Bayern Munich enter Wednesday's Champions League Matchday 8 knowing that they will at least be in the playoffs, but a victory and some help could lock up a spot in the top-eight for the Bavarians. All 36 teams will be in action as 18 games will take place simultaneously at 3 p.m. ET with so much left to be decided. But what do Bayern need on Wednesday to reach their goals?
Bayern Munich
Table position: 15th
Points: 12
Matchday eight opponent: Slovan Bratislava
What's needed: A win will give Bayern a chance of making the top eight, but they need other results to go their way for that to happen.
Well, it's clear that Bayern need to win, and unless they sleepwalk facing Slovan Bratislava, they will, but this is a great picture of the new UCL format. A team like Bayern would've easily finished top two in their group but after suffering a shock defeat to Feyenoord, Vincent Kompany's men will struggle to make the top eight, getting a berth directly to the round of 16, but with a big enough victory and help elsewhere, it's still possible to make the top eight on 16 points. All Bayern can do is control what's in front of them and finish as high as they can up the table. Slovan are conceding over three goals per match in UCL play so the odds are that Bayern's plus-six goal difference will increase significantly.
Matchday 8 TV schedule
All times Eastern
| WEDNESDAY, JAN. 29 | TIME | HOW TO WATCH |
|---|---|---|
UEFA Champions League Today pre-match | 2 p.m. | |
The Golazo Show | 3 p.m. | |
Aston Villa vs. Celtic | 3 p.m. | |
FC Barcelona vs. Atalanta | 3 p.m. | |
Bayern Munich vs. Slavon Bratislava | 3 p.m. | |
Brest vs. Real Madrid | 3 p.m. | |
Dinamo Zagreb vs. AC Milan | 3 p.m. | |
Borussia Dortmund vs. Shakhtar Donetsk | 3 p.m. | |
Girona vs. Arsenal | 3 p.m. | |
| Inter vs. AS Monaco | 3 p.m. | Paramount+, CBS Sports Golazo Network |
| Juventus vs. Benfica | 3 p.m. | Paramount+, CBS Sports Network |
| Bayer Leverkusen vs. Sparta Prague | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| Manchester City vs. Club Brugge | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| Lille vs. Feyenoord | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| PSV vs. Liverpool | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| RB Salzburg vs. Atletico Madrid | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| Sporting CP vs. Bologna | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| Stuttgart vs. PSG | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| Sturm Graz vs. RB Leipzig | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
| Young Boys vs. Crvena Zvezda | 3 p.m. | Paramount+ |
UEFA Champions League Today post-match | 5 p.m. | |
Scoreline | 6 p.m. | |
The Champions Club | 7 p.m. |
Champions League standings
Key: Positions 1-8 qualify for round of 16 while positions 9-24 qualify for knockout phase playoffs and positions 25-36 are eliminated.
| Pos | Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 2 | +13 | 21 |
| 2 | Barcelona | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 26 | 11 | +15 | 18 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 2 | +12 | 16 |
| 4 | Inter | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 1 | +7 | 16 |
| 5 | Atletico Madrid | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 11 | +5 | 15 |
| 6 | AC Milan | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 9 | +4 | 15 |
| 7 | Atalanta | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 18 | 4 | +14 | 14 |
| 8 | Bayer Leverkusen | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 7 | +6 | 13 |
| 9 | Aston Villa | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 4 | +5 | 13 |
| 10 | AS Monaco | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 10 | +3 | 13 |
| 11 | Feyenoord | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 17 | 15 | +2 | 13 |
| 12 | Lille | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 9 | +2 | 13 |
| 13 | Brest | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 8 | +2 | 13 |
| 14 | Borussia Dortmund | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 19 | 1 | +8 | 12 |
| 15 | Bayern Munich | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 17 | 11 | +6 | 12 |
| 16 | Real Madrid | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 17 | 12 | +5 | 12 |
| 17 | Juventus | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 12 |
| 18 | Celtic | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 10 | +1 | 12 |
| 19 | PSV | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 10 | +1 | 12 |
| 20 | Club Brugge | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 8 | -2 | 11 |
| 21 | Benfica | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 14 | 12 | +2 | 10 |
| 22 | PSG | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 8 | +2 | 10 |
| 23 | Sporting CP | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 11 | +1 | 10 |
| 24 | Stuttgart | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 13 | -1 | 10 |
| 25 | Manchester City | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 15 | 13 | +2 | 8 |
| 26 | Dinamo Zagreb | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 10 | 18 | -8 | 8 |
| 27 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 13 | -6 | 7 |
| 28 | Bologna | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 8 | -5 | 5 |
| 29 | Sparta Prague | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 19 | -12 | 4 |
| 30 | RB Leipzig | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 14 | -6 | 3 |
| 31 | Girona | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 11 | -7 | 3 |
| 32 | Crvena Zvezda | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 12 | 22 | -10 | 3 |
| 33 | Sturm Graz | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 14 | -10 | 3 |
| 34 | RB Salzburg | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 23 | -19 | 3 |
| 35 | Slovan Bratislava | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 24 | -18 | 0 |
| 36 | Young Boys | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 23 | -20 | 0 |
