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⚽ Good morning to all, but especially to …
MANCHESTER CITY … AND THE REST OF THE UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAMS ADVANCING
Things haven’t been great this season for Manchester City, especially in the UEFA Champions League, and they started to look downright bleak when the Citizens went down 1-0 to Club Brugge in a win-and-in Matchday 8 league phase matchup.
But Pep Guardiola‘s team showed it still has some resolve, with Savinho helping turn the tide in an eventual 3-1 win. The Citizens snuck into the top 24 as the No. 22 seed. Guardiola says his team can’t win the tournament, and while that may be a harsh (but fair) assessment, at least it still has a chance.
Here are the scores from all 18 games and the full standings.
Here are the top eight teams, who are automatically into the Round of 16:
- Liverpool
- Barcelona
- Arsenal
- Inter
- Atletico Madrid
- Bayer Leverkusen
- Lille
- Aston Villa
And then here are the teams who finished ninth-24th.
9. Atalanta
10. Borussia Dortmund
11. Real Madrid
12. Bayern Munich
13. AC Milan
14. PSV
15. Paris Saint-Germain
16. Benfica
17. Monaco
18. Brest
19. Feyenoord
20. Juventus
21. Celtic
22. Manchester City
23. Sporting Lisbon
24. Club Brugge
Those teams will meet a team at the opposite end of the spectrum in a two-legged playoff to make the Round of 16. For example, No. 9 Atalanta will face either No. 23 Sporting or No. 24 Club Brugge. Then, No. 10 Borussia Dortmund will face whichever team Atalanta doesn’t draw. On and on they’ll go in the draw, which is slated for tomorrow. Here’s the full explainer.
We also have our Champions League team of the league phase. Yunus Musah certainly isn’t on it after earning a red card, but at least that USMNT star’s struggles were balanced out by Christian Pulisic‘s goal. Pulisic is the first American to score four Champions League goals in a single season. Finally, here are Chuck Booth’s Power Rankings.
👍 Honorable mentions
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 52 in a loss to the Warriors …
- … and in a related story, the bid for NBA MVP isn’t a two-horse race.
- LeBron James: future Ohio State football player?
- Speaking of Ohio State, I loved John Talty’s profile on its next star quarterback, Julian Sayin.
- The Warriors are reportedly more interested in Zach LaVine than Jimmy Butler.
- De’Aaron Fox does indeed have a preferred destination.
- Pat Riley could make millions if the Chiefs win the Super Bowl.
- The Jets hired Steve Wilks as defensive coordinator.
- The Pro Bowl Games participants were announced.
- Mark Sears returned to the lineup in No. 4 Alabama‘s impressive win at No. 14 Mississippi State.
- Scottie Scheffler makes his 2025 debut today at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
- Jim Furyk will be a vice captain for Keegan Bradley‘s Team USA at the 2025 Ryder Cup.
- The Fever re-signed Kelsey Mitchell.
- Pat Kelsey has pulled off a remarkable early turnaround at Louisville.
- Want to watch college basketball and eat a five-gallon bucket of popcorn? Get to the Denver-Omaha game Saturday!
⚾ And not such a good morning for …
HAL STEINBRENNER AND THE NEW YORK YANKEES
When the Yankees are complaining about someone else spending, it’s hard to have much sympathy. But that’s exactly what owner Hal Steinbrenner did, saying the Dodgers‘ big-money moves are “difficult for most of us owners.”
As R.J. Anderson writes, this is funny.
- Anderson: “Steinbrenner’s estimated net worth is $1.5 billion, according to Forbes, an impressive figure that can be credited to — at least in part — his late father’s unrivaled enthusiasm for tossing coin at his baseball team’s roster. To be fair, Steinbrenner’s estimated worth is several times less than Dodgers owner Mark Walter‘s $6.2 billion figure. At the same time, estimates have the Yankees generating the most revenue among MLB clubs, all the while spending a lower percentage of that estimated revenue on their payroll than the Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals, and others.”
I don’t have much sympathy for anyone complaining about a team spending money. If anything, there are way too many owners unwilling to spend the money requisite for their teams to reach their goals … or even be competitive. Yes, some teams have more money than others, but the Yankees complaining? That’s the pot calling the kettle black.
👎 Not so honorable mentions
- Caitlin Clark won’t participate in the NBA All-Star Weekend’s 3-point shootout.
- Victor Wembanyama had to be held back from confronting Ivica Zubac.
- Anthony Davis (abdominal strain) is out at least a week.
- LaMelo Ball (ankle) will miss at least a week.
- Jalen Johnson‘s breakout season is over (shoulder).
- Isaiah Stewart got ejected for a flagrant foul.
- North Carolina is really struggling entering its showdown with No. 2 Duke.
- Is Roki Sasaki really a rookie?
- Bret Bielema took shots at Jim Harbaugh over Michigan‘s sign-stealing scandal response.
- Adam Silver is a fan of 10-minute quarters and a change in free-throw rules. I am not.
- Jason Negro, the head coach at high school football powerhouse St. John Bosco, is being sued for embezzling money from the school to pay for players’ tuition and coaching staff trips.
🏈 Grading NFL coaching hires
Six of the NFL coach openings have been filled, and the Saints reportedly have a frontrunner for their vacancy. So Will Brinson is here to hand out grades for the new hires, and only one made it in the “A” range.
- Brinson: “Chicago Bears, Ben Johnson: A- | It’s not an easy job, but the Bears convinced him he should fly slightly south anyway. Process-wise, this was a pretty sound, efficient search and hire. The Bears definitely go out of the box on the reg when it comes to hiring coaches and didn’t do that here. They get bonus points for damaging a division opponent’s offense in the process not to mention beating out the Jags for Johnson.”
Then we have the Cowboys. Sometimes we’re wrong about hires. Maybe Brian Schottenheimer will be a great choice. But it’s not just the hire; it’s the process. Waiting over a week after the season ended to announce Mike McCarthy wouldn’t be back put Dallas behind the eight ball. Then, after a very limited process that, of course, included nearly as many headline-grabbing supposed “interests” (Deion Sanders and Bill Belichick) as actual interviewees, the Cowboys simply promoted from within. I don’t love it, and Will appropriately gives Dallas a “D” for “disaster.”
⚾ Rays sign Ha-Seong Kim, Royals add Carlos Estévez
We may still be waiting for that second wave of top free agents to sign, but there are still significant moves going on elsewhere.
The Rays signed Ha-Seong Kim to a two-year, $29 million deal. Here’s what the No. 14 player in R.J.’s top 50 free agents brings to Tampa:
- Anderson: “He’s a pleasure to watch man his position, showing a particular attitude for ranging to his right. While Kim won’t be confused for a dynamic offensive player anytime soon, the improvements he’s made as a basestealer have helped offset his lackluster slugging capacity. He’s a good player. Unfortunately, he required shoulder surgery this fall that will sideline him into next season and likely suppress his earning potential.”
The Royals, meanwhile, signed 2023 All-Star reliever Carlos Estévez to a two-year, $20 million deal. He was 34th in our rankings, coming off a season in which he posted a 2.45 ERA with the Angels and Phillies.
📺 What we’re watching Thursday
🏀 Hawks at Cavaliers, 7 p.m. on TNT/truTV
🏀 No. 13 Oklahoma at No. 7 LSU (W), 7 p.m. on ESPN2
🏀 No. 22 Alabama at No. 12 Kentucky (W), 7 p.m. on SEC Network
🏀 Iowa State at No. 11 Kansas State (W), 8:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Rockets at Grizzlies, 9:30 p.m. on TNT/truTV
🏀 No. 16 Oregon at UCLA (M), 10:30 p.m. on FS1
🏒 Sharks at Kraken, 10:30 p.m. on ESPN
