Man City is on the brink of elimination from the Champions League after losing to PSG
PARIS — Manchester City are on the brink of a humiliating exit from the Champions League after a shock defeat to Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday, and Real Madrid are no longer at risk after sweeping Salzburg. Manchester City blew a two-goal lead in a high-stakes clash between underperforming millionaires that PSG won 4-2 in Paris, and could still be eliminated alongside the English champions after the final round of matches next week. Only the top 24 in the 36-team standings will advance and Manchester City, the 2023 champions, will start in 25th place needing to beat Club Brugge to enter the elimination round. PSG, now in 22nd place, will play at Stuttgart, which is in 24th place. Reigning champions Real Madrid are safe, rising from 22nd place at the start of Wednesday to 16th place after thrashing Salzburg 5-1. Arsenal and Inter Milan earned expected wins to move up to third and fourth place respectively, although they are still unsure of joining Liverpool and Barcelona in advancing directly to the round of 16. Arsenal beat Dinamo Zagreb 3-0 and Inter won 1-0 at Sparta Prague. Bayern Munich was defeated 3-0 at Feyenoord, with a pair of goals from the Mexican Santi Giménez, and dropped to 15th place in the mid-table tangle of historic clubs—including Madrid and Juventus—that run the risk of facing each other in the elimination rounds in February. Every question of qualification and elimination will be decided in a likely frantic eighth and final round of matches next Wednesday. All 36 teams will be in action in 18 matches that will begin at the same time, with only the first 24 advancing to the elimination phase. Manchester City looked set to bring PSG closer to elimination by taking a two-goal lead early in the second half. Jack Grealish, a half-time substitute, scored in the 50th minute and then set up Erling Haaland for a second four minutes later. Within six remarkable minutes, PSG were level, with goals from Ousmane Dembele and Bradley Barcola, and a stunning comeback was completed in the 78th when Joao Neves headed the decisive goal. Goncalo Ramos added a fourth in stoppage time. AC Milan quietly climbed to sixth place with a 1-0 win against Girona at the San Siro, and Celtic advanced by winning 1-0 against Young Boys, who lost a seventh game in a row. Sporting Lisbon faces possible elimination next week after losing 2-1 to Leipzig, ending a six-match losing streak, and Shakhtar Donetsk stayed in contention – just barely – with a 2-0 win against the emerging Brest, which will be in the elimination phase. ___ This story was translated from English by an AP editor with the help of a generative artificial intelligence tool.
