Champions League Power Rankings: Real Madrid bounce back; PSG make statement with win at Barcelona
Written by CBS SPORTS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on October 1, 2025
Two matchdays into Champions League play, only six teams remain on a perfect six points from two matches the usual suspects of Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Inter Mila, Arsenal, and… Qarabag. That’s right the champions of Azerbaijan went from picking up the first Champions League victory in their history to now being on the path to passage to the top 24. Meanwhile, Eric Dier converted a penalty for Monaco to take points off of Manchester City, while Luis Enrique marched into Barcelona with a front three who had an average age of 19 and left with a win.
There’s a long way to go in the league phase, but some of the top teams are beginning to show why they’re so high in the Champions League power rankings. Let’s take a look at how the action shook things up.
| Rank | Team | Change | Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paris Saint-Germain | — | Luis Enrique has every tool in the book at his disposal. Not having his stars in attack wouldn’t slow the Parisians down as Nuno Mendes and Achraf Hakimi kept Barcelona’s attack quiet. |
| 2 | Real Madrid | — | Taking a long trip away from home, Kylian Mbappe returned with a hat trick and Madrid returned with all three points. This isn’t a match where you’ll learn much about Madrid but that doesn’t mean that it’s not a job well done. |
| 3 | Arsenal | — | So effective it’s almost boring. There was a scare during which it seemed like Olympiacos would score but Arsenal responded by getting an insurance goal for an eventual 2-0 victory. |
| 4 | Bayern Munich | +2 | Harry Kane continues his torrid scoring streak as he’s now up to 20 goals in only 14 appearances in all competitions. It may not be sustainable but he’s a man on a mission and it’s pulling Bayern to strong results. |
| 5 | Inter | +3 | Don’t let Lautaro Martinez get hot. WIth a brace and an Inter clean sheet, there may be a new manager in town in Cristian Chivu, but it’s clear that Inter are Champions League contenders. |
| 6 | Barcelona | -1 | Live by the high line and die by the high line. Without Raphinha, the attack lacked it’s normal dynamism and Barcelona struggled to create chances. Lamine Yamal doesn’t seem to be at 100% fitness which is concerning. |
| 7 | Liverpool | -2 | It’s tough to figure out what Liverpool’s best XI is and that imbalance reared its head in Turkiye. This is a team that will advance with ease from the league phase but there are concerns looming when they face tougher challenges. |
| 8 | Napoli | +2 | The Manchester connection is strong in the side with Kevin De Bruyne assisting Rasmus Hojlund twice to defeat Sporting CP. Antonio Conte has done it again in getting the best out of a former Manchester United player. |
| 9 | Chelsea | — | Another match, another red card, but this time the Blues were able to hold on for a victory facing Benfica. Without Joao Pedro and Liam Delap for their next match, Enzo Maresca will have questions on how he will manage his XI moving forward. |
| 10 | Manchester City | -3 | Blips happen. Manchester City controlled things for the entire match but conceding a late penalty to Monaco, they were unable to hold on for a victory, but at least it wasn’t a loss. |
| 11 | Marseille | +1 | It was clear that this team are a threat after they went toe to to with Real Madrid and they further displayed that fact by running circles around Ajax. Roberto De Zerbi has a strong side on his hands. |
| 12 | Borussia Dortmund | +1 | It was a very un-Dortmund like performance in a good way as they took care of business. |
| 13 | Atletico Madrid | +3 | The momentum from the Madrid derby may have kick started Atletico’s season with the club scoring five goals in back-to-back matches. Antoine Griezmann also scored his 200th goal for the club in what is a monumental moment. |
| 14 | Galatasaray | +10 | Massive, massive result at Rams Park. Knocking off Liverpool is always something to hang your hat on even if it took a penalty to get there. It’s hard to know what you’ll get from Galatasaray from match to match but they’ll be a tough out in this competition. |
| 15 | Juventus | -1 | Juventus are a good team but Juventus are also their worst enemy. If they can’t figure out how to change that sooner than later, it’ll be a long season. |
| 16 | Tottenham | -5 | Thomas Frank’s men are getting results that they don’t deserve which is a credit to them, but this is a second Champions League match where they were second best. With four points through two games, things are fine, but if they don’t turn around quickly, Tottenham will drop down the table when their opposition gets tougher in coming matches. |
| 17 | Newcastle United | +9 | A trip to Belgium is what the doctor ordered. A team won’t concede two penalties every match but if they do, it’s good to take them. Newcastle’s defense has been solid this season, so it’s good for something to go their way in the attack when they needed it most. |
| 18 | Qarabag | +3 | If you said this club would have six points through their first three matches, I wouldn’t have believed you but that’s why soccer is amazing. There’s more work to do but what a start. |
| 19 | Atalanta | +6 | Taking care of business at home is all that matters, even if Atalanta left it late. To make it out, they have to defeat teams like Brugge in this competition, so job well done. |
| 20 | Club Brugge | -5 | Losing away from home won’t be the end of the world for Brugge but dropping leads late is never something that’s easy to stomach. A lot of teams will be jostling for a position in the top 24 and losses like this one sting in that journey. |
| 21 | Eintracht Frankfurt | -3 | Following up a strong opening day with an absolute humbling away to Atletico Madrid, it will be important to have a short memory because things won’t get any easier. |
| 22 | Sporting Club Portugal | -3 | There was a lot to like about Sporting hanging around to push Napoli but it shows how much this club have lost over the years. They’re figuring it out though and it’ll lead to competitive performances facing everyone. |
| 23 | Athletic Club | -6 | Now failing to win in five matches in all competitions this season, Athletic Club may have preferred to not be in Champions League play. Their season seems just about over before it can get started. |
| 24 | Union Saint-Gilloise | -4 | You can’t allow four goals to Newcastle United as an underdog who wants to compete at this level. They had a chance to give themselves wiggle room to advance and were unable to take it. |
| 25 | Villarreal | +3 | Did well to stay in the match against Juventus. Getting Georges Mikautadze going will be critical to anything that they do, so it’s good to get the first goal out of the way. |
| 26 | Monaco | +4 | It pays to be close enough that a penalty can give Monaco a point facing Manchester City, but it wasn’t a particularly strong performance. |
| 27 | Benfica | — | Jose Mourinho may be back but it wasn’t enough to push Benfica to their first points in the league phase upon his return to Stamford Bridge. Benfica will need to collect points sooner than later. |
| 28 | Bayer Leverkusen | -6 | Still trying to figure things out, Leverkusen can’t drop matches like this at home. This is a club in transition and it shows. |
| 29 | Copenhagen | -6 | This was there for the taking. Injuries hurt things early but Copenhagen have a tough draw and could slip further down the table quickly. |
| 30 | Bodo/Glimt | -1 | Can this team put together two halves of soccer? In their opening match, it was the first half that got Bodo/Glimt. Here, it was the second half where they allowed Tottenham to take a point from a two-goal deficit. |
| 31 | PSV | +2 | Picking up a point away to Bayer Leverkusen is a step in the right direction but that needs to become a full three points quickly. |
| 32 | Slavia Praha | -1 | Facing Inter at home is a tough go for anyone. On to the next match. |
| 33 | Ajax | -2 | It has been quite a fall from Ajax. Marseille are a strong side but being behind by three goals at half is a moment to forget in what is already looking like a swift trip out of UCL play for the Dutch side. |
| 34 | Olympiacos | +1 | They had chances against Arsenal but the Greek side should’ve conceded more goals but they’ll get a point off of someone eventually. |
| 35 | Pafos | -1 | Scoring your first Champions League goal in history will go a long way to getting over Bayern Munich scoring for fun in your home stadium. |
| 36 | Kairat | — | It was a valiant first half only holding Real Madrid to one goal, then the wheels fell off. |
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