Rodrygo and Vinicius Jr both scored twice as Real Madrid crushed Salzburg 5-1 to ease any lingering fears of Champions League elimination.
The defending champions had lost three of their first six games in the revamped competition and started the night in 22nd spot. But they flexed their muscles in emphatic fashion with two first-half goals from Rodrygo, both assisted by Jude Bellingham, settling their nerves.
Kylian Mbappe added a third three minutes into the second half and two Vinicius Jr goals put Madrid in complete control long before Mads Bidstrup netted a late consolation.
Man City slip down into the Champions League elimination zone after losing to PSG 📉 pic.twitter.com/sgLURkV5rB
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) January 22, 2025
There were similar levels of relief in Paris as PSG produced a stunning comeback to beat Manchester City and put themselves back into the playoff spots.
The hosts were trailing 2-0 thanks to goals from Jack Grealish and Erling Haaland but Ousmane Dembele inspired a turnaround.
The former Barcelona winger reduced the arrears and then Bradley Barcola made it 2-2 with all four goals coming in the space of 10 frantic minutes.
PSG weren’t done though and Joao Neves headed them in front before Gonzalo Ramos made it 4-2 with the last kick of the game.
PSG moved up to 22nd but City must now beat Club Brugge at the Etihad next week to stand any chance of scraping into the top 24.
Bayern battered in Rotterdam
Bayern Munich are likely to have to settle for the playoffs after a surprise 3-0 defeat at Feyenoord.
Santiago Jimenez scored twice, the second from the penalty spot, and Ayase Ueda added a late third for the Rotterdammers.
Celtic were also home winners after Loris Benito’s late own goal gave the Glasgow side a 1-0 win over Young Boys.
Brendan Rodgers’ men dominated but it looked as though it may not be their night when Marvin Keller saved Arne Engels’ penalty. Benito’s late blunder, however, means Celtic are guaranteed a place in the playoffs despite the sending-off of Daizen Maeda.
Big guns virtually guaranteed top-eight spots
Arsenal and Inter are all but secured of a place in the top eight after victories tonight.
Lautaro Martinez’s goal was enough to give Inter victory over Sparta Prague while Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard were on target for Arsenal as they beat Dinamo Zagreb.
AC Milan are also well placed in sixth following a 1-0 win over Girona courtesy of Rafael Leao’s brilliant goal.
Benjamin Sesko was on target as RB Leipzig secured their first win with a 2-1 defeat of Sporting CP while Brest’s hopes of a top-eight finish were dented by a 2-0 defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk.
