A hat-trick from Morgan Rogers helped Aston Villa seal a spot in the Champions League last 16 with a thrilling 4-2 win over Celtic on Wednesday.
The article from Reuters outlines the final standings of the UEFA Champions League league phase for the 2025 season. Manchester City topped the table with 18 points, followed by Real Madrid with 16 points. Bayern Munich and Arsenal secured third and fourth places respectively, both with 15 points. Barcelona, despite a strong performance, ended up in fifth with 14 points. The league phase, which replaced the traditional group stage, involved 36 teams playing eight matches each, with the top eight teams directly advancing to the round of 16. Teams ranked from ninth to 24th entered a playoff round for the remaining knockout stage spots, while those finishing 25th or lower were eliminated from European competitions. The new format aimed to increase competitiveness and provide more matches of high quality.