Champions League 2025-26 Power Rankings: Flawless Arsenal a cut above everyone else in Europe as cracks appear in PSG's title defence while Bodo/Glimt expose Man City's defensive frailty

Jose Mourinho summed up Benfica's 2-0 loss in Turin rather succinctly: "The difference between Juventus and us was that they scored, and we didn't."

It was a simplistic but pretty accurate assessment of the game, as the Eagles had indeed been the better side at various points during a finely-balanced encounter. However, they just couldn't put the ball in the back of the net, even when awarded a penalty with 10 minutes to go.

Consequently, Benfica remain on six points, so even if they were to defeat Real Madrid at Estadio da Luz next week, there's no guarantee that it would be enough to propel themselves into the top 24. An early exit, thus, beckons for Mourinho's men. 

Promise David and his USG team-mates had "mixed emotions" after their 2-0 loss to Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena, given they'd frustrated the life out of their hosts before conceding a soft set-piece goal to Harry Kane shortly after the interval.

"We were very happy with the way we finished the first half," the striker told UEFA. "Defensively, I think we were solid in our low block. There was some danger, but we didn't give up dangerous shots. It was a 45 to be proud of but, in the second half, things got a bit rough for us. We conceded two quick goals and we should have been better there."

However, while USG were understandably proud of their defensive efforts against one of the best teams in Europe, they're going to have to commit a lot more men forward to beat Atalanta next week, as nothing less than a win will suffice if they're to claim an unlikely place in the play-offs - and that could spell trouble for a team that has conceded 11 goals in their previous three home games in this season's competition. 

Ajax have probably left it too late to pull off a great escape. Despite making it two wins in the trot with a 2-1 victory at Villarreal on Tuesday, they'd need to thump Olympiacos in their final fixture to significantly improve their awful -12 goal difference, and even then, there'd be no guarantee of progressing with nine points.

Still, after losing their first five games in this season's league phase, and being humiliated by AZ in the KNVB Cup last week, Ajax at least showed some admirable fighting spirit by coming from behind to win at El Madrigal.

"This result is good for the team, for the staff and, above all, for the fans, many of whom have supported us all the way," coach Fred Grim said. "The team continues to gain confidence and keep moving forward. I'm happy about that." 

Weak, money-obsessed governing bodies have robbed the game of much of its romance, but Bodo/Glimt beating state-sponsored Manchester City felt like a true footballing fairy tale. It was just reward for not only an outstanding display on the night from the Norwegians - who played Pep Guardiola's expensively assembled side off the plastic pitch - but also previous performances in this season's league phase that didn't yield the results they deserved.

Bodo/Glimt remain unlikely to progress, as they'd need to win away to Atletico Madrid to do so, but if their remarkable rise to prominence over the past few years has proved nothing else, it's that dreams sometimes do come true. 

"There are always opportunities in football," manager Kjetil Knutsen pointed out. "Even if you come from a small town like Bodo!"

Copenhagen appeared dead and buried after going a man and a goal down against Italian champions Napoli on Tuesday, with Scott McTominay breaking the deadlock shortly before the break at Parken - and just four minutes after FCK captain Thomas Delaney had seen red for a horribly reckless challenge. 

Despite their numerical disadvantage, the Danes were magnificent in the second half and fully deserved their equaliser, even if substitute Jordan Larsson was lucky to be left with an easy rebound after seeing his spot-kick saved by Vanja Milinkovic-Savic in the Napoli net.

Unfortunately for Copenhagen, they now need to beat Barcelona in the Catalans' own backyard to get into the play-offs and, for all their battling qualities, that looks too tall an order for Jacob Neestrup Hansen's team.

Club Brugge simply had to beat Kairat Almaty to keep their qualification hopes alive and they did - emphatically. The Belgians triumphed 4-1 in Kazakhstan and now know that if they can now overcome Marseille at home in their final fixture, they'll secure a spot in the play-offs.

Of course, getting the better of Roberto De Zerbi's unpredictable side will be far from straightforward, but Brugge would have signed up for such a scenario before the league phase got under way.

As coach Ivan Leko said in his post-match press conference, "This is big for me, the boys, the staff and everyone at the club to be in this situation. It will be nice - it is almost a case of nothing to lose and everything to win."

With Bayern Munich to come in their final league-phase fixture, PSV really need to get a positive result away to Newcastle on Wednesday. However, they shot themselves in the foot at St. James' Park - twice - by gifting their hosts two goals in the opening half-hour with horribly misplaced passes. There was no way back from there for the Dutch champions, who remain on eight points after seven rounds of action.

"We just weren't good enough on the ball," defender Jerdy Schouten told UEFA. "I don't want to blame injuries or anything else, as we just weren't good enough."

PSV's only hope now is that the already-qualified Bayern rest players for next week's trip to Eindhoven - and that a draw might even be enough to advance to the play-offs.

Goalkeeper Jay Gorter was understandably "devastated" by the nature of Pafos' 1-0 loss to Chelsea, as the Cypriot over-achievers were just 12 minutes away from a famous result at Stamford Bridge when Moises Caicedo headed home from close range. At the same time, the Dutch shot-stopper was immensely proud of his side's performance in London - and rightly so. Pafos defended excellently for the most part, and even hit the post during the first half.

Consequently, they'll still be brimming with belief going into their matchday-eight meeting with Slavia Prague. There are no guarantees, given there are so many permutations, but if Albert Celades' side were to overcome their already-eliminated opponents, they'd have a shot at progressing with nine points. 

Olympiacos very much rode their luck after scoring early in Tuesday's 2-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen. As goalkeeper Kostantinos Tzolakis admitted to MEGA, "We were up against a very tough opponent tonight and the second goal, against the run of play before half-time, was crucial."

The victory was just as important to the Greeks' qualification prospects as it has put them on eight points going into a fascinating final-round game against Ajax, who also need to win to give themselves any chance of reaching the play-offs. 

The stakes, therefore, could not really be any higher for Olympiacos, whose only previous away win in this season's competition came at Kairat. "If we don't win in Amsterdam next week, then our effort tonight was for nothing," Tzolakis warned. 

While the post-match narrative rightly focused on Atalanta's profligacy, Athletic Club coach Ernesto Valverde was perfectly entitled to point out that his substitutions had also played a big part in his side's shock 3-2 win in Bergamo. The Basques also deserve credit for being so clinical, as they only had four shots across the entire 90 minutes - and yet still managed to keep their qualification hopes intact.

Of course, nothing less than a victory will suffice against 10th-placed Sporting CP if Athletic are to retain their spot in the top 24 - but Valverde's team will have taken a huge amount of belief out of their win in Italy and are always a force to be reckoned with at the magnificent San Mames. 

In a wholly unsurprising development, Monaco have gone to pieces since sacking Adi Hutter - and that's not hindsight talking. We said at the time it was a baffling decision, and so it's proved.

Sebastien Pocognoli's side have lost seven of their last eight Ligue 1 games and, on Tuesday, they were destroyed 6-1 by Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. "Bad decisions and bad technical execution," was how the Belgian coach summed up a disastrous display.

However, Monaco will probably still scrape through to the knockout stage. A home win over Juventus would seal the deal, but even a point should be enough. There is, however, a concern that even a draw might be beyond Pocognoli's confidence-sapped side, given the Bianconeri are showing serious signs of improvement under Luciano Spalletti.

Antonio Conte is rarely a happy man. but he was even more annoyed than usual after Napoli were held to a 1-1 draw by Copenhagen on Tuesday - despite playing against 10 men for almost an hour.

"This has to annoy us, because if it doesn’t, then it means we don’t want to grow and improve," the infamously fiery coach stated. "It’s a draw that hurts me."

It's also a draw that's done serious damage to Napoli's bid to reach the knockouts. The Italian champions have just eight points going into the final round of fixtures, meaning if they don't beat Chelsea at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona (three days after hosting Juventus in a massive Serie A showdown!), the Partenopei will almost certainly be knocked out of Europe - and Conte will come under further scrutiny over his poor record in the Champions League.

Roberto De Zerbi could barely contain his frustration after watching Marseille slump to a 3-0 loss at home to Liverpool. The Italian was particularly upset with his side's painfully ineffective first-half performance, admitting that his players didn't seem to know what they were supposed to be doing. He was also disgusted by the "stupid" concession of a free-kick goal that saw Dominik Szoboszlai slide the ball under the Marseille wall as the players jumped in anticipation of a high shot.

All is not lost for the Ligue 1 side, though, as they certainly have the attacking talent to win away at Club Brugge next week. However, it's easy to understand why De Zerbi feels like his job more is more like that of a psychologist than a coach, given his team's Jekyll and Hyde-like performances. 

Galatasaray no longer have any real hope of finishing in the top eight after drawing 1-1 at home to Atletico Madrid. but while they had a late chance to win the game in Istanbul, they were arguably a little fortunate just to come away with a point.

It's also difficult to see 17th-placed Gala ending up as one of the seeds in the play-offs, as their final game is away to Manchester City, so Okan Buruk and his players should be more concerned with the sides below them, than those above them, going into matchday eight.

Bayer Leverkusen should have won in Greece on Tuesday. Their xG was more than twice that of Olympiacos', but they failed to even take one of the five big chances they created on the night, while at the same time conceding from their opponents' only two shots on target. "We were just not sharp today," coach Kasper Hjulmand conceded. 

As a consequence of their 2-0 loss at the Stadio Georgios Karaiskakis, Leverkusen are out of the running for a top-eight finish. However, they could yet sneak into a seeded position for the play-offs by beating Villarreal - and their task has been made easier by the fact that the Spaniards have already been eliminated. 

"We are set on progressing in this tournament," a defiant Hjulmand said. "Next Wednesday, we must take that last step."

Scenes! There were truly beautiful scenes when the full-time whistle blew in Baku on Wednesday, with Qarabag coach Gurban Gurbanov and a number of his players shedding tears of joy after their sensational 3-2 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.

The Azerbaijani outfit had been a goal down with just over 10 minutes to go, but Camilo Duran drew the home side level with his second strike of the evening before Bahlul Mustafazada sparked wild scenes of celebration on and off the pitch with his last-second winner.

Qarabag aren't 100 percent certain of a spot in the play-offs and must travel to Anfield to face Liverpool in their final game, but there's a strong chance that the 10 points they've already amassed will prove sufficient to see them through. 

There's no shame in losing at home to Arsenal right now, and Inter actually played reasonably well at San Siro on Tuesday. They had chances; they just didn't take enough of them, so coach Christian Chivu had a point when he said the difference between the two teams was that "Arsenal were more clinical".

However, there is simply no longer hiding the fact that Inter have a big-game problem. They've yet to win against their main Serie A title rivals this season, AC Milan and Napoli, while they've now lost three games on the spin against the only top teams they've faced in the Champions League.

As a result, it's hard to be remotely confident about the Nerazzurri bucking the trend against Borussia Dortmund next Wednesday, and if they fail to win at Signal Iduna Park, a team that had a perfect record at the halfway point of the league phase is going to definitely end up in the play-offs.

Borussia Dortmund's painfully flat first-half performance against a fragile Tottenham team was, as coach Nico Kovac admitted, "difficult to explain". The visitors were much better after the break but, by that stage, they were already two goals and one man down, making a comeback impossible. 

The disappointing defeat in north London means Dortmund's opportunity to finish in the top eight is now gone - and that's an undeniably bitter blow for BVB, who were sixth in the standings ahead of their home game against Bodo/Glimt on matchday six (which they drew). Still, by beating Inter in their final fixture, they would at least be seeded in the play-offs, so Signal Iduna Park should be even more raucous than usual on Wednesday.

It's too early to judge Liam Rosenior's Chelsea, given the former Strasbourg coach only succeeded Enzo Maresca as manager just over a fortnight ago, but there was certainly nothing to write home about after Wednesday's laboured 1-0 win over Pafos. The Cypriots have proven very competitive in this season's Champions League, but the Blues' lack of creativity was disturbing - even accounting for the unavailability of Cole Palmer.

In the end, Chelsea needed a rare headed goal from defensive midfielder Moises Caicedo to win a game they rather predictably dominated in terms of possession, so we'll only get a better idea of the direction the team is heading in under Rosenior after next week's mouth-watering match-up with Napoli, which the west Londoners will need to win to hold onto a place in the top eight.

Juventus lost to Cagliari at the weekend, suggesting talk of a Serie A title tilt is fanciful at best, but Wednesday's 2-0 win over Benfica underlined that the Bianconeri are very much moving in the right direction again under Luciano Spalletti.

Juve were by no means brilliant in Turin and they lacked a real cutting edge up front, but they dug in and won the game thanks to a couple of goals from key midfielders Khephren Thuram and Weston McKennie.

After their third consecutive Champions League victory, a place in the play-offs is now guaranteed ahead of next week's trip to free-falling Monaco, meaning the Old Lady still has an outside chance of finishing inside the top eight. 

The sense of frustration at the New Balance Arena on Wednesday was palpable. Atalanta had gone into the game knowing that a victory over struggling Athletic Club would all-but secure a spot in the last 16. However, despite going 1-0 up and absolutely bossing almost the entire opening hour of the game, the Bergamaschi ended up on the wrong side of a 3-2 scoreline after being stunned by the concession of three breakaway goals in 16 second-half half minutes.

"It's difficult to talk about this match because what happened is inexplicable," Raffaele Palladino admitted. But the onus is on the coach to ensure that Atalanta avoid another "blackout", as he called it, against USG next week, as a win would give Atalanta a great chance of forcing their way back into the top eight.

Sporting CP coach Rui Borges enthused after Tuesday's shock win over Paris Saint-Germain, "We are among the best, we compete with them, and I have no words to describe this group and these lads, who deserved this victory and deserve to be in Sporting's history." It's impossible to disagree.

Sporting may not have ranked among the favourites to win the Champions League back in September (and they probably still aren't particularly popular with punters). but through a combination of talent, hard work and unity, Borges' team are now within touching distance of a top-eight finish. 

The Portuguese title-holders will need to win away to Athletic Club to advance directly to the last 16, and San Mames is never an easy place to go, but this is unquestionably a glorious opportunity to "finish the league stage in the best possible way", as star striker Luis Suarez put it.

Newcastle are really struggling to put a good run of results together in the Premier League but, much like forward Anthony Gordon, they're a very different beast in the Champions League. The Magpies pummelled PSV before another raucous crowd at St. James Park on Wednesday to make sure of a spot in this season's knockout stage, with fit-again summer signing Yoane Wissa scoring the vital opening goal.

Of course, Newcastle could yet go straight into the last 16, as they're currently seventh in the standings. The only problem is that they must next face reigning champions PSG, who also need to win to make sure that they avoid the play-offs. A win at Parc des Princes is not beyond Eddie Howe's team, but much will hinge upon the fitness of key midfielder Bruno Guimaraes, who was forced off with an injury in the 3-0 win over PSV.

There was a very real chance that Thomas Frank would have been out of a job had Tottenham been beaten by Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday. Truth be told, it was something of a surprise that he wasn't sacked after Saturday's loss at home to relegation-threatened West Ham, which saw Spurs slump to 14th in the Premier League table.

However, things are suddenly looking a lot more positive for Frank, after a 2-0 win over 10-man Dortmund that not only guaranteed his team a play-off place, but also put them in a position to go straight through to the last 16. 

All they have to do now is win away to already-eliminated Eintracht Frankfurt, and while consistency has been a major problem for the north Londoners in the Premier League, they've only lost once in Europe this season, and that was against Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes.

We thought that Manchester City were back when they beat Real Madrid at the Bernabeu midway through a 10-game winning streak in all competitions. However, Pep Guardiola's side have inexplicably struggled since the turn of the year, meaning Tuesday's 3-1 loss at Bodo/Glimt wasn't quite as big a shock as it normally would have been.

The Catalan rather embarrassed himself by bringing up injuries in his post-match press conference, given the enormous disparity in wealth and resources between the two sides, as well as the fact that their opponents hadn't played a competitive fixture for nearly two months. But Guardiola's lame attempt at an excuse illustrated why City have felt the need to once again try to spend their way out of trouble by signing Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi during the current transfer window.

With Galatasaray to come at the Etihad, 11th-placed City should still go straight through to the last 16, where they'll remain a very live contender because of the incredible amount of talent in their squad. It's hard, though, to shake the suspicion that City's best days under Guardiola are behind them, while Erling Haaland's open-play goal drought is becoming a major cause for concern.

Atletico Madrid made a dream start to their daunting trip to Turkey to take on Galatasaray, with Giuliano Simeone putting them ahead just four minutes into the game at RAMS Park. However, they were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw after giving away an own goal and wasting several good chances to reclaim the lead. Still, while Giuliano's father, Diego, was frustrated by his team's failure to win, he acknowledged that a point wasn't a bad return from such "a hard-fought game".

Nonetheless, the draw has rather complicated things for Atletico in terms of a top-eight finish. They now sit 12th, level on 13 points with eight other teams, and the hope is that a home win over Bodo/Glimt would see them straight through to the last 16.

Real Madrid are a successful club, but not a serious club. As the dismissal of Xabi Alonso hammered home, they don't want a tactician for a coach because what they really need is a child-minder, someone to look after an expensively-assembled collection of spoilt brats. In that sense, Alvaro Arbeloa might well be the ideal successor to Alonso, given he's plenty of experience working with kids in his previous roles within Madrid's youth sector.

Of course, last week's embarrassing loss to Albacete didn't bode well, but Madrid's players only truly care about the Champions League, so it was not in the least bit surprising to see them turn it on in Tuesday's 6-1 rout of Monaco. There are still so many things wrong with the set-up at the Bernabeu, but Real are now poised to progress straight to the last 16 and simply cannot be ruled out of the running because their players are as talented as they are temperamental. 

Luis Enrique wasn't the least bit disappointed by Paris Saint-Germain's performance in their 2-1 loss at Sporting CP. In fact, he called it "our best away game of the season" and argued that they'd simply paid the inevitable price for being so profligate in front of goal.

However, it's difficult not to be a little perturbed by PSG's recent displays. They've looked tired at times, which is understandable after such a gruelling schedule in 2025, and it's no coincidence that they're in real danger of missing out on automatic qualification for the last 16. 

Obviously, that wasn't a problem last year. On the contrary, it allowed PSG to build up unstoppable momentum during the second half of the season, but the mere fact that they aren't even top of Ligue 1 right now is an undeniable cause for concern ahead of a very tricky tie with Newcastle.

Barcelona got the win they needed away to Slavia Prague to remain in contention for a top-eight finish, but it was nowhere near as straightforward as everyone expected. The Czechs exposed Barcelona's defensive deficiencies - particularly at set-pieces - to pull the scores level at 2-2 before the Blaugrana pulled clear.

The big positive for Hansi Flick is that his substitutes once again made a big impact off the bench, and while Barca currently sit ninth in the standings, they should end up progressing directly to the last 16, as they conclude their league-phase campaign against Copenhagen at Camp Nou.

Nonetheless, Flick really is going to have to make Barca tougher to break down if they're to go all the way this year, as they've now conceded 13 times in just seven games so far.

Europe has been Arne Slot's saving grace this season. Liverpool's Premier League title defence may already be over but, after Wednesday's hugely impressive 3-0 win away to Marseille, the Reds could hardly be in a better position to reach the last 16, with a home game to come against Qarabag.

Of course, a lot of Liverpool's worst performances have come against teams that sit deep, and there are still legitimate concerns over the defence and bench. However, with Mohamed Salah back, and new signings such as Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong really starting to shine now, things are suddenly looking up for Slot.

His team looks so much more comfortable playing stronger sides (they've beaten Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and Inter in this season’s Champions League, and Arsenal in the Premier League), while Anfield nights always seem to bring the best out of the six-time champions of Europe.

Bayern Munich made surprisingly hard work of beating USG on a bitterly cold night at the Allianz Arena. Kim Min-Jae was sent off for two bookable offences, while Harry Kane missed a penalty when he was on a hat-trick. However, Bayern remain very well-placed to go through to the last 16 as one of the top two seeds, as they're three points ahead of Real Madrid and Liverpool in third and fourth, respectively.

Of course, PSV away is a potential banana skin for the Bavarians, but Vincent Kompany's men are going to be a serious title contender no matter where they finish up. They've got serious strength in depth, and that's only been added to now Jamal Musiala is back from injury!

Arsenal are by no means the most attractive or entertaining team in the game today. A lot of their goals come from set-pieces and there's a cynicism about their manager and some of his key players that jars with a lot of people. The thing is, though, we can't see a stronger side in England or Europe right now. Inter may not be the force they were last season. but it was impossible not to be impressed with the way in which Arsenal went about winning 3-1 at San Siro on Tuesday.

Obviously, a lot can change during the business end of the season. Injuries, for example, can derail any campaign. But tables really don't lie and Arsenal are deservedly top of both the Premier League and Champions League for one main reason: the staggering strength of Mikel Arteta's squad. 

Having also now secured home advantage in the second leg of all of their prospective knockout ties with a seventh-successive victory in the league phase, the Gunners really couldn't be better placed to finally win a European Cup.