UEFA Champions League: Path to the knockout stage

With only the final round of matches to come, we look at the status of each group – likely group winners and runners-up. Also included are the possible high profile match-ups for the first knock-out round.

Group A

Pos.	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1	FC Porto	5	4	1	0	9	2	7	13
2	Paris Saint-Germain	5	4	0	1	12	2	10	12
3	Dynamo Kiev	5	1	1	3	5	9	-4	4
4	Dinamo Zagreb	5	0	0	5	0	13	-13	0

Final Round Matches:

Zagreb Vs Kiev

PSG Vs Porto

Permutations:

PSG needs to win the final match to top the group, while Porto needs just a point.

Likely:

Group Winner – Paris Saint-Germain

Group Runner-up – FC Porto

Group B

Pos.	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1	Schalke 04	5	3	2	0	9	5	4	11
2	Arsenal	5	3	1	1	9	6	3	10
3	Olympiacos	5	2	0	3	7	8	-1	6
4	Montpellier HSC	5	0	1	4	5	11	-6	1

Final Round Matches:

Montpellier Vs Schalke

Olympiacos Vs Arsenal

Permutations:

Arsenal needs a win and a bit of luck to top the group.

Likely:

Group Winner – Schalke

Group Runner-up – Arsenal

Group C

Pos.	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1	Málaga CF	5	3	2	0	10	3	7	11
2	AC Milan	5	2	2	1	7	5	2	8
3	Zenit St. Petersburg	5	1	1	3	5	9	-4	4
4	Anderlecht	5	1	1	3	2	7	-5	4

Final Round Matches:

Milan Vs Zenit

Malaga Vs Anderlecht

Decided:

Group Winner – Malaga

Group Runner-up – Milan

Group D

Pos.	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1	Borussia Dortmund	5	3	2	0	10	5	5	11
2	Real Madrid	5	2	2	1	11	8	3	8
3	Ajax	5	1	1	3	7	12	-5	4
4	Manchester City	5	0	3	2	7	10	-3	3

Final Round Matches:

Dortmund Vs City

Real Madrid Vs Ajax

Decided:

Group Winner – Dortmund

Group Runner-up – Real Madrid

Group E

Pos.	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1	Shakhtar Donetsk	5	3	1	1	12	7	5	10
2	Juventus	5	2	3	0	11	4	7	9
3	Chelsea	5	2	1	2	10	9	1	7
4	FC Nordsjælland	5	0	1	4	3	16	-13	1

Final Round Matches:

Shakhtar Donetsk Vs Juventus

Chelsea Vs FC Nordsjaelland

Permutations:

Shakhtar – A Draw is enough to win the group.

Juventus – A Draw is enough to qualify. A win will help them top the group.

They will qualify even with a loss, provided Chelsea drop points.

Chelsea – Need to win the final match and hope Juventus lose their match.

Likely:

Group Winner – Shakhtar Donetsk

Group Runner-up – Juventus

Group F

Pos.	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1	Bayern Munich	5	3	1	1	11	6	5	10
2	Valencia CF	5	3	1	1	11	5	6	10
3	BATE Borisov	5	2	0	3	8	11	-3	6
4	Lille OSC	5	1	0	4	4	12	-8	3

Final Round Matches:

Bayern Vs Borisov

Lille Vs Valencia

Permutations:

Valencia can claim the top spot only with a better result than that of Bayern in the final game.

Likely:

Group Winner – Bayern

Group Runner-up – Valencia

Group G

Pos.	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1	FC Barcelona	5	4	0	1	11	5	6	12
2	Benfica	5	2	1	2	5	5	0	7
3	Celtic	5	2	1	2	7	7	0	7
4	Spartak Moscow	5	1	0	4	6	12	-6	3

Final Round Matches:

Barcelona Vs Benfica

Celtic Vs Spartak Moscow

Permutations:

Only a better result than that of Benfica will allow Celtic to progress.

Likely:

Group Winner – Barcelona

Group Runner-up – Celtic

Group H

Pos.	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1	Manchester United	5	4	0	1	9	5	4	12
2	Galatasaray	5	2	1	2	5	5	0	7
3	CFR 1907 Cluj	5	2	1	2	8	7	1	7
4	Sporting Braga	5	1	0	4	6	11	-5	3

Final Round Matches:

Manchester United Vs Cluj

Braga Vs Galatasaray

Permutations:

Cluj has to score more points than Galatasaray in the final match to progress.

Likely:

Group Winner – Manchester United

Group Runner-up – Galatasaray

Possible High-Profile match-ups for Round of 16:

Real Madrid Vs Bayern/ Manchester Utd/ PSG

Milan Vs Barcelona/ Manchester Utd/ PSG/ Bayern/ Dortmund

Arsenal Vs Barcelona/ PSG/ Bayern/ Dortmund

Juventus Vs Barcelona/ Manchester Utd/ PSG/ Bayern/ Dortmund

PSG Vs Barcelona/ Manchester Utd/ Bayern/ Dortmund

Final set of group matches will be played on 4^th & 5^th of December while the draw for round of 16 will take place on the 20^th.