Would it be better if Madrid finished second in their UCL group?
The draw against Legia could actually turn out to be a positive for Zinedine Zidane's side...
Real Madrid slipped up against Legia Warsaw and ended up drawing 3-3 with the Polish side, but not everything about that may be negative. With eight points, two behind group leader Borussia Dortmund, Zinedine Zidane’s side may be better off if they finish second.
Why? Two reasons: If Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla win their respective groups, that would leave Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid as runners-up, therefore they’d be in the same pot as Madrid for the draw for the last 16 on December 12.
On top of that, Madrid cannot draw any Spanish teams in the next round, either. That means they would avoid Barça, Atletico, Sevilla, City, Bayern and Juventus. As they’re in Borussia Dortmund’s group, they would also avoid them as well. The flip side is that they would have to play the second leg away if they finish as runners up.
With two games to go, then, Real Madrid’s potential rivals, as things stand, would be Arsenal, Napoli, Monaco and Leicester. Evidently that’s a better scenario than winning the group and having to face one of the runners-up named above. A lot may change in the last two games, though.
