Pepi, Pulisic among USMNT players to reach Champions League knockout stage

ScoreLive January 29, 2025 0

Matchday 8 of the UEFA Champions League league-phase is in the books with several American players staying alive in the competition.

Christian Pulisic, Ricardo Pepi, and Weston McKennie were among the 12 U.S. men’s national team players to advance into the playoff round. The playoff draw will take place on Friday.

The first legs will be played on February 11-12 and the second legs will be played Feb. 18-19.

Reyna, Cole Campbell and Borussia Dortmund finished 10th in the standings following Wednesday’s 3-1 home win over Shakhtar Donetsk. Reyna added one assist off the bench in the result.

Pulisic and Yunus Musah both featured in AC Milan’s shocking 2-1 road loss at Dinamo Zagreb. Musah was sent off before halftime after a pair of yellow cards before Pulisic scored in the second half.

Pepi scored his second UCL goal of this season’s competition as PSV defeated Liverpool 3-2 on home soil. Richie Ledezma has also played a large role for PSV during the league phase, while Malik Tillman and Sergino Dest remain sidelined through injury.

Folarin Balogun remains sidelined at French club Monaco, but the Ligue 1 side finished 17th in the standings.

Weston McKennie and Tim Weah both featured in Juventus’ 2-0 home loss to Benfica on Wednesday. The Bianconeri finished 20th in the league table.

Auston Trusty started in Celtic’s 4-2 road loss to Aston Villa while Cameron Carter-Vickers missed the match through injury. Celtic finished 21st following the result.

Here is a breakdown of who we could see face off in the playoff round:

Weston McKennie, Tim Weah and Juventus could face either Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah and AC Milan, or Ricardo Pepi, Richie Ledezma, Sergino Dest, Malik Tillman and PSV.

Gio Reyna, Cole Campbell and Borussia Dortmund could face either Sporting Lisbon or Club Brugge.

Cameron Carter-Vickers, Auston Trusty and Celtic could face either Real Madrid or Bayern Munich.

Folarin Balogun and Monaco could face either Paris Saint-Germain or Benfica.