Bayern and Real Madrid as the competition progresses.
