Liverpool awaits its Champions League round of 16 opponents as playoff drama sees Club Brugge draw 3-3 with Atletico Madrid, and Galatasaray take commanding 5-2 lead over Juventus
Ian Doyle Chief Liverpool FC Writer
08:06, 20 Feb 2026
Liverpool is looking to win the Champions League(Image: Getty Images)
Liverpool remains uncertain about its prospective Champions League knockout stage adversaries following a thrilling set of playoff fixtures.
The Reds secured automatic qualification to the last 16 after claiming third spot in the initial league phase table, behind Arsenal and Bayern Munich. Under UEFA’s draw structure, Arne Slot’s players already understand they and fourth-placed Tottenham will meet one of Juventus, Atletico Madrid, Club Brugge, or Galatasaray in the opening knockout phase, with these four sides having concluded 13th, 14th, 19th, and 20th in the standings, respectively.
These four clubs have been drawn into two Champions League playoff fixtures, with the first legs contested in midweek and the second legs scheduled for next week.
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Wednesday witnessed a thrilling clash in Belgium, where Club Brugge, featuring former Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet in the starting XI, grabbed a leveller with just one minute of regulation time left to secure a 3-3 draw against Atletico.
The Belgian outfit had been unlucky to trail 2-0 at the interval before fighting back to parity by the 60-minute mark, only to concede an own goal with 11 minutes remaining.
The day before, Galatasaray seized control of its encounter with Juventus by securing a commanding 5-2 first-leg victory in Istanbul.
Arne Slot’s players are confident of lifting a seventh European Cup(Image: Getty Images)
Juventus fought back from a goal down to establish a 2-1 interval lead courtesy of a Teun Koopmeiners double before falling 3-2 behind by the hour mark.
The Italian team was hindered by a dismissal for two cautionable infringements from Juan Cabal midway through the second period, which enabled the home side to extend its lead on two further occasions during the final 15 minutes.
Given that Juventus has never previously overturned a three-goal disadvantage in European competition, Galatasaray is the strong favorite to advance.
Liverpool knows exactly what Galatasaray has to offer.
The Turkish team beat Slot’s players 1-0 during the league phase in September.
Atletico has also enjoyed success against Liverpool in the Champions League in recent years, famously knocking the English club out at Anfield just as the coronavirus pandemic was taking hold in Europe in 2020.
The Reds will learn their round of 16 opponents and their complete route to the final when the draw takes place in Nyon on Friday week.
The initial knockout phase takes place on March 10/11 and March 17/18.