Four out of five: Only one representative of the Bundesliga does not make it into the round of 16 in the Champions League. The league is doing very well, especially compared to “losers” Spain. While club and league officials celebrate, the endurance tests are yet to come.
Bayer Leverkusen is out of the ordinary. The Werkself was the only German football team not to make it into the Champions League. Unlike in the Bundesliga, the team, which is now coached by Xabi Alonso, has at least not completely crashed. Bayer was able to qualify for the Europa League with third place in Group B. Something that 2014 and 2016 finalists Atlético Madrid failed to do in the same group.
But that’s it with the negative news about Bundesliga clubs in the premier class. FC Bayern, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Eintracht Frankfurt, who qualified by winning the Europa League, made it into the round of 16. With the exception of Munich, all second in the group, the German champions did it very confidently, won all group games – and thus scored all possible 18 points for the third time after the 2019/20 and 2021/22 seasons. A record – and that in the group previously called “hammer group” with Inter Milan, who also qualified for the round of 16, as well as FC Barcelona and Viktoria Pilsen. In addition to FC Bayern, only Real Madrid scored the full points more than once.
FC Bayern is once again the best of the good. Sports director Hasan Salihamidži? emphasized the advantages of the Bundesliga community. He was “a little proud,” he said. “We made a mark in Europe. It’s nice to see so many German clubs progressing in Europe.” And continued: “I’ve said before that you just have to compliment the Bundesliga, not only nationally but also internationally, what kind of work the boys do, not only at Union Berlin and in Freiburg, but also in Frankfurt . Dortmund also made it through easily in the Champions League.” The head of the German Football League, Donata Hopfen, was similarly enthusiastic: “The past few weeks have been a great calling card for German professional football, both nationally and internationally.”
Four teams from one nation in the round of 16 of the Champions League – only England, along with Germany, can do that this year. There, the representatives Manchester City, Chelsea FC and Tottenham Hotspur finished first in their group, Liverpool FC finished second behind SSC Napoli. This is a success for the Bundesliga, which was last achieved in 2020/2021 and 2014/15.
With four teams each from the domestic league, Germany and England are clearly in the lead, but things are quite different for Spain, for example. From La Liga, only defending champions Real Madrid made it through. After all, FC Barcelona and FC Sevilla are wintering in the Europa League, while Atlético is completely out. “Marca” spoke of a “break” for the club and the league, because for the first time since 2003/04 Spain have to settle for a team in the knockout stages.
France can only cheer for Paris St. Germain, on the other hand it is a success for Belgium that Club Brugge is still there. Benfica Lisbon and FC Porto are still there from Portugal, while Italy has three round of 16 teams with Inter Milan, AC Milan and SSC Napoli.
Of course, getting ahead is not only worthwhile for prestige, but also financially. FC Bayern in particular enjoys an exceptional position. The club has already earned 78.42 million euros, the most of all 32 participating teams. In Frankfurt it is currently around 50 million euros. Reaching the quarter-finals would bring another 10.6 million euros from UEFA’s bonus pot. But it is already clear before the draw on Monday in Nyon that FC Bayern will have to succeed against a top-class opponent. Only FC Liverpool with coach Jürgen Klopp – very weak in the league, internationally established -, AC Milan, PSG with the superstar ensemble around Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Neymar, or FC Bruges are available, as three German clubs are second have a place in their group. A group winner is drawn to a group runner-up, national duels and encounters with a group opponent are prohibited in the round of 16. According to the French mathematician Julien Guyon, Liverpool FC is the most likely draw for Munich. Its probability of 37.12 percent is due to the fact that certain constellations are mutually exclusive.
The possible opponents are also real hurdles for the other Bundesliga clubs. All could face Chelsea FC, Benfica Lisbon, FC Porto, SSC Napoli. Manchester City is also an option for Eintracht and RB, BVB and RB also have Tottenham Hotspur to choose from, Eintracht and BVB also have the defending champion Real Madrid. “No matter who comes, they have to beat us first,” said Dortmund’s Nico Schlotterbeck confidently on DAZN. However, the performances of Borussia suggest that this also applies to BVB. Despite qualifying for the knockout rounds, coach Edin Terzi? continues to rumble vigorously. The performance with two wins and three draws is ultimately staid.
Things are different in Frankfurt, which is surfing into the decisive phase on a huge wave of euphoria. As in the glorious 2021/2022 Europa League season, coach Oliver Glasner’s team will continue to play the underdog role. Eintracht captain Sebastian Rode said: “There are only very big calibres, absolute world stars are coming. We don’t stand a chance, but we’re definitely the outsiders.” In Leipzig, the new coach Marco Rose provides great hope. Under him, the Saxons, who started the group with two bankruptcies, managed to turn things around. At the former central stadium, the memories of the way to the semi-finals in the 2019/2020 pandemic season are still very present.
This memory also gives FC Bayern goosebumps, after all, the Munich team emerged victorious from the tournament. So far this season, FC Bayern and coach Julian Nagelsmann have been doing extremely well. FC Bayern dominated the group stage with 18:2 goals, conceded the fewest goals and at the same time scored the second most after Naples (20). This brings Nagelsmann to 14 consecutive wins in the group phase – twelve of them with FC Bayern, two from his time at RB Leipzig. The Munich club has now gone 34 consecutive group games without defeat.
But these statistics are worth little: “Last year we also played a good group phase and then a not so good knockout round,” recalled coach Julian Nagelsmann. Last season, after a meager 1-1 draw against FC Salzburg in the first leg, the Munich side made it through to the quarter-finals with a dominant 7-1 win in their own stadium, but then surprisingly failed due to outsiders FC Villarreal.
For BVB and RB, relegation to the Europa League was already sealed after the group phase, Dortmund did not make it past the playoffs, while Leipzig only ended in the semifinals. The 2020/21 season with four teams in the round of 16 was ultimately not very successful either: Leipzig and Borussia Mönchengladbach then had to say goodbye, BVB and Bayern followed in the quarterfinals. Shows: The tournament only really starts with the knockout round, but that won’t follow until 2023. as well as on 21./22. February, the second leg is for the 7./8. and 14./15. March 2023 planned.
