Liverpool dispatched Qarabag and booked their place in the last 16 of the Champions League in strong fashion – but big teams could be in store for them in the next round

Liverpool defeated Qarabag 6-0 at Anfield to advance to the round of 16 of the Champions League. However, that does not guarantee an easy passage to the quarter-finals, with potentially tricky fixtures against Juventus or Atletico Madrid looming.

The Reds overcame stiff competition to consolidate their place in the top eight during the league phase, with a third-place finish automatically qualifying them for the finals. As a result, Liverpool will avoid a two-legged play-off between Manchester City and Brighton & Hove Albion, who have already been booked for a busy February season.

Alexis Mac Allister opened the scoring with a header after a clever free-kick for the Reds. The Argentine needed goal-line skill to defend his goal after the best efforts of the visiting defenders removed the danger on the line.

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Florian Wirtz’s first Champions League goal for the club was a cutter, drier effort as the German slid the ball home. After being put under the microscope since joining from Bayer Leverkusen, he has started to show himself and continues his excellent form upon his summer arrival.

Mohamed Salah came back in goal after making it 3-0 just after the break. After scoring a free-kick on Saturday, Dominik Szoboszlai turned provider and won a free-kick with a deft backheel to the Egyptian.

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Hugo Ekitike made a sharp escape and scored with four hours remaining. The Frenchman was the first to successfully clear Virgil van Dijk and then had a good one-on-one. Just four minutes later, Mac Allister fired his fifth goal past the Qarabag goalkeeper and his second goal of the night, while Federico Chiesa added his sixth in stoppage time.

As a result, Liverpool will face either Club Brugge, Galatasaray, Juventus or Atletico Madrid in the last 16 in March.

If Liverpool finish in the top eight, they and seven others will automatically be drawn for the round of 16, with matches scheduled to take place in March. Last season, the Reds lost to eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain and were kicked out of the competition at that stage.

After facing fellow Ligue 1 club Brest in the first round of the finals, PSG had to go through a long and difficult journey to achieve their first success in Europe as they progressed smoothly through the latter stages.

Arsenal and Bayern Munich had booked their places in the Round of 16 ahead of Wednesday’s match, but Liverpool had already booked their spot in the knockout stages ahead of last week’s 3-0 win over Marseille and needed to avoid defeat to seal their place.

While the Reds secured a spot in March’s last-16 draw, there was a battle to break into the top eight, while European clubs struggled to squeeze through the trapdoor to qualify for the play-offs.

In the playoff stage, teams placed 9th through 16th will be seeded, and teams 17th through 24th will be unseeded. The playoff draw is very simple, with No. 15 and No. 16 teams facing unseeded No. 17 and No. 18 teams, respectively.

Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona and Chelsea joined Liverpool, making the top eight a total of five English teams, with Newcastle the only one eliminated. In a frenetic end to the group phase, record champions Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain slipped into the play-off spots, meaning they face a two-legged knockout to advance to the round of 16.