What else is at stake in Tuesday’s Champions League? Sevilla and Benfica for the Europa, United for survival

Tuesday is here and with it the last round of the Champions League. And not just this season, but quite possibly the very last one, as the system is changing from next season. Who else will fight for promotion today?

Group A

Bayern Munich 12 (certainty of promotion)
Copenhagen 5
Galatasaray 5
Manchester United 4

There will be a lot of action in Group A. Bayern Munich are certain to qualify from the top spot, the other three teams can still play both the Champions League and Europa League or drop out altogether. The situation is more difficult for Copenhagen and Galatasaray, who will play each other in Denmark. Whoever wins will advance to the Champions League in the spring and have nothing to look back on.

If there is a draw and United don’t beat Bayern, Copenhagen will advance thanks to a better score. So a draw is not enough for Galatasaray to progress, they have to play to win.

United’s situation is a bit more complicated. The Red Devils must beat Bayern at home and hope for a draw in the second leg. If they win and the second leg does not end in a draw, they will play in the Europa League. Even a draw could be enough for them to qualify for the Europa League, but they would need Galatasaray to win by 2 goals, then they would finish third thanks to a better score against Copenhagen.

Group B

Arsenal 12
PSV 8
Lens 5
Sevilla 2

In Group B, the group is already decided, PSV have better games against Lens, so even a win for the French side in the last round won’t make a difference. The only game to watch is Lens vs Sevilla, where the Europa League is on the line.

Sevilla would really like to play it, as the expert has a patent on it. To do that, it needs to beat Lens and secure third place thanks to better matches between them. The French side only needs a draw.

Group C

Real Madrid 15
Napoli 7
Braga 5
Union Berlin 2

In this group, only Real Madrid is certain to qualify, even from the first place, so in the last round with the last Union it will be more of an honour, even the German team has no chance for the third place due to worse matches with Braga.

However, there may be some more drama in the Naples vs Braga game, as it will be a game for promotion from second place. The first match ended 2-1 for the Italians, so if Braga wins in Naples by two goals, they will advance from second place to the spring stage of the Champions League. Naples only need a draw.

Group D

Real Sociedad 11
Inter 11
Salzburg 4
Benfica 1

Last group of the day. Although the Champions League spring qualifiers are decided, there will still be plenty to play for in both games. Inter will welcome Real Sociedad at home in a battle for top spot in the table and therefore better seeding for the eighth round. The Spanish side, thanks to a better score, will only need a draw, Inter must win.

Last year’s quarter-finalist Benfica Lisbon still has a chance for the Europa League, but not a great one. It would have to beat Salzburg by 3 goals on its field and given Benfica’s big woes, that doesn’t look very realistic. It has scored only 4 goals in 5 games, with the last three scored against Inter in a 3-3 draw, and has scored only once in the first four games. Salzburg won the first match in Lisbon 2-0.

Source: UEFA