Liverpool are one of seven teams to win their opening two games of the new Champions League season, and they are joined by just one of their eight ‘league’ opponents.
Arne Slot‘s first season leading the Reds in Europe’s premier competition has started brightly, with a 3-1 win at Milan swiftly followed up with a 2-0 victory over Bologna at Anfield.
The results put six early points on the board in the Champions League‘s new format, placing Liverpool fifth out of the 36 teams.
There are still six league phase games to go before the final standings are confirmed, but let’s take a look at how the Reds’ opponents in this initial stage have been getting on.
How Liverpool’s opponents have got on
It has been a mixed bag for the Reds’ remaining opponents in the league stage so far, with two winless sides and one sitting alongside Slot’s men with two victories.
Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen sit highest in the table, currently fourth, after wins over Milan and Feyenoord, neither team even managed to put a blemish on their record.
Real Madrid, who the Reds face just days before Man City‘s visit in the league, fell to a surprising defeat to Lille after an opening win over Stuttgart, putting them in the middle of the pack.
The Merseysiders will not host Lille until January, but they will be one to watch after their victory over the Spanish side, though they did lose on the road to Sporting.
Slot’s old rivals PSV are currently holding on to the last play-off place having secured a single point following a draw against Sporting after a defeat at Juventus.
League Stage Dates
Matchday 1: AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool
Matchday 2: Liverpool 2-0 Bologna
Matchday 3: Leipzig (A) – Wednesday, October 23, 8pm
Matchday 4: Bayer Leverkusen (H) – Tuesday, November 5, 8pm
Matchday 5: Real Madrid (H) – Wednesday, November 27, 8pm
Matchday 6: Girona (A) – Tuesday, December 10, 5.45pm
Matchday 7: Lille (H) – Tuesday, January 21, 8pm
Matchday 8: PSV (A) – Wednesday, January 29, 8pm
Finally, Leipzig and Girona make up two of the teams yet to get off the mark. The German side have started strongly in the Bundesliga but have suffered narrow losses here to Atletico Madrid and Juventus.
Girona, meanwhile, have recorded defeats to PSG and Slot’s former club, Feyenoord.
As the new format sees each club play each other only once, Bologna (one point) and Milan (zero points) are in the rearview mirror for Liverpool, but they are two of the early strugglers.
Full table after 2 games
Borussia Dortmund, Brest, Benfica, Leverkusen, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Juventus are the only teams to win their opening games so they currently occupy the automatic qualifying spots.
Eight remain pointless, and Pep Pep Lijnders’ Salzburg sit in that category – they are even one of four teams yet to score in the competition.
We are only a quarter of the way through the league phase, but we do not have too long to wait until the next round, which for Liverpool is at Leipzig on October 23.
The top eight in the league will qualify automatically for the round of 16, while the teams who finish ninth to 24th will compete in a two-legged play-off for a place in the last 16.
