Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City & Tottenham headline a woeful week for Premier League clubs in the Champions League | OneFootball

The Premier League’s self-styled status as ‘the best in the world’ was made to look laughable in the Champions League this week.

England’s sextet of representatives recorded just two draws in six games, pouring cold water on the league’s grandiose notion of supremacy.

Flops galore as Liverpool deliver a stinker

Liverpool were extremely fortunate to escape with a 1-0 defeat after producing yet another woeful performance at Galatasaray.

Wherever you looked on the pitch, the Reds looked short of quality. Virgil van Dijk? Finished. Ibrahima Konate? Get that man some clown shoes and a squirty flower.

Mohamed Salah needs to be sold after delivering another stinker, while Florian Wirtz once again failed to justify his eye-watering transfer fee.

The Reds may still make it through to the quarter-finals, where they would probably face Paris Saint-Germain. Good luck with that one.

Rosenior is out of his depth

Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior already bears the hallmarks of a man who looks like he has been promoted into a position beyond his capabilities.

The former Hull City and Strasbourg boss has yet to win a big game with the Blues, and his woes continued apace in Paris last night.

Chelsea were still in the tie at 3-2 down, but Rosenior made two late substitutions, which allowed PSG to pour forward in the latter stages.

The reigning Champions League champions scored twice to leave Chelsea with a mountain to climb. If Chelsea exit the competition, questions will be asked about Rosenior’s tactical naivety.

Guardiola underestimates Madrid

Real Madrid were supposedly in disarray heading into the first leg of their last-16 tie against Manchester City at the Bernabeu Stadium.

However, Federico Valverde’s first-half hat-trick put Los Blancos in control of the tie and left City manager Pep Guardiola scratching his head.

Guardiola appeared to underestimate Madrid by picking a team loaded with attackers, and the home side took full advantage of his misstep.

Splashing the cash on new players was designed to turn City into an unstoppable force. On this evidence, their outlay has been wasted.

Newcastle spurn a golden opportunity

Newcastle United were just seconds away from defeating Barcelona at St James’ Park, but conceded a late penalty. Lamine Yamal converted to make it 1-1.

In fairness to the Magpies, they will take heart from their performance. However, this was undoubtedly a missed opportunity for the club.

Newcastle are unlikely to qualify for Europe through their league position and will not win domestic silverware this season. They will exit the Champions League next week.

Some elements of the media continue to give manager Eddie Howe a free pass, but the club must head down a different route this summer.

Tottenham’s woes continue in Spain

Tottenham Hotspur are a mess. Their 5-2 defeat at Atletico Madrid was the latest debacle in a long line of fiascos this season.

Igor Tudor’s decision to start Antonin Kinsky in goal backfired as two howlers inside 17 minutes put Tottenham firmly on the back foot.

Many fans were delighted to see the back of Ange Postecoglou last summer, despite him guiding Tottenham to the Europa League title.

With Champions League progression looking unlikely and relegation to the Championship a distinct possibility, the decision to fire Postecoglou looks increasingly questionable.

Havertz rescues Arsenal in Leverkusen

Arsenal were expected to storm past Bayer Leverkusen with minimal fuss, but were nearly on the wrong end of a humiliating defeat.

However, Kai Havertz came off the bench to score a controversial late equaliser from the penalty spot and save the Gunners’ blushes.

The Premier League leaders were untouchable during the group stage, but failed to live up to their lofty billing on an awkward night in Germany.

Mike Arteta’s side should still progress to the quarter-finals, but will need to play much better than this to win the competition.

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Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace will hope to keep flying the Premier League flag in Europe this evening. You can stream the games live if you’re unable to watch them on television.