Liverpool and Barcelona handed easier route to Champions League final after wins
Liverpool and Barcelona have both advanced to the Champions League last-16 after their wins on Wednesday evening, and the pair will now be top seeds in the knockouts
by Mark Jones · The MirrorLiverpool and Barcelona have become the first clubs to advance from the revamped 36-team Champions League group phase directly into the round of 16, and their path to the final has now opened up.
The Reds stayed perfect in this season's competition and won the 'league phase' with their seventh win from seven matches in their 2-1 victory at home to Ligue 1 side Lille, who were reduced to 10 men just before the hour mark when Aissa Mandi was sent off for his second bookable offence when he dragged back Luis Diaz.
Mohamed Salah had given the hosts the lead in the first half after racing onto a Curtis Jones through ball, but Jonathan David grabbed a leveller for Lille shortly after Mandi's red card. Harvey Elliott's deflected strike from distance then put Liverpool back in front five minutes later and they were able to see out the win with relative ease.
The victory sees the Reds move onto 21 points from their seven matches, with their final league phase match away at PSV Eindhoven next Wednesday now effectively a dead rubber for them, although it won't be for the Dutch side as every position in the table is scrapped over.
Barcelona played out a dramatic match in Lisbon as they beat Benfica 5-4 having been 3-1 and 4-2 behind. Raphinha scored a 96th minute winner for Barca as they edged a remarkable game to take them to 18 points from their seven matches.
Liverpool and Barca will now finish in the top two places, and could change positions on Matchweek 8, but in truth finishing first and second in the league phase makes little difference, as both will be inserted as top seeds on their half of the bracket in the knockout stages, and they now cannot face each other until the final.
The pair will also play the second legs of each one of knockout ties at home, thereby by giving them an advantage over their opponents, who will become clearer across Wednesday and next week.
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Sky Sports deal
Sky Sports launches discounted Premier League package
£35 (was £43)
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £192 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.