Madrid, Paris and Bodø claim big first-leg wins

There were statement wins across Europe as the Round of 16 continued on Wednesday.At the Bernabéu, Federico Valverde scored a superb first half hat-trick to put Real Madrid in control of their tie with Manchester City. On the show, his team-mate Trent Alexander-Arnold and City’s Bernardo Silva share their thoughts after the first leg.Paris and Bodø/Glimt will also take three-goal leads into their return legs after convincing home wins over Chelsea and Sporting respectively. Paris winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia reflects on his two goals and his side’s strong performance.Meanwhile, Leverkusen and Arsenal remain level after a 1-1 draw in Germany. Arsenal’s Noni Madueke gives his reaction to the contest.

The Round of 16 kicked off with an enthralling early match up in Istanbul as Galatasaray edged past Liverpool 1-0 in an end-to-end encounter that saw both sides have a goal disallowed. We get reaction from Liverpool’s manager Arne Slot and captain Virgil van Dijk plus Gala’s match-winner, Mario Lemina.The evening’s late kick-offs treated us to 16 goals across the three matches. Our commentary game took place at St James’ Park where Newcastle and Barcelona played out a pulsating 1-1 draw with an injury time Lamine Yamal penalty rescuing the Catalans. We hear from Newcastle manager Eddie Howe and their goalscorer Harvey Barnes.Elsewhere Bayern and Atletico took control of their last 16 ties against Atalanta and Spurs respectively thanks to a flurry of early goals. Bayern scored three goals in the opening 25 minutes to run out eventual 6-1 winners in Bergamo, while in Madrid, there were five goals in the opening 26 minutes as Atletico ended up 5-2 victors over Spurs. We’ll review all the action and look ahead to Wednesday’s four Round of 16 first leg ties, including Real Madrid v Man City and Paris v Chelsea.

On a night of high drama, Galatasaray saw off an inspiring comeback from Juventus to secure their spot in the round of 16. The Italian side had clawed back a 3-goal first leg deficit to send the match to extra time with the score 5-5 on aggregate after 90 minutes. Victor Osimhen and Baris Alper Yilmaz then scored the crucial goals for the team from Türkiye to complete a 7-5 victory in the tie.In Italy, Atalanta completed a remarkable turnaround against Dortmund after losing the first leg 2-0. The team from Bergamo won 4-1 on the night, 4-3 on aggregate, with the winning moment in the tie coming courtesy of a Lazar Samardzic penalty deep into second half stoppage time.The two most recent champions of the UEFA Champions League are also safely through. Real Madrid secured a 3-1 aggregate victory with a 2-1 second leg win over Benfica, whilst Paris’ 2-2 draw with Monaco was enough to see them progress 5-4 on aggregate. Paris coach Luis Enrique reflects on his side’s performance on the podcast, as does Real Madrid star Trent Alexander-Arnold.We also look ahead to the draw for the round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals, with Bodo/Glimt captain Patrick Berg explaining how much he and his team-mates are looking forward to the next stage of the competition.

History was made in the UEFA Champions League this evening, with Bodø/Glimt becoming the first ever Norwegian side to win a knockout phase tie in the competition. Kjetil Knutsen’s side travelled to Milan with a 3-1 first leg lead and completed the job in style with a 2-1 win at Stadio San Siro to progress against Inter 5-2 on aggregate. We hear from the scorer of their first goal and UEFA Player of the Match, Jens Petter Hauge. In Madrid, Atleti saw off Club Brugge 4-1 on the night, and 7-4 on aggregate, after an Alexander Sorloth hat-trick – we hear from the heroic Norwegian. Newcastle progressed 9-3 on aggregate against Qarabag after a 3-2 second leg home win – we hear from Jacob Murphy and POTM Sandro Tonali. And in Germany, Leverkusen drew 0-0 with Olympiacos to progress 2-0 on aggregate thanks to their first leg victory in Greece – we get the thoughts of their defender and POTM Alejandro Grimaldo. We dissect all the action and look ahead to Wednesday’s play-off second legs, including a superbly poised tie between Juventus and Galatasaray in Turin, with the Turkish side 5-2 up after the first leg. We hear from Gala striker Victor Osimhen and Juve defender Lloyd Kelly.

It was a night to remember in Norway as Bodø/Glimt recorded a 3-1 victory against Inter in their knockout phase play-offs first leg. We get reaction from goalscorer Jens Petter Hauge. Elsewhere, Newcastle shone against Qarabag, winning 6-1 in Azerbaijan. We hear from four-goal hero and player of the match, Anthony Gordon. Plus, get reaction to the night’s other matches as Club Brugge and Atletico played out an epic 3-3 draw, while Leverkusen won 2-0 at Olympiacos. 

The knockout phase picked up where the League phase left off with 15 goals across Tuesday’s four matches. The surprise of the night saw Galatasaray recover from 2-1 down at half-time to beat Juventus 5-2 in Istanbul to put the Turkish side in pole position going into next week’s second leg in Turin. We hear from their UEFA Player of the Match, Gabriel Sara.  Elsewhere holders Paris and 15-time winners Real Madrid fought their way to narrow first leg away wins. Paris had to come back from a 2-0 deficit to overcome fellow French side Monaco while Madrid edged their way to a 1-0 win against Benfica thanks to a superb Vinicius Jnr second half strike. We hear from Paris’ match-winner Désiré Doué. In the night’s other match, 1997 champions Borussia Dortmund recorded a comfortable 2-0 home win over Atalanta - Player of the Match Serhou Guirassy was the difference-maker with a goal and an assist and we hear from the in-form Guinean striker. We analyse all of the action and look ahead to Wednesday’s knockout phase play-off first legs, including our featured commentary Bodo / Glimt v Inter.

The final night of the League Phase ended in sensational fashion as Benfica goalkeeper, Anatoliy Trubin, scored a stoppage time header against Real Madrid to squeeze his side into the top 24 on goal difference only – we discuss the last gasp drama and hear from the heroic shot-stopper.  In the race for the top 8, Sporting and Chelsea scored late winners to qualify, whilst Barcelona and Manchester City also secured victories to progress straight to the Round of 16 – we hear from Joao Pedro, Marcus Rashford and Rayan Cherki. In our featured commentary game holders Paris and Newcastle played out a hard fought 1-1 draw, a result which saw both sides just miss out on a top 8 finish – we hear from Newcastle’s Player of the Match, Dan Burn. As well as Benfica’s heroics, Bodø/Glimt, Olympiacos and Club Brugge all registered crucial victories to seal a place in the top 24 and the knockout phase of this season’s competition. The unlucky clubs to drop out were Marseille, PSV and Athletic Club. Elsewhere, Arsenal, Bayern, Liverpool and Spurs all won to seal the top four spots respectively, and the benefit of home second legs in the Round of 16. It was relentless from the first minute to the last and we’ll discuss all of the stories as they developed on a fascinating final night of the League Phase.

The goals were flowing once again on the penultimate night of League Phase action with 29 goals across the nine matches. At the top of the table, Bayern secured their passage through to the last 16 with a comfortable 2-0 home win over Union SG - Harry Kane with both goals and we hear from the Englishman. There were impressive 3-0 wins for both Liverpool and Newcastle, against Marseille and PSV respectively, to move both clubs into the coveted top 8 with just one round to go – we hear from Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and Newcastle goalscorer Harvey Barnes. Elsewhere Barcelona, Chelsea and Juventus also recorded crucial victories to keep their top 8 hopes alive, whilst Galatasaray and Atleti played out a 1-1 draw and Athletic Club won 3-2 in Atalanta. We hear from Hansi Flick, Moises Caicedo and Victor Osimhen. However, the shock of the night came in Baku where Qarabag scored a stoppage time winner to beat Frankfurt 3-2 and move into the top 24 and in sight of the knockout phase play-offs – we hear from their delighted captain Abdellah Zoubir.We review all the action and look ahead to what’s sure to be a dramatic Matchday 8 as the League Phase concludes with all 18 matches kicking off simultaneously.

The League Phase rolled into 2026 in style with 32 goals across Tuesday’s nine matches. Arsenal made it seven out of seven in Milan, beating Inter 3-1 to solidify top spot and confirm their passage into the last 16 - we hear from their delighted manager Mikel Arteta as well as UEFA Player of the Match and scorer of two goals Gabriel Jesus. In Madrid, Real hit six to see off Monaco and move up to second in the league standings, with Mbappe, Bellingham and Vinicius Jnr all on the scoresheet.The shock of the evening took place in Norway where Bodø / Glimt beat ten-man Manchester City 3-1 - we get reaction from their Coach Kjetil Knutsen and Player Of the Match Jens Petter Hauge. Another surprise result took place in Lisbon where holders Paris Saint-Germain were beaten 2-1 by Sporting thanks to a last-minute winner from Colombian striker Luis Suárez. Elsewhere there were important wins for Spurs, Olympiacos, Club Brugge and Ajax, while Copenhagen and Napoli drew 1-1 to leave both sides on the cusp of the top 24. We review all of the action as well as look ahead to Wednesday’s Matchday 7 encounters. 

Matchday 6 concluded with compelling matches across Europe. Manchester City and Real Madrid played out another classic encounter, with the visitors edging it thanks Erling Haaland’s first half penalty. They’re now assured of a place in either the knockout phase play-offs or round of 16, something also secured by Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday night following their goalless draw with Athletic Club. Elsewhere, Borussia Dortmund and Newcastle were also held, while Juventus, Benfica, Copenhagen and Ajax picked up eye-catching wins on the final night of UEFA Champions League action in 2025. Arsenal end the year in top-spot thanks to their 3-0 victory over Brugge, as they maintain their perfect record in the league phase.