The net shook 28 times in 6 matches on the first day of the first round of the Champions League in its new format.
The first day of the tournament's matches in its new format proved that the new system will increase the excitement after the average number of goals scored reached 4.66 goals per match.
The comparison with last season leaves no room for doubt, because on the first day of the last edition of the Champions League the average number of goals was 3 goals per game, with 48 goals scored in 16 games.
The Spanish newspaper “Marca” believes that the clubs' quest to secure a place in the top eight forces the teams to score the largest number of goals to avoid a tie in points.
Goal average is the first criterion set by UEFA to decide the issue of tie points, which is very likely to happen due to the 8 rounds scheduled in the first round.
The newspaper considered Bayern's victory against Dinamo Zagreb (9-2) and Aston Villa's victory in Bern against Young Boys (3-0) as evidence of this, because these goals will be decisive in the final ranking process on January 29.
https://twitter.com/ChampionsLeague/status/1836153071229112542
New system
The new tournament system stipulates that each team will play against 8 different clubs, with 4 matches at home and 4 away, as no team will play against the same opponent twice in this league as was the case in the past.
After the end of the league, the results are calculated and the teams ranked from first to eighth advance directly to the second round of the Champions League.
The teams ranked from ninth to 24th will play in a home-and-away play-off, with 8 teams qualifying for the second round, in addition to the eight teams that will qualify directly.
As for the remaining teams from 24 to 36, they will be eliminated from the tournament permanently, meaning that none of them will move to the European League.
Applicable standards
After the first stage, the 36 teams participating in the tournament are ranked according to the points obtained, from first to 36th place in a league system, and in the event of a tie in points, the tie is broken according to the goal percentage criteria as follows:
- Goal average is what determines a team's ranking, i.e. the difference between goals scored and goals conceded.
- The team with the most goals.
- Most goals scored away from home.
- Most wins.
- Most away wins.