ENGLAND’S Euro adventurers can take a massive step towards securing the Prem a fifth Champions League spot for next season this week..
Uefa’s competitions revamp will see the Champions League extended to 36 teams and a “Swiss model” league system from next season.
Two of the extra places go to the top two performing nations across the three Uefa competitions in the preceding campaign.
England go into the completion of the last 16 stage of the Champions League – and the full equivalent in the Europa League and Conference League – in third position in the table, behind Italy and Germany.
But unlike the first stage of post-Christmas knock-out action, when only Manchester City and Arsenal were involved, all six of the Prem’s remaining teams will play this month.
And by the time the quarter-final survivors are known, it will be far clearer if England is on course for an extra place – or if the race for the top four will become even more vital.
City will lead the English expedition when they complete their last 16 tie against Copenhagen, after the 3-1 win in the Danish capital, although Arsenal’s home leg against Porto is next week.
But Liverpool, West Ham, Brighton and Aston Villa are all in action on Thursday, with the chance to propel England into the top two of the coefficient table.
All wins are worth two points, with a draw earning one, plus bonus points for reaching specfic stages of the three competitions.
A country’s total points haul is then divided by the number of teams which entered across the three events at the start of the season.
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That is why, despite grossing the most total points so far – 111 – England’s current total, divided by eight, is 13.875pts, with Italy on top with 15.571 and Germany second on 14.5.
City’s expected win over the Danish champions would add 0.375pts to the Englnd tally.
Meanwhile, Bayern Munich and Leipzig must come back from first leg defeats by Lazio and Real Madrid respectively this week.
Failure to do so would open the door for England – with all four teams playing away from home – to overtake the Germans and move into a great position on Thursday – especially given the respective draws.
Liverpool, red hot favourites for the Europa League, face Czechs Sparta Prague but Brighton’s trip to Roma and West Ham’s third meeting of the season with Freiburg can directly impact the race of the extra slots.
A win over two legs for Villa against Ajax would also bolster the Prem position.
Serie A has three sides still in the Europa League, with Milan and Atalanta alongside Roma, and Fiorentina in the Conference League.
Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen and Dortmund – whose Champions League second leg is next week – are the remaining Bundesliga clubs left.
The other candidate who could get back into the mix is Spain, currently fifth on 13.187 but with Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Sociedad – who trail PSG 2-0 – also in the Champions League and Villarreal in the Europa League.
A clean slate of English wins this week would net a total haul of 1.375 points, with a repeat and progression next week – Arsenal start 1-0 down against Porto – adding a further 1.75pts including bonuses.
Exits for Leipzig, Bayern and Freiburg – West Ham won both group stage meetings – would leave German hopes of retaking the lead over England hugely damaged.
And further down the coefficient table, Rangers will be urging Liverpool, Milan and Swiss side Servette to all oust their Czech opponents, espeically if they are ejected by Portuguese giants Benfica.
Scotland are currently 10th in the five-year country standings, holding onto the last automatic league stage spot for the 2025-26 version of the Champions League.
But the Czechs are close behind and can overtake Scotland, meaning the SPL champions would have to go into the preliminary round knock-out stage in August 2025.
