The second year pf the new format of the UEFA Champions League, brought plenty of chaos on the final day of the league phase as 18 matches kicked off at the same time. Storylines can get muddled along the way during a jam-packed period of action but one stood out above the rest, fully embodying the drama of the day.

Real Madrid started the day well-positioned to finish in the top eight and book a direct spot in the round of 16, a favorable match against a Benfica team who were poised for elimination awaiting them. The script fully flipped, though — Benfica came out with an improbable 4-2 win, rounded out by a red card for Real Madrid’s Raul Asencio and the final goal of the game coming from shot-stopper Anatoliy Trubin. Benfica, coached by ex-Madrid boss Jose Mourinho, snuck their way into the knockout phase playoffs while Los Blancos were doomed to play another two games in the hopes of booking a spot in the last 16.

It makes for an unusual but perfect set-up for a rematch three weeks later, a painful reward for Benfica despite their hard work and a golden opportunity for Real Madrid to fully put that Matchday 8 defeat behind them.

How to watch Benfica vs. Real Madrid, odds

• Date: Tuesday, Feb. 16 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
• Location: Estadio da Luz — Lisbon, Portugal
• Live stream: Paramount+
• Odds: Benfica +280; Draw +290; Real Madrid -115

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“They are wounded,” Mourinho said in his pre-match remarks on Monday, “and a wounded king is dangerous. We will play the first leg with our heads, with ambition and confidence. We know what we did to the kings of the Champions League … Real Madrid is Real Madrid, with history, knowledge, ambition. The only comparable thing is that we are two giants. Beyond that, there is nothing else. But football has this power and we can win.”

The circumstances could see Mourinho change his approach from the teams’ last meeting, too. Benfica were more forward-thinking than usual in their win over Los Blancos, in large part because they simply needed to score to even have a shot at advancing, but the calculus is usually different over a two-legged tie. A team can attempt to grind the opponent down in an attempt to lock their attack out, something Mourinho teams have done time and time again. Benfica’s attack-focused approach on Matchday 8 was atypical to their Champions League experiences since Mourinho took over after a Matchday 1 loss to Qarabag – they performed well above their average of 14.1 shots per game and 1.5 expected goals, instead taking 22 shots and generating 3.01 expected goals. Even with the 3-2 defeat to Qarabag factored in, Benfica are a solid defensive side – they have conceded just 10.1 nonpenalty expected goals against in eight games.

The question, then, is if this imperfect version of Real Madrid can find a way to break through a tough defense. Even in a season full of ups and downs, it feels hard to bet against the Spanish giants. They rank inside the Champions League’s top five for goals with 21 and expected goals with 18.99, their sheer ability to score papering over a handful of cracks. That is especially true since Xabi Alonso’s January ouster as the coach, his mission to build a more balanced Real Madrid abandoned despite the progress he made. Since Alvaro Arbeloa took charge, Los Blancos have fully switched to a strategy in which Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior share the field at the same time, kicking the can down the road on the longstanding question about the pair’s compatibility.

Both in Spain and in Europe, Real Madrid’s inherent attacking might is enough to survive their own inconsistencies and notch enough wins to keep them in the conversation for silverware. Mbappe himself is on pace for a career-best season with 39 goals across all competitions so far, while Vinicius has delivered since Arbeloa took charge with four goals and two assists in his last seven matches. Individually, the pair are a cheat code as Los Blancos continue to sort through their issues and will be enough of a challenge for Benfica’s defense over the next week and change.

The team, though, has received a boost in the return of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who notched his first start since December in Real Madrid’s 4-1 win over Real Sociedad on Saturday. He will provide some attacking balance for a team that is at times overly reliant on Mbappe, already providing a preview of what’s to come with an assist over the weekend. The England international is a uniquely creative player as a right back, though his range of passing and positional awareness means he can kickstart an attack from just about every area of the pitch.

For all their flaws, Real Madrid have a perfect opportunity to put a sizable loss behind them, even if they are still unwilling to answer the big problems that plague their squad – and their pursuit of trophies, for that matter.

Jaron Ennis has been presented with an alternative option, against a former undisputed champion, while his potential clash with Vergil Ortiz Jr hangs in the balance.

The two super-welterweight contenders have been deep in negotiations for several weeks, hoping to finalise a deal for their showdown to take place in April.

Such a desirable outcome, however, has become increasingly unlikely, with Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya having seemingly thrown a spanner in the works.

It was reported by Uncrowned last week that a Nevada judge has granted Golden Boy Promotions’ emergency motion for a temporary restraining order against Ortiz, preventing the boxer from entering into third-party contracts.

The 27-year-old exercised his right to terminate their promotional agreement last month, though it appears that Ortiz – amid Golden Boy’s ongoing negotiations with DAZN – is still expected to uphold the terms of his contract.

While this situation continues to develop, former unified world welterweight champion Ennis could be on the hunt for a new opponent.

One man who is angling to face the 28-year-old at 154lbs is Jermell Charlo, who has not fought since his points defeat to Canelo Alvarez in September 2023.

But despite his inactivity, ‘Iron Man’ has sent a message to Ennis’ promoter, Eddie Hearn, via a recent interview with Cigar Talk.

“Hello, Eddie. Please answer my DMs [direct messages] if you see this message: I want you to set up something between me and your best fighter, ‘Boots’.

“Business-wise, we’ve got to make it happen. I’m not a friend to none of these motherf***ers.”

Charlo became an undisputed super-welterweight champion in 2022, following his victory over Brian Castano, which preceded the American’s wide unanimous decision defeat to Alvarez.

Ennis, meanwhile, has had just one outing at 154lbs, a first-round finish over Uisma Lima in October, since unifying the IBF and WBA welterweight titles against Eimantas Stanionis earlier last year.

Macclesfield bowed out of the FA Cup as a Sam Heathcote own-goal earned Brentford a place in the quarter-final where they will face West Ham

Macclesfield’s historic FA Cup run came to an agonising conclusion as Brentford overcame the giant-killers 1-0.

The Bees avoided becoming the latest Premier League scalp at the hands of John Rooney’s side with Keith Andrews’ side scraping past the National League North side thanks to a Sam Heathcote own-goal.

The Irishman emphasised that they would not be underestimating the sixth-tier side but team selection didn’t quite back that up with their two top scorers, Igor Thiago and Kevin Schade, left out of the squad while club-record signing Dango Ouattara named on the bench.

Eleven years and seven months after their League Two meeting, the two sides locked horns after enduring contrasting fortunes. Less than six months after Macclesfield were wound up in the High Court, Brentford made history by earning promotion to England’s top-table for the very first time.

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Equipped with their tin-foil FA Cup trophies, half-and-half and newly-established bloodied head bandages from Paul Dawson’s heroics in January.

A walk in the park it was not. Brentford’s preparations saw them play on artificial pitches but it didn’t stop them struggling in the early exchanges. A string of misplaced passes from full-back Michael Kayode set the tone and it gave the underdogs a sense of impetus as they smelt trepidation for the visitors. Luke Duffy, a live-wire down the right-wing, fizzed a stinging effort over the bar.

Captain Dawson immortalised himself in FA Cup and Silkmen folklore with his performance in the last round. He came agonisingly close to opening the scoring inside 20 minutes after Vitaly Janelt pockets were picked. The Macclesfield skipper marauded forward but could only drill his effort the wrong side of Hakon Valdimarsson’s right-hand post.

After a slow start, Brentford did put Max Dearnley’s goal under pressure.. Dawson handed the set-piece kings an opportunity to deliver and the non-leaguers survived after a goalmouth scramble.

The Silkmen shot-stopper was then forced into his first save when Aaron Hickey’s hard-work down the left fashioned Reiss Nelson an opportunity but the former Arsenal man could only sting the palms of the 27-year-old.

As the minutes clocked on, the part-timer’s legs began to fade and the Bees found the sting in their tail. With Macclesfield down to 10 men as Luke Matheson prepared to come on for Lewis Fensome, the hosts capitalised with 20 minutes on the clock when primary school teacher, Sam Heathcote headed into his own net.

Romelle Donovan should have doubled their lead 10 minutes later but could only blaze over. The 19-year-old tricked his way around the Silkmen defender but couldn’t rubber-stamp their place in the quarter-finals against West Ham in March.

At the other end, the visitors were almost forced to rue their wastefulness when former Manchester United academy product D’Mani Mellor was twice denied by some desperate defending from the hosts.

Macclesfield will be brought back down to earth after the dizzying high of their FA Cup fourth round tie, which is predicted to score the club £400,000, as they chase a fourth promotion since rising from the ashes.

Brentford qualify for the fifth round of the FA Cup for just the third time in their history, and their first since 1989, but they will breathe a huge sigh of relief after escaping another Macclesfield FA-Cup giant-killing.

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Barcelona fans have been left feeling pessimistic after forward Ferran Torres was named in the starting XI to face Girona in LaLiga. The Spanish giants are looking to reclaim top spot in the Spanish top-flight having dropped to second behind rivals Real Madrid.

Hansi Flick’s side saw their bitter rivals move two points clear at the summit of LaLiga after defeating Real Sociedad on Saturday. The German tactician has made two changes to the XI that lost 4-0 to Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey last time out.

The duo of Raphinha and Gerard Martin have been introduced in the XI in place of Marc Casado and Alejandro Balde. Up front, Torres has retained his place in the XI, with veteran striker Robert Lewandowski starting on the bench for La Blaugrana.

Flick’s decision to name Torres in the starting line-up has not gone down very well with the Barcelona faithful, leading to reactions on X. One fan was unhappy with Torres’ inclusion, fearing that their side are about to bottle the league.

Another fan was perplexed with the decision to name the Spaniard in the XI.

A fan was left feeling disappointed by the inclusion of Torres in the line-up.

Another fan pointed out that the inclusion of the 25-year-old means they start a man short.

A fan was left in disbelief following Flick’s decision to name the Spaniard.

Another fan was unhappy with the inclusion of Torres but chose to leave their comments unspoken until after the game.

A fan was left exasperated with the decision to play Torres from the start.

Ferran Torres has scored three goals in his last ten appearances for Barcelona across all competitions. The former Manchester City man has appeared 32 times for the Spanish giants this season, scoring 16 goals and providing an assist.

Raphinha returns for Barcelona against Girona

Barcelona forward Raphinha has been included in the starting XI for their LaLiga clash against neighbours Girona. The Brazil international has struggled with injuries this season, and has been limited to only 22 appearances across all competitions.

Raphinha last appeared for La Blaugrana in their 3-1 win over Elche last month, when he was forced off after the first half with an injury. The Brazilian missed games against Albacete, Mallorca, and Atletico Madrid due to his injury.

Hansi Flick will be pleased to be able to call on Raphinha against Girona as he hopes to see his side return to the summit of LaLiga. The former Leeds United man has scored eight goals and provided three assists in 14 league appearances for Barcelona this season.