Champions League: Which teams can sail into knockout stage? Possible scenarios explained

Matchday 5 of the UEFA Champions League 2022-23 season concluded on Wednesday night, with Napoli, Liverpool, Bayern Munich, and Eintracht Frankfurt picking up important wins. While Barcelona, Marseille, Ajax and Rangers were among the losers, Tottenham Hotspurs returned with a 1-1 draw against Sporting, while Atletico Madrid drew 2-2 against Leverkusen. With the conclusion of Matchday 5, a total of 11 teams have booked their slots in the knockout stage of UCL 2022-23, which will feature a total of 16 teams. 

UEFA Champions League 2022-23: Qualification scenarios after Matchday 5

Porto, Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Club Brugge, Napoli, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, PSG, Benfica, and Manchester City are the teams who have already qualified. Before focusing on the teams who can qualify for the knockout stage, here’s a look at the possible scenarios that will take place if teams finish levelled on points. The first tiebreaker in points will be decided with the head-to-head matches between the tied teams. 

In case the teams are still levelled on points in head-to-head games, the qualification scenario will depend on the goal difference in head-to-head matches for teams. The qualifying teams will be decided on teams who have scored the most goals if the teams still remained tied after the first two tie-breakers. If the qualification scenario is still not clear, UEFA will reach the disciplinary points for each team and the UEFA club coefficient. 

Group A

• Napoli (15 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage as group winners.
• Liverpool (12 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage.
• Ajax (3 points): Can qualify for the Europa League with a win/draw against Rangers.
• Rangers (0 points): Can qualify for Europa League with a win by four+ goals vs Ajax. If Ajax lose 4-0 to Rangers, Ajax will qualify for the 2nd tier of European football with more goals.

Group B

• Club Brugge (10 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage. Can qualify as group winners with a win against Bayen Leverkussen or if Porto loses to Atletico Madrid.
• Porto (9 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage. Can finish as group leaders if they defeat Atletico Madrid and Brugge lose to Leverkusen. If they draw against Atletico, they will top the table by scoring more goals than Brugge.
• Atletico Madrid (5 points): Can qualify for Europa League with a better result than Leverkusen.
• Bayer Leverkusen (5 points): Can qualify for Europa League with a better result than Atletico.

Group C

• Bayern Munich (15 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage as Group winners.
• Inter Milan (10 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage as the second-placed team in Group C.
• Barcelona (4 points): Qualified for UEFA Europa League.
• Viktoria Plzen (0 points): Out of qualification for European competitions.

Group D

• Tottenham Hotspur (8 points): Can qualify for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with a win or draw against Marseille. They will qualify for Europa League if they return with a loss.
• Sporting CP (7 points): Can qualify for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with a win over Eintracht. They can also qualify with a draw if Marseille dont win against Tottenham.
• Eintracht Frankfurt (7 points): Can qualify for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage as group winners with a win against Sporting. If they lose and Tottenham win against Marseille, they will qualify for the Europa League.
• Marseille (6 points): Can qualify for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with a win over Tottenham.

Group E

• Chelsea (10 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage as Group winners due to superior head-to-head record against AC Milan.
• AC Milan (7 points): Can qualify for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with a win/draw against RB Salzburg. They have already qualified for the Europa League.
• RB Salzburg (6 points): Can qualify for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with a win over AC Milan. They will qualify for Europa League with a draw against AC Milan and if Dinamo Zagreb lose to Chelsea
• Dinamo Zagreb (4 points): Out of race for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage. They need to win against Chelsea and need RB Salzburg to lose in order to qualify for the Europa League

Group F

• Real Madrid (10 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage. They can finish as group winners with a win against Celtic or if RB Leipzig lose.
• RB Leipzig (9 points): Can qualify for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with a win over Shakhtar. They have already qualified for the Europa League.
• Shakhtar Donetsk (6 points): Can qualify for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with a win over RB Leipzig. They have already qualified for the Europa League.
• Celtic (2 points): Out of race for the knockout stage of UCL 2022-23 and Europa League.

Group G

• Manchester City (11 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with superior head-to-head stats over Borussia Dortmund.
• Borussia Dortmund (8 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage with a head-to-head advantage over Sevilla.
• Sevilla (5 points): Qualified for Europa League with a head-to-head advantage over Copenhagen.
• Copenhagen (2 points): Out of race for the knockout stage of UCL 2022-23 and Europa League.

Group H

• PSG (8 points):  Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage. They can top the group with a better result than Benfica in their next game. If both teams finish on equal points, the teams with the most goals will go ahead.
• Benfica (8 points): Qualified for UCL 2022-23 knockout stage. They can finish as group winners with a better result than PSG.
• Juventus (3 points): Out of race for the knockout stage of UCL 2022-23. They can qualify for the Europa League with a better result than Maccabi Haifa.
• Maccabi Haifa (3 points): Out of race for the knockout stage of UCL 2022-23. They can qualify for the Europa League with a better result than Juventus.