Manchester City are teetering on the brink of Champions League elimination. Prior to their clash with Paris Saint-Germain, Pep Guardiola's men were three games without a victory in Europe's elite competition and languished in 24th place in the table, saved from the drop zone only by goal difference.
Now, after squandering a two-goal lead against the French giants, they've slipped to 25th. Jack Grealish put City in the driving seat shortly after the interval before Erling Haaland doubled the Premier League champions' lead.
However, the tide turned at the Parc des Princes as Ousmane Dembele and Bradley Barcola drew PSG level. Then, with less than fifteen minutes remaining, Joao Neves headed the Parisians ahead after being left unmarked at the back post.
In the final moments, Goncalo Ramos added insult to injury, making it 4-2. So, with just one match remaining to salvage their European dreams, here's how City can still progress to the next stage.
How does a team qualify for the Champions League knockout stages?
There are three different routes to the Champions League knockout stages. Teams finishing in the top eight automatically advance to the round of 16. Liverpool and Barcelona were the only teams to achieve this feat before matchday seven.
Those who finish from ninth to 16th are seeded into a playoff (playing at home in the second leg), and they'll be drawn against those who finish from 17th to 24th. The winners from each tie after two legs will secure a place in the round of 16.
Teams who finish in the bottom 12 - from 25th to 36th - will be eliminated from the competition, with no access to the Europa League. A defeat to PSG has significantly dented City's chances of qualification.
What do Man City need to progress in the Champions League?
City are five points off 8th and there are 16 teams in play-off places above them. Chances of automatically qualifying for the last 16 are now impossible, as are the chances of landing a seeded play-off spot.
But, they can still salvage an unseeded playoff spot. PSG have now leapfrogged them in the table, meaning City must defeat Club Brugge at Etihad Stadium in their final match.
Enrique's side face Stuttgart in their last game. According to Opta, City had an 84 per cent chance of reaching the play-offs prior to their defeat in the French capital.
What's the incentive of finishing in the Champions League top eight?
Teams who finish in the top eight of the Champions League table are fast-tracked to the round of 16 and will play at home in the second leg. So, if City secure qualification to the playoffs and make it to the round of 16 they will play at home in the first leg and away in the second.
How much prize money could City miss out on?
Every club playing in the Champions League earns a whopping €18.6million (£15.7m) simply for participating, with additional performance-related bonuses of €2.1m (£1.8m) per win and €700k (£592k) per draw up for grabs. Each ascent in league standings can pocket teams a cool €275k (£233k), and those clinching spots from 1st to 8th also bag a sweet €2m (£1.7m) bonus.
Those landing between 9th to 16th aren't left out either, with a €1m (£850k) reward. A more detailed breakdown of the remaining prize money is depicted in the table below.
Moreover, UEFA has rolled out a 'value pillar', ensuring broadcast revenue is shared amongst teams based on their finishing order in the league phase. If City bows out early, they stand to lose a significant chunk of matchday revenue alongside potential prize money - in short, it's an expensive miss.
This article originally appeared on the