The final decisions for the knockout round were made on the last group match day of the Europa League. Ajax Amsterdam did damage control, Liverpool FC are group winners despite the defeat.
While the eight group winners advance directly to the round of 16, the group runners-up play in a knockout round against the third-placed teams in the Champions League for further places in the round of 16. The third-placed teams in the Europa League take part in the knockout round against the runners-up in the Conference group League to play for the round of 16.
The games in the intermediate round will be drawn on Monday (December 18, 2023, 1 p.m.).
Group A: Piraeus secures third place
While SC Freiburg lost the final to win the group at West Ham United, Olympiakos Piraeus secured at least third place with a 5-2 win against TSC Backa Topola and wintered in the Conference League.
Group B: Ajax avoids complete elimination
Crisis club Ajax Amsterdam reached at least third place in its group, and a 3-1 win against AEK Athens secured their place in the European Cup over the winter. Brighton & Hove Albion won the decisive game for first place against Olympique Marseille and moved into the round of 16, Marseille has to go to the knockout round.
Group C: Betis falls from first place
The Glasgow Rangers won the group and reached the round of 16 with a 3-2 win at Real Betis. As the previous league leaders, Betis now has to go into the second round of the Conference League as third in the group. Sparta Prague took advantage of the moment and moved past Aris Limassol into second place with a 3-1 win.
Group D: Bergamo with a clear win
Atalanta Bergamo was already the group winner, but celebrated another clear win with a 4-0 win against Rakow Czestochowa in Poland. Sporting Lisbon was already second in the group, but won 3-0 at Sturm Graz, which is in third place.
Group E: Liverpool with no consequences
Liverpool FC lost 2-1 at Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium – but had already been declared group winners. For Saint-Gilles only third place remains and thus the intermediate round in the Conference League, as FC Toulouse won 2-1 at Linzer ASK.
Group F: Villarreal wins final for group victory against Stade Rennes
Stade Rennes equalized twice against Villarreal, but in the end the Spaniards won 3-2 and won the direct duel for group victory and direct entry into the round of 16; Rennes has to go into the second round. Maccabi Haifa won 2-1 at Panathinaikos Athens and reached the intermediate round of the Conference League.
Villarreal’s striker Gerard (l.) celebrates a goal
Group G: Slavia Prague group winners ahead of AS Roma
Slavia Prague managed a small surprise and finished the group as group winners after a 4-0 win over Servette Geneva. AS Roma only managed second place, despite beating Sheriff Tiraspol 3-0.
David Doudera of Slavia celebrates a goal during the UEFA Europa League 6th Round Group G match between Slavia Praha and Servette Geneva.
Group H: Qarabag takes second place behind Leverkusen
Qarabag Agdam took second place behind Bayer Leverkusen, who had no loss points. The club from Azerbaijan won 2-1 against Swedish representatives BK Häcken. Molde FK from Norway ended up third despite losing 5-1 in Leverkusen.
2023-12-15 07:21:20
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