That's your lot for today's Champions League chatter.

We'll be back in around an hour or so to bring you a number of Premier League news conferences that are taking place this afternoon.

Before that though, here's a recap of the best bits we've been across this morning:

• Watch: All the highlights from the midweek Champions League action
• What are Premier League teams' chances of progressing to the quarter-finals, plus, you can cast your vote on how many of the six you believe will make it through to the next round
• Following this week's results, Bayern Munich are now favourites to win the 2025-26 Champions League, with Arsenal dropping to second
• Federico Valverde is the "most underrated footballer on the planet," says Real Madrid full back, Trent Alexander-Arnold
• And the best of your reaction this morning

Image source, Getty Images

John Murray gives his thoughts from the Bernabeu after Federico Valverde's stunning performance for Real Madrid yesterday: "Hedoubled his tally for the season here tonight. But he's got that in him. He is an all round footballer. He can play in a number of different positions.

"He's the captain of Real Madrid. So that speaks for itself in terms of what sort of character he is. You can't be a shrinking violet if you're the captain in this place. Let me tell you. That is a pressure job. All the Real Madrid players, anyone involved with the club, it's pressure all the time. But if you're the captain, you've got something about you, and he certainly had tonight,

"Valverde is the type of player that if the left back didn't turn up on a Sunday morning you were playing, he could play left back, he could play right back, he can play anywhere. He's got everything. And he showed his quality tonight."

Image source, Getty Images

Federico Valverde began his professional career in 2015 at Penerol where he won the Uruguayan Primera Division in his first season. He joined Real Madrid in 2016, featuring for the club’s reserve side, before making his first-team debut the year after.

The midfielder then made his La Liga debut during a season long loan spell for Deportivo de La Coruna in 2017, playing 26 minutes as a substitute versus Real Sociedad at 19-years-old.

Valverde also made his international debut for Uruguay that year, and has since represented his country at three Copa America tournaments.

Returning to Madrid in 2018, he established himself as a key part of the first team. Since then he has made more than 300 appearances for the club and helped the club win three La Liga titles, two FIFA Club World Cup trophies, two Uefa Champions League titles, two UEFA Super Cup victories and the Copa del Rey.

In the the 2022-23 season he scored 12 goals in all competitions, fulfilling Carlo Ancelotti's prediction that he would score more than 10 goals that season.

With the departure of Luka Modric and Lucas Vazquez in the 2025-26 season, Valverde was promoted as vice-captain of the team.

Last Friday, in Real's La Liga fixture at Celta Vigo, with the game at 1-1, he claimed a 94th-minute winner to keep their title hopes alive.

Before Man City's visit the 27-year-old had not found the net in his previous 26 Champions League games and never scored more than one in a game in the competition.

In the 39 games he's played this season, he's started 37, with his versatility impressing as he covers defensive and midfield positions.

Image source, Getty Images

Football journalist and author Rory Smith says that Federico Valverde makes Real Madrid a more "balanced" side: "He's played, I think, in four positions this season, in the Champions League alone. He looks comfortable at right back. He's played there. He's played in a midfield four. He's played in a midfield three. He plays wide right. He will do anything. Thats the thing that I like most about Valverde

"He's that cog that makes that team work. When he was a kid the one criticism of him was he didn't run, that's obviously really got into his head, and he spent the rest of his career proving it wrong.

"Obviously having Kylian Mbappe your team makes you better, but it might not make you more balanced. And I wonder if one of the differences tonight is we saw a Real Madrid side that made sense."

Image source, Getty Images

The statistics highlight just how rare and special a performance it was from Valverde last night:

• These were his first Champions League goals since 9 April 2024, when he also scored against Manchester City.
• Valverde scored as many goals in the first half against City as he had in 75 appearances in the Champions League prior to Wednesday night's match (three).
• He is only the second player to score a first half hat-trick against an English opponent in the Champions League. The other was Lionel Messi for Barcelona against Arsenal in April 2010.
• With just 27 minutes played, Valverde's first two goals were the quickest by a Real Madrid player in a Champions League knockout stage game at the Bernabeu since Cristiano Ronaldo v Wolfsburg in April 2016 (17 minutes).

A bonus get involved for you before we finish up the Champions League chatter.

On the subject of Federico Valverde, who team-mate Trent Alexander-Arnold called "the most underrated footballer on the planet" - who else do you think fits into that bracket?

Who is a player you feel deserves far more recognition than they currently get? Maybe you're happy with that though, as it keeps other clubs from sniffing around?

Anyway, click 'Get Involved' to have your say.

Image source, Getty Images

England midfielder Jude Bellingham stood open mouthed when Valverde scored his brilliant third, lifting the ball over City defender Marc Guehi before lashing a volley past keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma: "It was a similar [reaction] from me on the pitch," Real full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold said on TNT Sports.

"I've said even as a Liverpool player I have admired him. He is undoubtedly the most underrated footballer on the planet.

"When you play with him you understand how much he gives to the team. He covers every blade of grass, he gives his all. As a player, the best attribute you can have is that your team-mates can always count on you."

Former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha felt Valverde was the difference between the two sides: "Valverde has been incredible in attack and defence," he said. "He has been ruthless in attack and superbly disciplined in helping Trent Alexander-Arnold in defence."

Ex-Real Madrid winger Steve McManaman added on TNT Sports: "He led by example. Incredible hat-trick on a night like this."

Ask Me Anything
Jonty Colman BBC Sports Journalist

England and Spain are currently in line to win the two extra Champions League places on offer for next season's competition.

Uefa has handed an extra qualifying place to each of the two best-performing nations in the previous season since the start of the 2024-25 season when the Champions League's expanded to 36 teams.

Using Uefa's association rankings - in which points are earned by winning and drawing matches in the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League - the two nations with the highest points get given a direct qualification each for the following season's Champions League.

Throughout the season, teams earn two points for every win and one for a draw across the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League. There are also bonus points on offer for every round reached across the three competitions, although more points are given to teams competing in the Champions League than in the other competitions.

In the qualification rounds, these points are halved.

Points earned are then divided by how many teams from that country entered European competitions at the start of the season.

In the 2025-26 season, England have nine teams competing in Europe. That means all points are divided by nine.

For this season, England and Spain were given one extra spot each as they were the two best-performing nations across the 2024-25 campaign. That meant entry to the Champions League was given to Newcastle and Athletic Club.

For the 2024-25 season, Italy and Germany were given the two places, known as European Performances Spots (EPS). Bologna and Borussia Dortmund were the teams granted entry.

Image source, Getty Images

Well, that may be a step too far but they certainly already have one foot in the quarter-finals.

The Norwegian side comfortably beat Portuguese champions Sporting 3-0 in the first leg of their last 16 tie and are now given a massive 86.73% chance of reaching the next round by Opta.

Should they reach the quarter-finals, they will face either Bayer Leverkusen or Arsenal and that means their likelihood of reaching the semi-finals takes a big hit and sits at 25.83%.

They are given a 2.15% chance of winning the Champions League, which, incredibly, is more than two English sides in Chelsea and Tottenham and also just 0.12% less than Manchester City.

Bodo/Glimt have already made it further than they ever have, but could they do the unthinkable and go all the way?

Here's a quick reminder of the route to the final, if any English sides actually make it...

Chelsea face a huge task, a five goal deficit to beat PSG. If they manage that, they could face fellow Premier League side Liverpool or Galatasaray. The Reds lost 1-0 to Galatasaray so that's all to play for still.

It's a similar story for Manchester City, a big task to overcome a three goal deficient to get the better of Real Madrid. If City progress to the next round they'll likely face Bayern Munich, who currently lead a six goal deficit over Atalanta.

Newcastle United have it all to play for after drawing 1-1 with Barcelona. If the Magpies progress into the next round they'll likely meet Atletico Madrid, who beat Tottenham 5-2. Given Spurs' current struggles in the Premier League it's hard to see how they can make a big comeback to progress in the next round.

Arsenal are still within a chance of progressing to the quarter-finals, their 1-1 draw against Bayer Leverkusen leaves them with it all to play for. In the quarter-finals they could face Bodo/Glimt or Sporting CP.

Image source, BBC Sport

There is a poll running at the top of the page now for you to have your say on how many English teams you believe will make it through to the quarter-final stage.

From zero for the pessimists to ALL SIX for the optimists - let's see what the general consensus is.

We've got a couple bits of housekeeping to tidy up from the Champions League now before rounding off with some Federico Valverde chatter.

Ben Ramsdale
BBC Sport

Stoke City catching strays on a Thursday morning.

Arsenal's late second half penalty has been much debated...

Noni Madueke went down after a challenge from Malik Tillman in the box. It was checked by VAR, and despite protests from Leverkusen, the referee pointed to the penalty spot.

"It stems from Madueke doing what he's done since coming on the pitch, he drives at players," said Matt Upson, former Arsenal defender on BBC Radio 5 Live at the BayArena.

"Madueke goes down a little bit softly for me but there is contact and there's enough for VAR to say 'we're going to stay out of it'."

Madueke was asked about the challenge post-match, he said: "I don't really know what happened [for the penalty] I just know I felt contact, went down and penalty."

Thumbs up if you agree that it was a penalty, thumbs down if you think it was not.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Matt Upson
Former Arsenal defender on Football Daily Podcast

I think the whole team is just suffering a little bit from trying to produce and create goal scoring opportunities. They're not coming and flowing in open play anywhere near as much as what they were in probably October, November, when you think back to those brilliant Champions League wins against Bayern Munich and Atletico, there's a lot more flow to Arsenal's game.

But this is the season. It's not going to be perfect for the whole duration. And the difference is, what are you going to do about it when it gets like this? And at the moment, they're getting away with it in terms of the results. You can't argue that the fact that they're plodding along, but if the results, a couple of them do go the wrong way, and the performance is like that, then they will all of a sudden turn into a real problem, and that, for me, is my biggest fear for asking, if that happens in the next four to five games, how's that going to reflect on the team and the mood of the camp.