The new-look format means teams play eight matches each in what used to be the group stage of the competition, with the top eight in the 36-team table granted automatic entry to the last 16 draw.
After the first six matchdays, unbeaten Liverpool are currently in pole position to progress automatically while beleaguered Manchester City look destined to battle it out in the play-offs.
Arne Slot’s men, in short, need very little – and possibly nothing – to qualify straight into the round of 16 draw.
square FOOTBALL ExclusiveLiverpool set to beat Man Utd and City to signing of 'next Andy Robertson'
Read More
With 18 points – three more than second-placed Barcelona – and a top-24 place already secured, the Reds will almost certainly progress to the last 16 via automatic qualification.
They face Lille at Anfield on Tuesday before travelling to PSV Eindhoven on 29 January, when the last round of league phase fixtures all kick off together at 8pm UK time.
How many points needed to qualify from Champions League league phase
Before the campaign began, Opta’s supercomputer worked out that teams with 10 points at the end of the league phase had a 99 per cent chance of finishing in the top 24, thereby reaching at least the knockout phase play-offs.
Teams with 12 points were unlikely to trouble the top eight, but the chances slowly start creeping up on 13 points, with 14 points having a 28 per cent likelihood of making the top eight.
That jumps to 73 per cent with 15 points and 98 per cent for 16 points, meaning 17 points – which would require five wins, two draws and one loss – is essentially guaranteeing a top-eight spot.
The Gunners are sat on 13 points, having won four, drawn one and lost one of their opening six matches.
Even a pair of draws could be enough, depending on results of the teams around them heading into the final two matchdays.
Arteta does have more injuries to contend with than he did in Arsenal’s last European outing, though; Bukayo Saka has been out for weeks already and is highly unlikely to play a part in what’s left of this stage, the Gunners remain light up top, and defensive stalwart William Saliba was missing from this weekend’s slip up in the league.
Aston Villa
Unai Emery’s side travel to Monaco on Tuesday, before hosting Celtic next Wednesday.
Aston Villa's silky-smooth operator unleashed in Emery's new role
Read MoreThat is particularly true given they are one of six teams with the same points tally heading into matchday seven, while the four clubs just outside the current top eight – Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid and AC Milan – are just one point behind.
As things stand, Celtic are nestled in the table between the last two Champions League winners.
But that remains their only loss so far in the competition, with a win and three draws since then meaning Brendan Rogers’s group should stay in the play-off qualification spots if they can take another point or two from their upcoming fixtures.
If Celtic – a team who have lost just twice in all competitions this season – can eke out a home win this week and jump up to 12 points, they will know they are almost certainly bound for next month’s play-offs.
Man City
Few, if any, football fans would have expected in September to find City here with two rounds of matches to go, but 22nd is where they are after winning just two of their opening six games.
Why Erling Haaland has signed a new deal at Man City despite 'relegation threat'
Read MoreEven two wins against Paris Saint-Germain (A) – who themselves face a battle to qualify, sitting 25th in the table with seven points at present – and Club Brugge (H) would now see Pep Guardiola’s crew up to only 14 points in total.
A win and a loss to end with 11 points, or even two draws to finish on 10 points, should be enough to squeak through to the play-offs as an unseeded team (17th-24th), according to Opta.
But lose in Paris on Wednesday, and it will be a high-stakes night in Manchester next week as the men in sky blue battle to turn their season back around.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( How Arsenal, Aston Villa and Man City can qualify for Champions League knockouts )
Also on site :