'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAGAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFQABAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAb/2gAIAQEAAAAAhX//xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAE/9oACAECEAAAAA//xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAB/9oACAEDEAAAAD//xAAfEAACAgEEAwAAAAAAAAAAAAABAgMEAAUHEhNRcpL/2gAIAQEAAT8AG2qtV1xKq0FM8MS1jIrE1ijx82Hvxb6yztloctiWSOn1I7lljWy5CDxn/8QAGBEAAgMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAECAzH/2gAIAQIBAT8AVsmtP//EABYRAQEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEAAv/aAAgBAwEBPwB0il//2Q=='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The UEFA Champions League group stages are officially over with 16 teams successfully qualifying for the knockout stages of the competition. While the majority of the teams that were expected to qualify for the next stages of the competition did manage to do so, some other favourites were shocked by underdogs. The business end of the competition will commence in February, and we expect some mouth-watering games of football to come our way.
Just like every other season, this year's Champions League has been full of drama and surprises. From shocking defeats to incredible comebacks, we have witnessed it all in this season's group stages of the competition. On that note, we pick three most shocking results of this year's UEFA Champions League so far:
Also read: Top 3 goal-scorers from the group stage
#3 Paris Saint Germain 3-0 Real Madrid
Paris Saint-Germain against Real Madrid was the blockbuster fixture of matchday 1. Both sides last met in the Round of 16 of the Champions League back in 2018, when the Los Blancos knocked out the Parisians from the competition by a 5-2 aggregate victory. It was expected to be a close encounter between two of Europe's elite clubs, with Real Madrid slight favourites to win despite being away from home given PSG's injury crisis.
However, Thomas Tuchel's men had revenge on their minds and players on the pitch for the Red and Blues looked determined to grab a win in front of their fans. The Parisians were utterly dominant for the majority of the game and outclassed Zinedine Zidane's men in every department.
Former Real Madrid winger Angel Di Maria looked unstoppable against his former employers and scored a brace inside the first 45 minutes. Thomas Meunier scored an injury-time goal to seal the victory for his side. Despite being without their formidable front-three, Tuchel's side dominated the 13-time European Champions and came away with a comfortable victory in the end.
Also read: UEFA Champions League 2019-20: The best XI of the Group Stage
#2 Chelsea 4-4 Ajax
After beating Ajax by a goal at the Johan Cruyff Arena, Frank Lampard's men welcomed them to Stamford Bridge for the reverse fixture in matchday 4. Both teams were the favourites to qualify for the knockout phase of the competition and were competing to finish at the top of the group.
Erik Ten Hag's side made a sensational start to the game and opened the scoring inside the first two minutes. However, the Blues didn't take much time to equalise, with Jorginho scoring from the spot to put his level with the visitors. The visitors scored twice before the half-time to gain a comfortable 2-goal cushion. Donny Van de Beek's goal in the second half looked like the final nail in the coffin for the Blues, however, the game was just about to turn on its head. Cesar Azpilicueta slashed Ajax's lead by two before both Daley Blind and Joel Veltman were successively sent off, leaving the visitors with just 9 men on the pitch with more than 20 minutes of football still left to play. Lampard's men grabbed the opportunity with both hands and levelled the scoreline with two quickfire goals. They almost won the game when Azpilicueta rolled the ball into the opposition net, but the goal was disallowed by the VAR.
Given the plethora of young, explosive talents on the pitch, many expected an expansive attacking display from both sides. However, nobody expected the game to pan out the way it did and the 4-4 scoreline, in the end, might have come as a surprise to many of the football fans around the globe.
#1 Tottenham Hotspurs 2-7 Bayern Munich
Tottenham's 7-goal humiliation at the hands of Bayern Munich remains the most shocking result of this season's Champions League so far. After a 2-2 draw against Olympiacos away from home in their first game of the Champions League campaign, Mauricio Pochettino's side welcomed high-flying Bayern Munich in matchday 2. Despite their domestic struggles, Spurs were expected to produce a good performance against the Bavarians.
They started the game incredibly well and drew first blood, with Heung-Min Son scoring at the 12th-minute mark. However, they failed to hold on to the advantage and conceded just 3-minutes after. Robert Lewandowski's goal at the stroke of half-time gave the Bavarians the lead, but it seemed like a very even game going into the half-time.
However, Nico Kovac's men blew the Spurs out of the park with their second-half performance. Lewandowski completed his brace and former Arsenal forward Serge Gnabry scored 4 times in the second half to hand the Lillywhites their worst-ever defeat.
UEFA Champions League 2019-20: 5 interesting stats from Matchday 6
