With six teams in the last 16, the Premier League dominates the Champions League in numbers, but yesterday was, to be generous, not a great day for English football. The decimation of Tottenham by Atlético Madrid was best watched through fingers or behind the couch, and Liverpool were lucky to only concede once to Galatasaray in Istanbul. Eddie Howe could also live to rue not taking a 1-0 lead to the Spotify Camp Nou after his side battled bravely only to hand Lamine Yamal an equalizing penalty that was the last kick of the game.

Tonight, Premier League leaders and UCL favorites Arsenal continue their quadruple campaign with a favorable trip to Bayer Leverkusen. Holders PSG will be thirsty for vengeance against Chelsea, who gave them a surprise spanking in the Club World Cup final last summer, while Real Madrid and Manchester City continue their modern odyssey in the fifth consecutive UCL edition of this tie. Cancel those afternoon meetings, friends – it’s going to be a doozy. 🤩

ii. Once again, Barcelona’s teenage superstar came up huge when they needed him most, but are Lamine Yamal’s club and country expecting too much from him already? Rog and Rory Smith discussed that very topic on the pod yesterday, along with the remarkable consistency of Harry Kane at Bayern Munich and why his all-around brilliance might still be under-appreciated. Watch that here. 📺

iii. Speaking of Rog, make sure to join him and James Horncastle TODAY for “Big Match Breakdown LIVE” on YouTube at 6 p.m. ET immediately after the whistle blows on the Round of 16 games. Come be with us. 🍻

iv. An excellent recent goal you might’ve missed (that also includes a blast from UCL’s past): Down in Australia’s A-League, 37-year-old Juan Mata is still pulling off set-piece wizardry against guys half his age. That is smooooooth. 🇦🇺

v. Also, Leverkusen appear to have discovered the secret to stopping Arsenal… kind of. Good luck today, lads. 😂

Cheers,
Tommy Stewart & Max Bonem

PS - If this is isn’t the greatest moment in jamón sports history, we don’t know what is. 🐷

PPS - As we always say: One apostrophe can make a 350-mile difference when traveling to watch your team play.📍

Atlético Madrid 🇪🇸 5-2 Tottenham 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Igor Tudor’s Spurs hit the bottom of a very big barrel yesterday, but even the most sadistic Arsenal fan must feel human sympathy for backup goalkeeper Antonín Kinský, who was indiscriminately hoisted into the firing line as a replacement for usual No 1, Guglielmo Vicario. The 22-year-old directly handed Diego Simeone’s rabid Atlético players two of the first three goals before being brutally hooked and then ghosted by his manager with his side 3-0 down after just 17 minutes. 

It was 4-1 with just over a quarter of this David Lynch-directed fever dream played—all with Mauricio Pochettino cringing from the stands of the Metropolitano—as things went from bad to worse to unfathomable. Tottenham have now lost six straight for the first time in history, and whatever’s left of the club’s morale was prodded further when the Croatian interim manager called his players “weak” post-match. Tudor’s decision to start Kinský was fatal, and today’s confounding confirmation that he will be on the touchline against Liverpool on Sunday only emboldens those very real relegation worries.

More: The stats behind Spurs GK Kinský's shocking early sub off.

Galatasaray 🇹🇷 1-0 Liverpool 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Arne Slot’s 100th game in charge of Liverpool started with a flurry of missed chances, but a failure to capitalize before being immediately punished was emblematic of their season. Galatasaray’s Mario Lemina headed in early from a scrappy corner that was poorly defended, further breaking Slot’s “football heart,” and the Turkish champs’ relentless attacking trident of Barış Alper Yılmaz, Noa Lang and Victor Osimhen could only be stopped by VAR in the second half.

The Reds thought they’d found an avenue back in from their own chaotic corner, but VAR again had other plans, discovering a handball somewhere in the mix. In a remake of their 1-0 defeat in Istanbul in September, Liverpool have now lost 12 games in which they’ve conceded the opening goal this season, so Anfield’s European magic will be asked to do a lot of heavy lifting in next week’s return leg.

Newcastle 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 1-1 Barcelona 🇪🇸

A fever-pitched St. James’ Park met Eddie Howe’s claim that this was Newcastle’s biggest-ever night, but the match itself fell short of its billing. Both backlines looked nervous, but with the tournament’s second top goalscorer Anthony Gordon on the bench with illness, the Magpies couldn’t finish the good chances they created until the 86th minute. Harvey Barnes met a pinpoint Jacob Murphy cross for his 11th goal of the season, but Barcelona’s quality was undying, and Malick Thiaw clumsily hacked Dani Olmo down in the dying seconds. With the last kick of the game, Lamine Yamal (who else?) casually finished the penalty, completely altering the complexion of the whole tie.

Atalanta 🇮🇹 1-6 Bayern Munich 🇩🇪

Italy’s last remaining Champions League hope was ruthlessly extinguished as Bayern Munich bulldozed Atalanta 6-1 in Bergamo with Harry Kane watching ominously from the bench with a calf injury. A gauntlet has been thrown down by Vincent Kompany’s side and the rest of Europe should be very, very afraid.

Bayer Leverkusen 🇩🇪 vs. Arsenal 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (TODAY, 1:45 p.m. ET, Paramount+)

Arsenal wear the awkward crown of being favorites for a tournament they’ve never won, but it’s easy to see why so many fancy the Premier League leaders. Mikel Arteta’s side have a 100% record in a frightening UCL campaign in which they’ve not trailed a match, but Martin Ødegaard’s injury and doubts over Leandro Trossard’s fitness are a worry. Leverkusen’s Bundesliga season has been mid, but they’ve progressed from four of five European knockout ties against English clubs, and USMNT star Malik Tillman is fit for the fixture after narrowly avoiding a World Cup-ending ankle injury.

PSG 🇫🇷 vs. Chelsea 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (TODAY, 4 p.m. ET, Paramount+)

Luis Enrique’s PSG have been intently waiting since July 2025 for this, a French revenge story Alexandre Dumas could have penned. The Parisians were near perfect when it mattered last season, but with success comes clues that teams can use against them, as Monaco did in a 3-1 loss last Friday. João Pedro scored in Chelsea’s shock 3-0 win in the Club World Cup final last summer, and even though Enzo Maresca masterminded that victory, the Brazilian has become the Premier League's most potent striker under Liam Rosenior’s watch.

Real Madrid 🇪🇸 vs. Manchester City 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (TODAY, 4 p.m. ET, Paramount+)

These behemoths must be sick of the sight of each other, but so regular is this epic fixture, it’s developed into a European Clásico. In the 15 times Real Madrid have met Manchester City in the UCL since 2012, they’ve been impossible to split with all three results occurring five times apiece! As a proud Catalonian, Pep Guardiola needs no incentive to dissect and destroy Madrid, who with injuries to Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham, might be the weakest version of Los Blancos he’s ever faced.

Bodø/Glimt 🇳🇴 vs. Sporting 🇵🇹 (TODAY, 4 p.m. ET, Paramount+)

Since conquering Manchester City, Atlético Madrid and Inter Milan, Bodø/Glimt are this season’s underdog darlings, but the accomplishments of Rui Borges’ Sporting CP are almost as seismic, beating Marseille, Athletic Club and holders PSG to finish seventh in the UCL table. It’s the first-ever two-legged UCL tie between Norwegian and Portuguese clubs, and for the Lisbon side, playing in the Arctic Circle is like the Tusken Raiders fighting on Hoth.

More: What is Bodø/Glimt’s secret?

This week we want to know who’s the missing striker from Arsenal’s Declan Rice-inspired 2-1 first-leg quarter-final win against Real Madrid last April?

Email us (or reply to this newsletter) with your answer for a chance to win a much-coveted MiB patch!

Our last winner: Congratulations to Liam Kelly, who was the first to correctly answer that The Nicest Man in Football™️, Juan Mata, was Chelsea’s missing No 10 from their Champions League-winning lineup against Bayern Munich in 2012. Get in touch and we’ll send you a patch, Liam!

🐦‍⬛ We’ll see you again tomorrow. In the meantime, keep sending your stories and questions to [email protected].

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