Champions League Power Rankings: Inter surging ahead of knockout stage playoff round
CBSN
The Champions League playoffs will be back next week around Europe
The 2025-26 edition of the Champions League will be back next week when the 16 teams involved in the playoffs will take the stage across Europe, defining the remaining eight spots left ahead of the knockout phase that will kick off in March next month. There are some big teams around Europe that are shining right now, such as Arsenal and Bayern Munich, while others will try to get involved in the race to win one of the most prestigious tournaments in the world of soccer. Let's take a look at our weekly power rankings:
Mikel Arteta's side are arguably the best team in Europe this season, and they prove it week after week. After winning all eight matches in the league phase, the Gunners can now turn their attention to the Premier League and the EFL Cup. They currently sit six points clear at the top of the table and will face Pep Guardiola's Manchester City in next month's EFL Cup final. It finally looks like this will be their season and they have to win at least one trophy.
If there is one team that can challenge Arsenal and Arteta that's Bayern Munich. Vincent Kompany's men are leading the Bundesliga standings with a solid advantage on Borussia Dortmund and players such as Harry Kane and Luis Diaz are making the difference. The English striker has already scored 38 goals in 33 games so far, showing again to be one of the best strikers around the world. Winning the Champions League would be a big step for this team and the former Tottenham striker.
They are finally back. We were expecting them to improve drastically in the second part of the season and this is what is happening. The French giants are at the top of the Ligue 1 standings and won 5-0 against Olympique Marseille over the weekend and they are gaining their best form after a challenging first part of the season. They are reaching their best form when it counts.
The Blaugrana continue to impress and are exactly where we expected them to be at this stage of the season. Barcelona lead the LaLiga standings, sit comfortably in the top eight of the Champions League, and have reached the Copa del Rey semifinals having already lifted the Spanish Super Cup. Much like PSG, they are peaking at precisely the moment when it matters most.
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