At the end of the night all the games didn’t go as you have predicted lol.
- Bayern munich won by 3:1.
- Barcelona drew 2:2 with Atalanta.
- Dortmund secured a 3:1 victory.
- Inter triumphed in a 3:0 score against Monaco
- Leverkusen had a 2:0 win.
- Arsenal and Madrid both won respectively too and Feyenoord lost as you predicted.
All those conditions had to be met for Madrid to have made it to the last 16, now they have to face none other than City in the play-offs, where Ancelotti emphatically said in the press conference that he doesn't like playing against City, but that's how it is and now Madrid has to win because otherwise there's no way around it, how can it happen? The safest thing is that whoever manages to get through there will possibly have to face Bayern, in light of all this, this format has put Madrid to shame, which I applaud them for. They should always attack the strongest team hard to see if they can tame it. Let's wait and see what happens, but for me, Madrid will get through.
There is of course no doubt that all these conditions had to be met more or less like they are listed, but this neglects the fact that there is another set of conditions that had to be met, which is far more relevant.
- Lille vs vs. Real Madrid 1-0
- Real Madrid vs. Milan 1-3
- Liverpool vs. Real Madrid 2-0
I think these conditions are the serious ones where Real Madrid brought themselves into trouble. Losing against Liverpool is not a farce, but losing at home against Milan and losing against Lille is a no go for a team like Real Madrid. Milan is ranked 8th in Serie A and Lille is 4th in Ligue 1. With all due respect for these clubs, this is where Real Madrid gave it away.
But as the game against Espanyol Barcelona in La Liga now has proven, Real Madrid is definitely not without weaknesses. Usually I think they are the favorite against Manchester City because of pure form, but now I don't know. One big name is going to go home without reaching the round of 16, that is a certainty now. It is due to this new mode of course, but can anyone recall when either Manchester City or Real Madrid missed the round of 16 the last time? This must be a decade ago or longer.