On Wednesday evening, all 18 games of the last round will be played at once, promising two hours of maths and chaos to determine who will advance to the playoffs.
Aside from Liverpool and Barcelona's certain progression straight into the eighth round, and the elimination of nine teams including RB Leipzig, virtually every other team are still in play.
There is only a three-point gap between third-placed Arsenal and thirteenth-placed Brest, which means that every goal could have a major impact on the final standings. Similarly tight is the battle for the positions between ninth and 24th place, which guarantees at least a February playoff for qualification to the later round of 16.
Teams still hoping to advance include PSV Eindhoven, Club Brugge and Benfica. However, most of the attention will be on Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City on Wednesday night, as both massive clubs could be eliminated from the competition.
As mentioned, for some favourites the final round is turning into an existential battle. City unexpectedly find themselves in danger. After a run of poor results, including their most recent 4-2 defeat to PSG, their chances of progression have dropped significantly. In the last game, Pep Guardiola and his team must win at home against Brugge, otherwise, they will exit the competition.
Perhaps needless to say, for City, who have been regulars in knockout rounds in recent years, failure would be a fiasco. The match at the Etihad Stadium will therefore be not only about promotion but also about the reputation of the entire club.
The French giants PSG moved up to 22nd place with the win over City, which currently secures a playoff berth but nothing is certain. In the last round, PSG will face a tough challenge in the form of Stuttgart, who are fighting valiantly in the Champions League and have the same number of points as their French opponents.
The German team, currently in 24th place, need at least a draw to keep their hopes of qualifying alive. For PSG, a loss could spell the end. Stuttgart also have home advantage and solid form - they had won four games in a row until the weekend.
The not-so-small matter of seeding
For the teams that have already secured promotion, however, it is not a formality. Their position in the table will fundamentally influence their further journey through the competition.
The top four teams will be split into separate divisions in the knockout stage and will avoid facing each other until the quarter-finals at the earliest. On the other hand, the seventh or eighth-placed teams could face a top-ten opponent in the round of 16.
Liverpool and Barcelona, who are already assured of direct qualification to the round of 16, will be interested to see how the standings shape up as their next opponents could be clubs like Bayern Munich, Juventus or Real Madrid. Similarly, other giants such as Arsenal, Inter or Atletico Madrid, whose positions in the top eight are not yet confirmed, will have to be very careful.