Mike Maignan's contract situation at AC Milan is difficult to unpack. There has been positivity recently, but how much that actually means must be seen. Everything at the moment revolves around Maignan, and it is understandable why, as frustrating as it may be. The Frenchman's fine form has come at a time when Milan have no real strength over his contract situation.
With the assist, as per Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona's number 10 reached an astonishing 14 goal contributions in the competition for players of 18-year-old or under, split evenly between seven goals and seven assists. This achievement makes him the most productive player in Champions League history since the tournament adopted its modern format in 1992. The figure surpasses Kylian Mbappe's long-standing record of 13 contributions, placing Yamal at the top of a list that features legendary names.
Paris Saint-Germain put in an underwhelming display as the Champions League holders were held to a goalless draw by Athletic Club in Wednesday's contest at San Mames. PSG created the better openings and saw Bradley Barcola hit the crossbar in the second half, but a mix of poor finishing and fine goalkeeping from Unai Simon meant the visitors had to settle for a point. Fabian Ruiz volleyed over the bar in the 20th minute, while at the other end, Alex Berenguer's curling effort drew a smart from Matvey Safonov.
Copenhagen continued their unlikely tilt for the knockout stages of the Champions League by beating Villarreal 3-2 at El Madrigal on Wednesday. Villarreal are still winless, just as Copenhagen had been through their first four matches of the league phase before following up a win against Kairat Almaty last time out with this victory. Copenhagen led after just 71 seconds as Mohamed Elyounoussi volleyed in a left-wing cross, and they protected that advantage until half-time.
Team news is yet to surface. Here's what Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta had to say before his side's clash with Club Brugge. Declan Rice is ill, while Leandro Trossard, William Saliba, Cristhian Mosquera, Kai Havertz, Max Dowman and Gabriel Magalhaes are all sidelined. And here's the song that I immediately thought of when I read that headline. A wonderfully 90s tune by Soccer Mommy.
The Argentine has scored 11 goals in 15 matches for Atleti in the Champions League, the best goals per game ratio (0.73) for any Atleti player in the competition, while only Antoine Griezmann has scored more for the club (39). In the last two seasons, only Serhou Guirassy (16) has been involved in more goals in the Champions League group/league phase than Alvarez (10 goals, three assists).
A draw was the right result considering how the game was going. We didn't have enough energy in the first half and struggled with their intensity, but then we found the right key to create problems for them. That was after being forced into making two substitutions, which meant in the second half we couldn't make more changes and were running short on energy.
FC Bayern hosted Sporting Lisbon in their final Champions League fixture of the year on Tuesday evening. The teams produced an intensive and hard-fought contest at the Allianz Arena, with FCB initially falling behind before running out deserved 3-1 winners. To crown an emotional evening, Alphonso Davies made his comeback from the cruciate ligament tear he suffered in March. You can watch the key moments of the game in our free highlights.
Liverpool's ongoing turmoil took a surprising turn on Tuesday night when traveling supporters at the San Siro broke into chants of support for under-pressure manager Arne Slot during the club's Champions League clash against Inter Milan. Ian Doyle reported on X that the fans of the Premier League side chanted Slot's name during the early stages of the match against Inter at San Siro.
