Five of six Premier League clubs reach Champions League last 16 | OneFootball

Five of the six Premier League clubs in the Champions League have qualified directly for the last 16, with only Newcastle missing out. L'Équipe notes that five finished inside the top eight of the league phase, while Newcastle ended 12th after a 1-1 draw at the Parc des Princes. The outcome is likely to reignite arguments over the Premier League's financial might in Europe.

Unlike last season, when Liverpool topped the phase despite a 2-3 defeat at Eindhoven, Arsenal completed a flawless run. They made it eight wins from eight by beating Kairat Almaty 3-2 at the Emirates with a heavily rotated starting line-up, and remain leaders by six points over Liverpool in third.

Liverpool cruised at Anfield against Karabagh FC, winning 6-0. Hugo Ekitike added another goal, starting from his own half, accelerating, knocking the ball past Kevin Medina and finishing past Mateusz Kochalski to make it 4-0 in the 57th minute.

Randal Kolo Muani also impressed, steering Tottenham to a 2-0 win at Eintracht Frankfurt, his former club. He opened the scoring from close range after a Cristian Romero header in the 47th minute, securing fourth in the league phase despite Spurs' Premier League struggles in 14th.

Chelsea, sixth, and Manchester City, eighth, also advanced directly after wins at Napoli 3-2 and against Galatasaray 2-0. At the Etihad, Rayan Cherki scored City's second with a precise right-foot finish in the 29th minute, underlining that, in part, English clubs' ascendancy reflects the role of French forwards beyond finances.

Source: L'Équipe