Real Madrid or Bayern await rattled Man City in Champions League playoffs

Real Madrid, who currently holds the title, defeated Stade Brest 3-0 to ensure they were first-placed in the Champions League playoff draw on Friday.

On Wednesday, Rodrygo scored the first and last goals after 78 and 26 minutes, respectively, while Jude Bellingham added the second goal with a clever pass from Lucas Vazquez.

In their first European campaign, Brest will compete against an unseeded team in the two-legged playoffs despite the defeat.

Real extended their winning streak to five matches across all competitions and entered the Champions League knockout phase for the 28th consecutive year.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola will face Real Madrid or Bayern Munich in the playoffs]Phil Noble/Reuters]

Man City once more made to sweat, but it will be a much bigger challenge.

Before coming out of the Champions League with a must-win win, Manchester City rallied to defeat Club Brugge 3-1 in a crucial match to advance to the knockout stages.

City trailed 1-0 at halftime, and sat 26th in the 36-team standings before the 2023 title-winner was sparked by substitute Savinho to avoid elimination. City finished 22nd.

Paris Saint-Germain will advance to the knockout playoffs after beating Stuttgart 4-1 to take the German club out of the top-24.

After a crucial 4-2 victory over Man City a week ago, PSG resurrected and finished 15th overall. If PSG wins an all-French playoff against Monaco or Brest, it will be able to face Liverpool or Barcelona in the March round of 16 match.

Soccer Football - Champions League - Bayern Munich v Slovan Bratislava - Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany - January 29, 2025 Bayern Munich's Harry Kane scores their second goal REUTERS/Angelika Warmuth — Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane scores their second goal against Slovan Bratislava]Angelika Warmuth/Reuters]

In the playoffs, Man City will face Real Madrid or Bayern Munich.

Despite winning their most recent game 3-1 against Slovan Bratislava, Bayern Munich also finished outside of the top eight.

Bayern finished 10th overall, one place ahead of Real, the defending champion, who only advances to the top eight teams in the round of 16. On Friday, one of those two will face City.

Who will travel from Munich to Munich on foot? ????#UCL pic. twitter.com/G6LlEYn1Q4

With low-key victories, Inter Milan, Arsenal, and Atletico Madrid all recorded top-eight finishes as expected, with Liverpool and Barcelona joining them in advance to the round of 16 immediately. Inter beat Monaco 3-0, Arsenal won 2-1 at Girona and Atletico won 4-1 at Salzburg, which had a woeful campaign.

Bayer Leverkusen, Lille – which thrashed Feyenoord 6-1 – and Aston Villa completed the top eight.

Despite claiming a 2-1 victory over AC Milan, Stuttgart dropped to 26th place and was eliminated along with Dinamo Zagreb. On the basis of goal difference, Bruno won the 24th spot ahead of Dinamo.