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It has been adjusted and maybe there is a consideration where there is such a long break, because the schedule is tight and it is also approaching the end of the year. Indeed, I also feel the same way where there is a long break and that makes us have to be more patient waiting until the next match. If we use the old format, then actually we already know which teams will qualify for the next round, but with the new format we have 2 more matches and there is even a play-off match to compete for the last 16 from 16 teams in the standings from position 9 to position 24.
Even though there are still two matches for each team to determine their chances of qualifying automatically, I don't think the standings will change much. Several teams such as Liverpool, Barcelona, Arsenal and several others have been considered to automatically qualify for the round of 16, while other teams in the playoff zone have to work hard to win the same ticket.
We know which team can be the favorite at this stage and which team has the best chance of winning the ticket, but nothing is certain because each of these teams will do the best job possible in hopes of getting to the round of 16. The top team can lose, while the bottom team can win, this is not impossible.