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Xabi Alonso poses potential setback for Barcelona’s UCL hopes

Xabi Alonso poses potential setback for Barcelona’s UCL hopes

Just a few La Liga games remain this season, and Barcelona are qualified for the UEFA Champions League for 2024-25. Even though Real Madrid came out on top in the championship battle, the Blaugrana are still fighting for second place.

With Xavi Hernandez’s choice to remain, going forward, Barcelona’s plans will be more stable. They have already secured a berth in Europe’s top tournament, but their seeding has not been finalized.

With the Champions League reverting to a league system for the next season, the Catalans are in Pot 1 of the draw.

The winners of the top European leagues used to occupy Pot 1 in the draw. UEFA would also pair them with the Champions League and Europa League winners.

But starting with the 2024-25 season, a whole new method of seeding will be in place. Next campaign, each of the 36 clubs will play in one of four groups determined by their cumulative UEFA coefficient from the previous five seasons.

This means that eight clubs have already guaranteed themselves a spot in Pot 1. Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, PSG, Liverpool, Inter, Leipzig, and Borussia Dortmund are among the formidable clubs on the list.

Alonso was rumored to be a candidate for the Barcelona job before the future of both club’s managers was settled

Alonso was rumored to be a candidate for the Barcelona job before the future of both club’s managers was settled

Barcelona hold out hope

The last few European matches of the season will determine the season-ending pots, and Xabi Alonso‘s Bayer Leverkusen will play a significant part.

Leverkusen are now riding high after Alonso guided them to their first-ever Bundesliga championship.

What’s more, the new German champions are now cruising toward a UEFA Europa League final appearance. Herein lies the possible danger to Barcelona’s standing; the UEFA coefficient will decide their seeding status starting from the next season.

At 88,000 points, Bayer Leverkusen’s…


Source link : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/xabi-alonso-poses-potential-setback-for-barcelonas-ucl-hopes/

Author : Martina Alcheva

Publish date : 2024-05-04 17:03:14

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