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Group stage proceedings for the 2022-23 UEFA Champions League season have finally come to an end after six matchdays of intense action, lots of goals, and excitement.
16 clubs have secured a place in the next stage of the competition, which is the knockout stage. The draws for the Round of 16 encounters will be conducted on November 7.
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Traditional Champions League clubs like Barcelona, Juventus and Atletico Madrid failed to make it out of their group. The Catalans and the Bianconeri were relegated to the UEFA Europa League, while Atleti got eliminated totally from Europe.
Some teams gave a resounding peformance in the group stage, while others performed below expectations.
Without further ado, here are the three best clubs from the just-concluded group phase of Europe's elite competition.
#3 Benfica
Portuguese giants Benfica have been in terrific form this season. The Eagles are currently on an 18-match unbeaten run across competitions this season.
Benfica's performance in the group stage was very outstanding. They finished top of Group H thanks to a 6-1 away thumping of Maccabi Haifa, displacing Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) as group leaders via the seventh tiebreaker, with more away goals scored.
The Portuguese outfit showed how compact they can be as they also held the Parisians to consecutive 1-1 draws when both teams met during the group stage.
They will be looking at duplicating this form into the knockout phase and going as far as possible in the competition.
#2 Napoli
Another team who were superb in the group stage was Napoli. Luciano Spaletti's side have shown dominance domestically and continentally this campaign. They are first in Serie A with a five-point gap.
Napoli qualified for the Round of 16 with two games to spare in Group A. They won every single group game except the last fixture where they were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool at Anfield.
The Italian club were tremendous in front of goal. They scored the most goals by a single team in the group stage (20). One of their biggest results was thrashing Liverpool 4-1 in Naples.
#1 Bayern Munich
No club has done better than Bayern Munich in the group stage of the Champions League in recent years. The Bavarians know their onions and they deliver the goods in the best way possible.
The six-times champions are the only team with a 100% record from the recently wrapped-up group stage. They won all six matches, scored 18 goals and conceded just two in Group C.
This is the third time and the second consecutive season Bayern will be finishing the group stage with maximum points (2019-20, 2021-22, 2022-23).
The other 15 teams who qualified for the Round of 16 will be hoping to avoid Julian Nagelsmann and his boys when the draws are done.
Now let's look at the three worst teams from the group stage of the Champions League.
#3 Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid produced one of their poorest displays on the continent in the last decade. The Spanish team were drawn into a relatively easy group alongside FC Porto, Club Brugge and Bayer Leverkusen.
On paper, and based on pedigree and squad value, Diego Simeone's side should have booked a ticket to the knockout stages. However, they were shambolic and could only manage one win in six matches.
They also squandered the opportunity of placing third and playing in the Europa League. Atletico finished rock-bottom of Group B with just five points.
#2 Viktoria Plzen
One cannot fault Viktoria Plzen for being one of the worst teams in the group stages. The Czech-based club were destined to be the whipping boys of Group C, which pitted them against Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Barcelona.
The champions of the Czech First League tasted defeat in all six of their group stage matches. They had the worst defensive record, shipping in 24 goals and scoring just five.
#1 Rangers
Scottish giants Rangers made a return to the Champions League after a 12-year absence and it turned out to be their worst ever performance.
Giovanni van Bronckhost's side returned to the echelon of European club football with high hopes. They had finished as runners-up in the Europa League the previous season, and returning to the Champions League was a step in the right direction.
However, they would go on to set the worst-ever group stage record in the competition. Gers finished the group with zero points and a -20 goal difference, the worst in the history of the competition.
They suffered heavy losses to Liverpool, Ajax and Napoli, conceding a total of 22 goals and netting just twice.
