Eight teams have already qualified for the Champions League round of 16 and the remaining spots will be decided in the final group games on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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Manchester City and Tottenham confirmed their places in the last 16 after the matchday five fixtures and on Tuesday night Liverpool and Chelsea will hope to join their Premier League rivals in the next round.
The draw for the Champions League round of 16 takes place on Monday 16 December. The draw in Nyon, Switzerland, starts at 11am (GMT).
Which teams have qualified for the last 16?
- Paris Saint-Germain: group A winners
- Bayern Munich: group B winners
- Manchester City: group C winners
- Juventus: group D winners
- Barcelona: group F winners
- RB Leipzig: group G qualifiers
- Real Madrid: group A runners-up
- Tottenham Hotspur: group B runners-up
Klopp prepared for ‘final’
Champions League holders Liverpool are currently top of group E on ten points, one ahead of Napoli and three clear of Red Bull Salzburg. However, they still need one point in Salzburg to ensure their place in the knockout stages.
Speaking ahead of Tuesday’s clash in Austria, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said: “Everybody knows it’s a final and we’re prepared for that – Salzburg has to win against us.
“We are not a typical Champions League winner, we’re still ambitious like crazy, we will go for everything and run for our lives. It’s not that I expect us to go through, I expect us to play the best game we can play.”
Red Bull Salzburg vs. Liverpool kicks off at 5.55pm and is live on BT Sport 3.
It’s a knockout at the Bridge
If Chelsea are to qualify then Frank Lampard’s side will need to beat Lille in their final group H fixture on Tuesday.
After five matches the Blues currently sit third in the group, level on eight points with second-placed Valencia and two behind leaders Ajax.
With three teams still in with a chance of qualifying, the match at Stamford Bridge is a knockout tie for Lampard’s men.
“I was fortunate to have big nights as a player and they are the ones that stick in your mind,” the Chelsea boss said. “So it’s an opportunity for the team, and particularly the young boys, because it’s quite new for them.
“It’s a big game and they are coming thick and fast. I like the pressure of this game being a knockout, and if we are going to do anything good here, we have to have lots of these nights.”
Chelsea vs. Lille kicks off at 8pm and is live on BT Sport 2.
Tuesday 10 December: fixtures and permutations
Group E
- FC Red Bull Salzburg vs. Liverpool (5.55pm, live on BT Sport 3)
- Napoli vs. KRC Genk (5.55pm, live on BT Sport 1)
Permutations (according to Uefa)
- Liverpool will go through if they draw, or if Napoli lose to Genk
- Napoli will go through if they draw, or if Salzburg do not beat Liverpool
- Salzburg will be through if they beat Liverpool and Napoli do not beat Genk
- If Napoli win, Salzburg must beat Liverpool by a better scoreline than the 4-3 by which they lost against them on Matchday 2
- Genk will finish fourth
Group F
- Borussia Dortmund vs. Slavia Prague (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra 2)
- Inter Milan vs. Barcelona (8pm, live on BT Sport ESPN)
Permutations
- Barcelona are through as group winners
- Inter will go through if they beat Barcelona, or as long as they finish at least level on points with Dortmund (due to their superior head-to-head goal difference)
- Dortmund must pick up more points than Inter to finish second
- Slavia will finish fourth
Group G
- Benfica vs. Zenit St Petersburg (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra 5)
- Lyon vs. RB Leipzig (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra 4)
Permutations
- Leipzig are through and will clinch first place with a draw
- Zenit will go through if they beat Benfica and Lyon do not beat Leipzig, or if both games are drawn due to their head-to-head superiority over Lyon, or regardless if Lyon lose
- Lyon will go through if they beat Leipzig (when they would also clinch first place), or if they draw and Zenit lose to Benfica. Benfica are unable to finish in the top two
- They will finish third if they beat Zenit by a scoreline better than 3-1 and Lyon does not lose, or if they win by any score and Lyon lose to Leipzig
Group H
- Ajax vs. Valencia (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra 3)
- Chelsea vs. Lille (8pm, live on BT Sport 2)
Permutations
- Ajax will go through if they draw, or if Chelsea fail to beat Lille
- Valencia will go through if they beat Ajax, or as long as they finish at least level on points with Chelsea due to their superior head-to-head record
- Chelsea will go through if they beat Lille, or if they draw and Valencia lose to Ajax
- Lille will finish fourth
Wednesday 11 December: fixtures and TV guide
Group A
- Club Bruges vs. Real Madrid (8pm, live on BT Sport ESPN)
- Paris Saint Germain vs. Galatasaray (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra 4)
Group B
- Bayern Munich vs. Tottenham Hotspur (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra 2)
- Olympiakos vs. Red Star Belgrade (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra 5)
Group C
- Dinamo Zagreb vs. Manchester City (5.55pm, live on BT Sport 3)
- Shakhtar Donetsk vs. Atalanta (5.55pm, live on BT Sport 1)
Group D
- Atlético Madrid vs. Lokomotiv Moscow (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra 3)
- Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs. Juventus (8pm, live on BT Sport Extra5
culled from theweek.co.uk
