The final Champions League group stage as we know it has come to a close and it delivered as Paris Saint-Germain were able to advance from the group of death with a 1-1 draw with Borussia Dortmund with Milan off to Europa League and Newcastle eliminated. With the UCL format changing to a 36-team table next season, more teams may mean a more chaotic finish, but this last edition with eight groups of four brought plenty of excitement right up to the final whistle.
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Barcelona may not have needed a victory but they picked up one of the worst losses this season in Champions League, losing 3-2 to Royal Antwerp and there were moves all around. The final edition of power rankings for the group stage is here with Barcelona taking a tumble and Benfica being among the biggest risers.
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Take a look a last matchday's ranks here.
| Rank | Name | Change | Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester City | -- | City were able to turn to their youth against Crvena zvezda and still won the match with Oscar Bobb and Michah Hamilton scoring. With so much depth, City is still the team to beat. |
| 2 | Real Madrid | -- | Having already qualified for the knockout stage, Real Madrid did what they could to make their match interesting but Joselu secured the top spot in group stage play. |
| 3 | Arsenal | -- | It was a match that didn't matter against PSV but Arsenal at least withstood pressure to dig out a draw. |
| 4 | Bayern Munich | -- | After a poor showing in a draw to Copenhagen, Bayern wrapped up a tidy victory over Manchester United that could get Kingsley Coman back going again. |
| 5 | Atletico Madrid | +3 | Samuel Lino scores again as Atletico Madrid makes quick work of Lazio. It was a rocky start to Champions League play but Atletico are flexing their muscles in a big way. |
| 6 | Porto | +3 | Galeno scores his second brace against Shakhtar Donetsk and it's an important one as it puts Porto through to the last 16 as they take care of business when it matters. Pepe becoming the oldest Champions League goal scorer is quite a cherry on top too. |
| 7 | RB Leipzig | +3 | Getting goals from everywhere, the German side still has questions to answer but it did what it needed to do. |
| 8 | Inter | -3 | Another team that didn't have much to play for, Inter didn't push much against Real Sociedad but it's clear that they're one of the best teams in this tournament. |
| 9 | Real Sociedad | -2 | Also having nothing to play for, Sociedad walked into winning Group D, signaling their intent that this isn't a ride that they want to end anytime soon. |
| 10 | Borussia Dortmund | +2 | Already through to the round of 16, Dortmund couldn't do enough to keep PSG out of the knockout stages. |
| 11 | Paris Saint-Germain | +2 | They needed help but PSG are through despite poor finishing. They could've scored five goals but the defense will need to be sorted out ASAP. |
| 12 | Barcelona | -6 | The disappointments keep cropping up for Barcelona. Sure, they won the group but failing to win away in Belgium is the kind of loss that signals doom in the round of 16 for Xavi's men. |
| 13 | Napoli | +2 | It was harder than expected for Napoli to make it to the knockout stages but after a tidy first half, job done. |
| 14 | Copenhagen | +2 | A monumental achievement for Copenhagen to make the last 16 in a group that included Bayern Munich and Manchester United as they'll believe that they can defeat anyone in the round of 16. |
| 15 | Milan | +3 | Christian Pulisic scored but it was too little too late for Milan as winning againt Newcastle United was only enough to secure a berth in Euorpa League. |
| 16 | PSV | +5 | Through to the knockouts, it wasn't easy for PSV but they didn't even need a result on the final day to do it. |
| 17 | Newcastle United | -3 | With everything in their hands, Newcastle collapsed and now they have it all to play for in the Premier League. |
| 18 | Lazio | -6 | Losing to Atletico isn't that poor of a result when at the end of the day Lazio are just happy to be in the last 16. |
| 19 | Braga | -2 | Own goals again sank Braga who have been fun but fun isn't enough alone to make it to the knockout stages. |
| 20 | Lens | +5 | They get the joy of grabbing a Europa League spot over Sevilla but that's about it. |
| 21 | Benfica | +7 | Scoring an olimpico wasn't enough to get them to the last 16 but it's enough to see them through to Europa League which is better than nothing. |
| 22 | Shakhtar Donetsk | -3 | Porto proved to be too much as one of the best stories in Champions League will now continue on in Europa League play |
| 23 | Galatasaray | -3 | A dissapointing loss to Copenhagen will see Galatasaray drop to Europa League but their ambitions were higher as they couldn't take advantage of Manchester United's struggles. |
| 24 | Feyenoord | -2 | Allowing Celtic to get their first victory of Champions League play is poor even if Feyenoord will still continue in the Europa League. |
| 25 | Manchester United | -2 | The collapse of collapses, this isn't about Manchester United losing to Bayern as that's expected, this is about losing to everyone else in Champions League play where United have been poor at every turn. |
| 26 | Union Berlin | -2 | At some points, Union Berlin were in Europa League but they didn't take their chance for redemption against Real Madrid and bow out. |
| 27 | RB Salzburg | -1 | With a chance to qualify for Europa League if they could avoid losing by more than two goals, Salzburg couldn't do it in another disappointment. |
| 28 | Celtic | +2 | Celtic finally got a win although it's too little too late. Great atmosphere as always though. |
| 29 | Royal Antwerp | +3 | They still never recovered from a clerical error seeing Sam Vines left out of the Champions League squad but ending play by defeating Barcelona at home is something to cherish. |
| 30 | Young Boys | -3 | They've made games fun but were never real competition in this tournament. |
| 31 | Sevilla | -2 | Europa League without Sevilla doesn't feel like Europa League at all. Can we make a rule to let them in somehow? |
| 32 | Crvena Zvezda | -1 | See Young Boys. |
