Paris Saint-Germain had a bit more trouble separating itself from its Ligue 1 rival Monaco than predicted, but rode a 3-2 first leg win to a 5-4 aggregate victory. Newcastle demolished Qarabag, 9-3. Atlético Madrid turned a 3-3 first-leg draw around with a 4-1 second leg at home to dump out Club Brugge. Bayer Leverkusen vs. Olympiacos was a snoozer, won 2-0 on aggregate by the former.
The problem is we aren't consistent in our play, we have to fix that, you can't have one day [playing well] and another not, a champion team does not do that, Mbappe told reporters. We deserve to be in this situation today. Benfica were better. Now we have to play two more playoff games. It hurts to have to play those. We wanted to have the time in February to work on our game.
I'm really, really happy considering some of the teams we've played and some of the teams that have finished in the top six. There's an incredible history in this sport in the Champions League and we haven't got that. So we're creating that and to do that and finish sixth is ... I've not taken it in yet. But I know I'll sit on the plane home and be really proud of everyone involved in all the things we're trying to achieve.
It has otherwise been a strong opening to the 2025-26 season for Vladan Milojevic's side, who boast 10 wins, two draws and just one defeat across 13 matches in all competitions. Domestically, they have been flawless, winning all seven games in the Mozzart Bet Superliga to sit top of the table. Their European adventure began brightly too, as they dispatched Lincoln Red Imps and Lech Poznan to reach the Champions League playoff round.
Fenerbahce have sacked Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho, two days after elimination from the Champions League playoffs by Benfica, the Turkish club said in a statement. We have parted ways with Jose Mourinho, who served as head coach of our professional A team since the 2024-2025 season. We thank him for his efforts for our team and wish him success in his future career, Friday's statement said.