Kim Min-jae and Hwang In-beom share smiles together at UCL
Bayern Munich and Feyenoord survived together in the UEFA Champions League (UCL). Korean football players smiled brightly.
Four matches out of the second round of the 2024-2025 UEFA Champions League (UCL) tournament playoffs were played. Results of four of the eight matches were announced.
There were many surprises. Feyenoord of the Netherlands, which played first, drew 1-1 with AC Milan of Italy. Feyenoord, which won 1-0 in the first match, survived with a 2-1 aggregate record. Milan failed to overcome the absence of Theo Hernandez after Santiago Jimenez's first goal and gave up an equalizer to Julian Carranza.
Club Brugge of Belgium won 3-1 against Atalanta of Italy. Club Brugge, which won the first leg 2-1, advanced to the round of 16 with an aggregate score of 5-2. Brugge's 20-year-old prospect Hemsdine Talbi scored two goals, including his UCL debut, and became the star of the match.
The match between AS Monaco and Benfica of Portugal, which was a relatively even match, ended in a 3-3 draw. Monaco took the lead twice, but Benfica's stamina stood out as they tied the score each time. Benfica, which won the first leg 1-0, barely advanced to the round of 16 with an aggregate score of 4-3.
Among the four matches, only Bayern advanced to the round of 16 with a big league team. Bayern almost got caught up in an upset. After conceding the first goal to Celtic's Nicholas Quinn, they were dragged behind, but barely managed a 1-1 draw with Alphonso Davies' equalizer in extra time in the second half. They survived by making the aggregate score 3-2 based on the 2-1 win in the first leg.
As UEFA changed the format of the competition this season, it became much more difficult to advance to the round of 16 than before. Not only did the teams that made it through the playoffs have four more games than before, but they also had to play on thin ice, so the tension was high and the starting players also got tired. Instead, the thrill was added due to the close match.