Can Liverpool qualify? Here are 3 conditions for Liverpool to advance in the UEFA Champions League before facing Qarabag tonight.
On 28 Jan 2026 GMT+7, we outline Liverpool’s qualification conditions in the 2025-26 UEFA Champions League before their final league phase match at Anfield against Qarabag from Azerbaijan, kicking off at 03:00 tonight.
Before the match, Liverpool sits 4th in the UEFA Champions League standings with 15 points, while Qarabag is 18th with 10 points; both teams still have a chance to advance.
Teams advancing to the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 fall into three groups:
Positions 1-8: Automatically qualify for the Round of 16.
Positions 9-16: Advance to the playoff round as seeded teams.
Positions 17-24: Advance to the playoff round as unseeded teams.
Liverpool has already guaranteed a playoff spot as a seeded team because 16th place Borussia Dortmund has 11 points, making it impossible to surpass Liverpool. Thus, manager Arne Slot’s squad has these qualification conditions:
- For automatic Round of 16 qualification, no other team should reach 16 points; if points tie, goal difference will decide.
- For automatic qualification in this case, no other team should reach 15 points; if points tie, goal difference will be the tiebreaker.
- Real Madrid (15 points), Tottenham (14), PSG, Newcastle, Chelsea, Barcelona, Sporting Lisbon, Manchester City, Atlético Madrid, Atalanta (13), Inter Milan, Juventus (12).