After the first legs of the play-off tie in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League, the second-leg fixtures arrive this midweek, with last-ditch efforts needed from teams lagging behind.
We have seen bigger leads turned around in the Champions League over its storied history and hope we can see some end-to-end action and upsets here as well.
Here, we present our previews and predictions for each second-leg encounter of the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 play-off round.
The first leg in Belgium was an exhilarating affair, as Club Brugge came back from a 0–2 deficit to hold Atleti to a 3–3 draw. So, it’s all to play for at the Metropolitano this midweek.
Atleti are a very strong side at home and have produced some superb results here in LaLiga, having beaten both Barcelona and Real Madrid in dominant fashion at home this season. So, it will be a very challenging task for Club Brugge to get a win here.
That said, looking at their most recent form, the Belgian team have one defeat from their last five games, while Atlético Madrid have lost two out of their last five — a loss to Rayo Vallecano away and a narrow home defeat to Real Betis recently. Hence, the Blauw-Zwart do have an outside chance.
As for injuries, the visitors will miss the services of Lynnt Audoor and Dani van den Heuvel, while the hosts will be without Nicolás González and Pablo Barrios.
While the Colchoneros have the home advantage and are strong favourites for this game, Club Brugge do have the firepower and the fighting mentality to hassle them. This could be a tight game, where the team drawing first blood may win the tie; we feel that the hosts will win this one, but just about.
Score Prediction: Atleti 2–1 Club Brugge
Even after a few critical injuries, Leverkusen put up an inspired performance in the first leg to come away with a two-goal lead, with Patrik Schick earning his side an important first-leg win with a second-half brace.
Leverkusen come into this fixture with not just a comfortable lead, but also the added comfort of playing at home. They are also unbeaten in their last five fixtures, having managed four wins and a draw, while their opponents are going through a slight rough patch: Olympiacos have had two wins, two draws, and one defeat in their last five games before this defeat.
For this game, Leverkusen will be without Mark Flekken, Eliesse Ben Seghir and Nathan Tella due to injury issues, while Olympiacos will miss Theofanis Bakoulas.
Olympiacos have a tough job on their hands here. Trying to overturn a 2–0 deficit away from home won’t be easy, especially since Leverkusen are also in great form in front of goal, having scored 14 goals in their last five games. We believe it’s too much of an ask for the Greek champions and back Leverkusen to qualify for the Round of 16.
Score Prediction: Leverkusen 2–1 Olympiacos
Inter losing to Bodø/Glimt was an upset no one saw coming. The Norwegian team have exceeded all expectations with their performances in their first-ever Champions League campaign. They have been this season’s chief giant-killers, having already defeated Manchester City and Atlético Madrid before their win against Inter.
The Nerazzurri had been in superb form coming into last week’s game and had won their last five games. As for Bodø, they were also unbeaten coming into the game, with four wins and a draw. However, Inter were completely blown away by Bodø and now have a two-goal deficit to overturn at home.
From an injury perspective, Inter will miss their star striker Lautaro Martínez for this crucial game, who is out with a calf strain, while Bodø have a fully fit squad available for this fixture.
Without a doubt, the visitors are in the driving seat in the tie, and a two-goal lead won’t be easy to overcome for the hosts without their main man up front. Another noteworthy point is the contrast between Inter’s domestic and Champions League travails. The runners-up from last year have not shown the same dominant form in Europe this season, and even though they are in a strong position to lift the Scudetto in May, they could very well be knocked out of the Champions League this week.
Though Inter are stronger on paper, Bodø/Glimt have shown that they can compete in Europe’s elite competition. We believe they have the edge to go through to the Round of 16, even though this game may end in an entertaining draw.
Score Prediction: Inter 2–2 Bodø
This second leg is already practically a dead rubber. Conceding six goals at home has taken Qarabag out of the tie; asking them to go away to one of the most difficult away stadiums in England with a five-goal deficit is borderline criminal.
The Azerbaijani outfit had done well to secure a play-off spot, but their Champions League campaign virtually ended in the first leg itself. Anthony Gordon was the star of the show on the night with a first-half hat-trick, while Qarabag could only manage a consolation goal.
Newcastle United’s league form has been on an upward trajectory, though recently they lost away at Manchester City. As for Qarabag, before their defeat to Newcastle, they had three wins in the Azerbaijan Premier League.
The Magpies are still struggling with injury issues, with key players set to miss out on this game. Sven Botman, Emil Krafth, Fabian Schär, Tino Livramento, Bruno Guimarães, Lewis Miley, and Yoane Wissa are all on the sidelines. As for the visitors, they will miss Shahrudin Mahammadaliyev for this game.
With a five-goal deficit, Newcastle have the luxury of playing a heavily rotated side and still making the last 16. Even with a rotated side, Newcastle will be difficult to handle for Qarabag on home turf, and we can even see them winning the second leg rather comfortably.
Score Prediction: Newcastle 3–0 Qarabag
Though Atalanta finished with two points more and two places better off than Borussia Dortmund in the league phase, thus earning home advantage for this second leg, they have been left with a mountain to climb after losing 2–0 last Tuesday.
In contrast with their fine domestic form, the Lombardy side were tamely beaten and recorded just seven shots; only once have they taken fewer attempts in 42 previous Champions League matches.
Now, the Bergamaschi must try to become the first team to progress through a knockout tie after losing the first leg by two or more goals since Liverpool’s miraculous comeback against Barcelona back in 2019.
As for Niko Kovac’s Dortmund, the runners-up from two years ago are aiming to reach the last 16 for a seventh time in eight seasons, and precedent suggests they will get that far again.
To date, BVB have won all ten UEFA ties in which they held a two-goal lead from the first leg, while their only previous meeting with Atalanta produced a 4–3 aggregate victory in the 2017/18 Europa League.
In terms of injuries and team news, just like the first leg, Atalanta will be missing forward pair Giacomo Raspadori and Charles De Ketelaere, the latter of whom registered six goal involvements and created 20 chances during the league phase. Apart from that, La Dea head coach Raffaele Palladino has a fully fit squad to choose from.
Meanwhile, Dortmund were without several defenders for the first leg, as Nico Schlotterbeck, Niklas Süle, Emre Can, and Filippo Mané all sat out, which gave teenager Luca Reggiani a chance to make his first Champions League start. Schlotterbeck has since resumed full training and could be available, but it remains to be seen whether the Germany star can play 90 minutes.
Looking ahead to this return leg, in recent times Atalanta have made a name for themselves for producing some special European nights. However, much of that has come in the Europa League, so whether they can replicate that against proven European heavyweights like Dortmund remains to be seen. That said, having gained some grit under Kovac, we expect BVB to keep level heads even under intense pressure and see this tie through.
Score Prediction: Atalanta 2–1 BVB
Los Blancos have a slender lead in the tie, having recorded a 1–0 victory in the first leg last week, with Vinícius Júnior scoring the only goal of the match. However, that hardly tells the whole story, as there has been an incredible fall-out from the game, which remains ongoing, further adding to the tension leading into this match.
Vini Jr accused Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of racially abusing him shortly after the opening goal, which led to a ten-minute stoppage before the contest resumed, and UEFA continue to investigate the incident, which dominated post-match discussions.
Coming back to the second leg, Real Madrid will enter the game on the back of a 2–1 loss to Osasuna, which has allowed Barcelona to leapfrog them into first place in LaLiga. That said, Real Madrid have won five of their last six games against Portuguese opponents. Should they manage to navigate their way into the Round of 16, a two-legged tie against either Sporting or Manchester City will be on the cards.
As for their opponents, Benfica managed to return to winning ways in the Primeira Liga on Saturday, beating AFS 3–0, but their head coach José Mourinho will not be on the touchline at the Bernabéu for this match, having been sent off in the first leg.
Looking at some of their historical data in the competition, things aren’t looking promising for the Portuguese giants. Benfica have lost six of their last eight games against Spanish opposition, including home and away defeats to Barcelona in last season’s Round of 16, while they have managed just two wins from their 14 away matches against Spanish sides, showing the size of their task on Wednesday night.
In terms of injuries and team news, Real Madrid will miss both Rodrygo (hamstring) and Dean Huijsen (muscular), both of whom join Jude Bellingham (hamstring), Éder Militão (hamstring), and Dani Ceballos (calf) on the injury table. As for Benfica, Prestianni has been suspended by UEFA while their investigation continues, so the 20-year-old will not be involved at the Bernabéu. Apart from that, the visitors are only missing João Veloso (shoulder) through injury.
Looking ahead to this return leg, Benfica have it all to do on Wednesday night, and we are finding it tough to back the Portuguese outfit. Real Madrid are not exactly in full flow at the moment, but they should still have enough to secure their spot in the last 16.
Score Prediction: Real Madrid 2–1 Benfica
Paris Saint-Germain can book a place in the last 16 of the Champions League for a 14th successive campaign with a win or draw against Monaco in leg two of their play-off tie at the Parc des Princes.
However, things could have been a lot different given how energetically Monaco started the first leg. The opening 20 minutes in the Principality could not have gone much worse for Les Parisiens. But, to their credit, they stuck with it and fought back. For the first time this century, they would go on to win a Champions League knockout fixture after going behind by two goals.
PSG will enter this contest unbeaten in eight of their previous nine competitive fixtures at the Parc des Princes, having won their last two outings in Paris by a combined margin of 8–0. Moreover, the defending French and European champions are unbeaten in their last five meetings with the Principality side in the French capital and have not lost a one-off knockout game against them this century.
Thus, Monaco come into this second leg in a very difficult situation, needing a win to maintain their Champions League aspirations. That said, Sébastien Pocognoli’s men have won two of their previous three meetings against French opposition, including coming from two goals behind to defeat Lens 3–2 over the weekend, which incidentally enabled PSG to reclaim first place in Ligue 1.
However, Monaco have only won one of their last five competitive fixtures outside the Principality, having conceded a combined 12 goals in four Champions League affairs on the road this season. Besides, it has been nearly a decade since Monaco last defeated PSG at the Parc des Princes; they won 2–0 in a Ligue 1 fixture there in March 2016.
In terms of team news and injuries, both Ousmane Dembélé and Senny Mayulu are sidelined with calf strains, while Fabián Ruiz has a sore knee and Quentin Ndjantou has a hamstring strain.
As for Monaco, Paul Pogba, Mohammed Salisu, Takumi Minamino, and Lukas Hradecky are out with knee injuries, while Eric Dier and Christian Mawissa are doubtful because of hamstring strains, and Kassoum Ouattara has a calf issue. Maghnes Akliouche’s participation is in doubt due to a sore hip, as is Krépin Diatta’s, who has a knock, while Aleksandr Golovin is out through suspension.
Looking ahead to this fixture, while Monaco fought valiantly in the opening leg, they do not have the manpower to trouble a side as experienced as PSG, who always seem to find a way in these must-win affairs.
Score Prediction: PSG 3–0 Monaco
Requiring a miracle to gain Champions League redemption, fallen giants Juventus welcome Galatasaray to Turin on Wednesday evening.
After receiving a false sense of security when Teun Koopmeiners scored twice to overturn Galatasaray’s early opener, Juventus fans then witnessed one of their club’s worst European nights unfold in the Turkish capital last Tuesday.
Juve crumbled under intense pressure during a one-sided second half, as substitute Juan Cabal capped a calamitous cameo by being sent off, while Galatasaray ran riot to put the tie almost beyond reach with a 5–2 victory on the night.
Moreover, things aren’t rosy on the domestic front either, with the Old Lady having previously lost another classic Derby d’Italia to old foes Inter Milan before crumbling against Como. Thus, turning things around against an opposition whom they haven’t beaten in 22 years will be a very difficult task indeed. To date, Gala have lost just one of seven meetings with Juve, and with last week’s win they equalled their biggest margin of victory in the Champions League.
The Turkish giants may already be dreaming of a last-16 clash with either Liverpool or Tottenham Hotspur, having previously progressed from all 11 two-legged UEFA ties when winning the opener by three or more goals.
Although on track to defend their Süper Lig crown, which would mark a fourth straight domestic title, four days on from humbling Juventus they suffered a shock 2–0 loss to Konyaspor, who had previously gone 12 games without a league win.
Though blessed with a prolific front line featuring Victor Osimhen, Mauro Icardi, and several others, that away defeat highlights a slight chink in the Gala armour, which may give Juve the slightest sliver of hope.
In terms of team news and injuries, Luciano Spalletti will be without three fullbacks, as Emil Holm is injured, while Juan Cabal and Andrea Cambiaso are both suspended. First-choice striker Jonathan David’s participation remains an uncertainty, while long-term absentee forwards Dusan Vlahovic and Arkadiusz Milik are still ruled out. As far as Galatasaray are concerned, they have a fully fit squad.
Looking ahead to this fixture, with a three-goal deficit to overcome, Juve must go full gas from the first whistle, leaving space for Gala’s prolific strike force to catch them on the counter, which is particularly concerning given they have conceded 15 times in their last five matches. Thus, we’re backing the Turkish giants to progress from this tie.
Score Prediction: Juve 3–2 Gala
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