good morning!
I’ve got to admit, I didn’t even know the Champions League started this week. For those of you keeping track, we’re still a week out from the Europa League.
But this isn’t about the Europa League, it’s about the Champions League.
For a good moment I totally forgot how this new format works. It’s weird. Imagine my surprise (mild surprise) when I saw Aston Villa first and Liverpool fourth briefly in the table.
“Two England teams in one group? This cannot be right!” I said.
Well, it technically was right as they’re all big one group now.
There were only six matches on Tuesday, two of them being Villa-Young Boys and Liverpool-AC Milan. I didn’t watch either.
So now we take a look at the top of the table, and both are close there! Bayern are first with a +7 goal differential thanks to a 9-2 drubbing of Dinamo Zagreb, who don’t really seem to belong in this tournament. Really, do Slovan Bratislava or SK Sturm Graz belong either?
Twenty-four of the 36 teams at least advance to the next stage, with Nos. 9-24 going into the play-offs. No idea if any of the clubs mentioned (except for Villa, Liverpool and Bayern, I guess) will make it.
All of it’s very weird. It’s gonna take some getting used to.
For those of you keeping track the other clubs that won are: Juventus, Real Madrid and Sporting. Kind of what you’d expect.
No clue what Wednesday brings. Or next week. Or anything really.
I’m going to have to constantly remind myself how this works. The worst thing is it doesn’t even matter this season, because Spurs are in the Europa League.
Watch out for mighty FK Rīgas Futbola Skola.
Fitzie’s track of the day: I Don’t Really See You Anymore, by Lake Street Dive
And now for your links:
The Athletic ($$): Ange Postecoglou responds to the whole ‘I always win things’ thing
Dan KP: Big Ange condemns fan abuse after Brennan Johnson quits Instagram
What fitzie should’ve read before typing this hoddle: All you need to know about the new Champions League format
England’s Toni Duggan retires as she’s ‘proud to have changed perceptions’
