Liverpool will not be faced with playing Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League round-of-16 after the French giants failed to top their group in dramatic circumstances.
Christophe Galtier's side went into the final gameweek top and beat Juventus 2-1 on Wednesday, but a thumping 6-1 win for Benfica at Maccabi Haifa - sealed by Joao Mario's 92nd-minute goal - put the Portuguese outfit top by the finest of margins. Both had 14 points, and their respective meetings ended 1-1 at the Estadio da Luz and Parc des Princes. Goal difference and goals scored were both dead equal, with Benfica securing top spot in Group H thanks to a better away goals tally.
Liverpool also only managed second-place in their group despite picking up the most points of any English side - Manchester City, Chelsea and Tottenham all topped their respective tables. The Reds finished level on 15 points with Napoli, but Tuesday's 2-0 win against the Italian outfit was not enough to overturn the three-goal deficit from the opening gameweek.
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Second-place usually sets up a daunting knockout stage draw, with Jurgen Klopp's side facing any of the four group winners that aren't either Napoli or their Premier League rivals - UEFA rules state teams from the same country cannot be drawn together in the first-round of the knockouts. PSG were expected to enter the draw as winners alongside Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Porto but have instead been replaced by Benfica.
That development hands the Reds a 50/50 chance of facing a European giant in Bayern or Madrid, with one of Porto or Benfica the likely preferred option - as it is for Jamie Carragher, who admits he fancies Porto. With Liverpool and Bayern only allowed to face four potential teams, a meeting of the two and a return of Sadio Mane to Anfield is statistically the most likely outcome.
But the avoidance of PSG - armed with Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar - will no doubt bring relief to a Liverpool side who have been notoriously porous against pace this season. Benfica are no pushovers, however, with Roger Schmidt's side top of the Portuguese Primeira Liga and unbeaten in all competitions since May.
Liverpool can garner hope from a set of good omens after finishing second, with both Champions League victories in 2004/2005 and 2018/2019 coming after failing to top the group. All 16 of the qualified teams will learn of their February opponents on Monday, November 7.
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