When Lille lost its opening Champions League match in September, only a few bold gamblers would have bet on the Ligue 1 side to qualify for the last 16 of European club soccer’s elite tournament.

The new 36-team Champions League format threw up some surprises and you might not have expected these teams to have qualified for the knockouts in years gone by.

There were storylines across all 18 simultaneous kick-offs – not to mention 64 goals in total – but Aston Villa and Lille securing automatic qualification for the round of 16, as well as Manchester City coming from the elimination zone to reach the knockout phase play-offs, were among the headlines. UEFA.com rounds up all the action.