English clubs entered the Champions League round of 16 this season with impressive form, but after only a few days, everything reversed when no team won in the first leg.
Previously, European football had discussed a lot about the dominance of the Premier League when up to 6 English teams participated in the round of 16 of the Champions League - more than any other tournament.
However, the first leg results brought shock. Tottenham, Manchester City and Chelsea all lost heavily with a 3-goal difference away from home. Liverpool lost to Galatasaray, while Newcastle United and Arsenal only got a draw. In total, English teams scored 6 goals but conceded 16 times.
This is also the first time since the 2022-2023 season that no English team has won in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16.
Arsenal lacks sharpness
Arsenal can consider themselves somewhat lucky to have drawn 1-1 against Bayer Leverkusen. Kai Havertz's late equalizing goal from the penalty spot on his old team's field helped the "Gunners" maintain the advantage before the second leg at the Emirates.
However, the previous performance of Mikel Arteta's team was not really convincing. Arsenal controlled the ball a lot but only launched 6 shots - their lowest number in the European arena this season.
However, the London team is still maintaining a 12-match unbeaten streak in all competitions and still has the opportunity to compete in many fronts.
Liverpool pays the price for inefficiency
Liverpool traveled to Istanbul as a bright candidate for a ticket to the quarter-finals. According to Opta, before the match they had a 82.3% chance of overcoming Galatasaray.
But coach Arne Slot's team had many difficulties in imposing the game. A familiar defensive mistake cost them when Mario Lemina headed in the only goal of the match.
Liverpool launched 15 shots and even had one goal disallowed, but ineffectiveness in attack caused them to leave Turkey empty-handed. However, Opta still assesses that they still have a 51.4% chance of going further.
Newcastle loses its advantage
Newcastle can see the draw with Barcelona as a missed opportunity. Before Lamine Yamal scored the equalizer from the penalty spot, Eddie Howe's team created more chances and had a higher xG index.
However, the lack of experience in the final minutes caused Newcastle to lose the game. Hasty long passes and loss of control of the tempo cost them.
Tottenham continues crisis
Tottenham experienced another night of disaster when losing to Atletico Madrid 2-5. In just the first 17 minutes, Spurs conceded 3 goals, before goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky - who was trusted to start to replace Vicario - was substituted off the field.
This is the fourth consecutive defeat of interim coach Igor Tudor since he was appointed in February, and the future of the Croatian strategist is being questioned.
Man City collapses at Bernabeu
Coach Pep Guardiola once again took a tactical risk in the big match, but this time that decision was counterproductive.
Man City took the field with an attacking squad including Erling Haaland, Antoine Semenyo, Jeremy Doku and Savinho. However, they were completely helpless against Real Madrid.
Federico Valverde scored a hat-trick in the first half, helping the Royal team win 3-0 and pushing Man City closer to the risk of being eliminated.
History also does not favor the English team. Only 4 out of 51 teams have reversed the situation after losing the first leg with a 3-goal difference in the Champions League.
Chelsea's mistake in Paris
Chelsea also paid the price after coach Liam Rosenior's decision to change goalkeeper positions.
Filip Jorgensen was chosen to start instead of Robert Sanchez, but a serious mistake by him helped PSG take a 3-2 lead. The French team then scored 2 more goals to win 5-2.
Against a PSG that is the reigning European champion, a small mistake is enough to make a big difference. And Chelsea now has to face an extremely difficult task in the second leg.
