The eighth and final matchday of the Champions League group stage took place on Wednesday. Paris Saint-Germain, featuring Ibrahim Mbaye and the defending champions, will ultimately not be among the top eight. The Senegalese star's teammates, who needed a win to secure direct qualification for the round of 16, were held to a 1-1 draw by Newcastle. This is a major setback for PSG, who are now forced to go through the playoffs to have any hope of reaching the round of 16.

On the road in Germany, Pape Matar Sarr, starting for Tottenham, contributed to Spurs' 2-0 victory against Eintracht Frankfurt. Thanks to this away win, Tottenham finished in a solid fourth place and secured their direct qualification for the knockout stages. Like PSG and Inter Milan, Real Madrid will also have to play in the playoffs. Playing away at Benfica, the Madrid club lost 4-2, a defeat that knocks them out of the top eight.

Already qualified for the round of 16, Bayern Munich, with Nicolas Jackson starting before being substituted in the 62nd minute, defeated PSV Eindhoven, featuring Ismail Saibari, 2-1 in the Netherlands. In the bottom half of the group, Monaco, with Lamine Camara in the starting lineup, secured a playoff spot by drawing 0-0 against Juventus. Meanwhile, Union Saint-Gilloise, with Ousseynou Niang in the starting eleven, were eliminated from the competition despite a 1-0 home win against Atalanta. At the Camp Nou, FC Barcelona put on a great show, dominating Copenhagen 4-1. This convincing victory allowed the Catalans to finish in 5th place.

Already eliminated before this final matchday, Pape Gueye's Villarreal suffered a heavy defeat against Bayer Leverkusen (3-0). The Senegalese midfielder came on as a substitute in the 83rd minute.

Starting for Galatasaray, Ismaïl Jakobs suffered a 2-0 defeat against Manchester City. Despite this loss, the Turkish club has qualified for the playoffs. However, Marseille, beaten 3-0 by Club Brugge, with Mamadou Diakhon scoring in the match, has been eliminated.