The Results of the Panic Button: UEFA Champions League Group Stage Review

After two rounds of matches in the UEFA Champions League Group Stage took place, I wrote about 6 clubs and their level of panic given their slow starts to the Champions League. Let’s take a look at how they either rose to the occasion or crumbled under pressure.

Panic Button Victims

Bayer Leverkusen, Benfica, and Inter Milan

It’s hard to call these clubs victims when they still get to compete in the UEFA Europa League after finishing in 3rd in their respective groups. Also, perhaps it would be harsh to critique Leverkusen and Milan for being unable to displace a more established club like Atlético Madrid, Juventus, Barcelona, or Borussia Dortmund in some tough groups. Benfica on the other hand had a more forgiving group but it was still tough to predict how it was going to shape up. Ultimately RB Leipzig and Lyon deserved to go through from there as well. These three sides combined for a total 1 point out of a possible 18 in their opening two games and finished with 20 out of a possible 54. Each of them got some results, with the most impressive perhaps being Leverkusen’s 2–1 home win to Atlético Madrid, but now in the Europa League they can’t use the tough groups as an excuse for their failures. It’s not going to be easy, with Bayer Leverkusen drawn against Porto…