Parisians had a challenging group stage in this season’s UEFA Champions League. They were placed in a tough “group of death” alongside Borussia Dortmund, AC Milan, and Newcastle. PSG gathered eight points from six matches and advanced to the playoffs ahead of Milan on additional criteria. In the round of 16, the French team faced Real Sociedad and convincingly defeated them. In the first leg, Parisians won 2-0 and secured a narrow victory away with a score of 2-1. In the domestic league, PSG currently occupies the top spot in the Ligue 1 table. They have accumulated 63 points from 28 matches, leading their closest pursuers by ten points. In their last five games, Parisians secured four victories, but in the previous match, they unexpectedly drew 1-1 against Clermont. Nevertheless, PSG remains unbeaten in 27 matches, with their last defeat against Milan in the Champions League.
The Catalan team also faced some difficulties in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League. They had a relatively easier quartet consisting of Porto, Shakhtar, and Antwerp, where Barcelona finished first but edged out the Portuguese team only on additional criteria. In the playoffs, under Xavi’s guidance, Barcelona faced the reigning Italian champions, Napoli. In the first leg, which took place in Naples, the teams ended in a draw (1-1), but in the return leg, Barcelona convincingly defeated Napoli with a score of 3-1. In La Liga, Barcelona is currently in second place in the league table. They have accumulated 67 points from 30 matches, trailing the league leaders by eight points. In their previous game, the Catalans narrowly defeated Las Palmas 1-0. Overall, Barcelona has been undefeated in their last 11 matches.
