Real Madrid, Chelsea return to Champions League with rookie coaches in season of firings

Real Madrid and Chelsea resume in the Champions League this week after the winter break with new coaches working in the competition for the first time.

Job losses are a strong theme in a season where patience has run thin in the board room and 11 of the 36 Champions League clubs changed coach.

Nine of the 11 were fired, the latest being Xabi Alonso one week ago when Madrid removed him after barely seven months and well set in seventh in the Champions League standings.

Madrid’s new coach Álvaro Arbeloa will take charge of just the third game of his career when hosting Monaco on Wednesday. The last time Madrid hired a novice coach mid-season, Zinedine Zidane's appointment in January 2016 led to three straight Champions League titles.

Chelsea replaced its Club World Cup-winning coach Enzo Maresca with Liam Rosenior — who had led sister club Strasbourg to top the third-tier Conference League standings — and will host Pafos on Wednesday.

Monaco and Pafos have also changed coaches. Monaco fired Adi Hütter in October and went to another Champions League team, Union Saint-Gilloise, to lure its Belgian league-winning coach Sébastien Pocognoli.

Pafos’s coach in the first half of the season, Juan Carlos Carcedo, bought out his contract this month to return to Spartak Moscow. Pafos hired another Spaniard, Albert Celades, who was in Madrid’s Champions League-winning squad in 2002 and later played at New York Red Bulls.

Also firing their coach this season were Ajax, Atalanta — now fifth in the standings — Benfica, Club Brugge, Juventus and Bayer Leverkusen, which gave Erik Ten Hag just three games before the Champions League even began.

Benfica fired Bruno Lage one day after an opening home loss against Qarabag and hired José Mourinho. The two-time European champion was himself fired at Fenerbahce for losing in the qualifying playoffs to Benfica.

Few would be surprised if Tottenham joins the list before the final round of Champions League opening-phase games next week.

Stability reigns at Arsenal and Inter Milan, the Premier League and Serie A leaders who meet in the highest profile game of the week of first versus sixth in the standings.

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal is the only team with six straight wins and now goes back to the scene of its only loss in last season’s league phase. Then, a Hakan Çalhanoğlu penalty was decisive at San Siro.

Inter matched Arsenal’s pace through four rounds in its first season coached by Cristian Chivu, then lost back-to-back games to Atletico Madrid and Liverpool.

Inter likely needs to avoid a third loss to stay on track for the round of 16. Last season it took 16 points to secure a top-eight finish and avoid the playoffs round in February.

When UEFA made the match schedule in steamy, humid Monaco in August, a key question was who would have to visit the Arctic Circle in January.

Manchester City was the answer, playing at Bodø/Glimt on Tuesday.

Still, the forecast temperatures at game time are barely below freezing in the early evening in star striker Erling Haaland's native Norway.

Man City, the 2023 European champion, already has 13 points in fourth place, unlike the last-day drama last January needing to win just to squeeze into the knockout playoffs 22nd in the standings.

Napoli forward Rasmus Højlund returns Tuesday to hometown club Copenhagen which once sold him for less than 2 million euros ($2.3 million) to Sturm Graz.

The price soared to 77 million euros ($89.6 million) about 18 months later when Højlund moved to Manchester United from Atalanta. Napoli, where he is spending the season on loan, is the 22-year-old Højlund’s fourth club since leaving Copenhagen four years ago.

Two teams in the far east of Europe — Qarabag and Kairat Almaty — both have home games this week because their distant times zones mean they will not host on the decisive last round.

All 18 games on Jan. 29 must start simultaneously to ensure fair play, at 9 p.m. in Central Europe, when it would be 1 a.m. at Almaty in Kazakhstan.

Still, it will be an early 4:30 p.m. in central Europe when Kairat kicks off against Club Brugge at 8:30 p.m. local time Tuesday. Qarabag hosts Eintracht Frankfurt in an early game Wednesday.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Manchester City's Erling Haaland reacts during the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester United and Manchester City in Manchester, England, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Inter Milan's Hakan Calhanoglu, centre left, celebrates with Lautaro Martinez after scoring his side's second goal during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Napoli in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Chelsea's head coach Liam Rosenior gestures before the English Premier League soccer match between Fulham and Chelsea in London, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Shopland)

Real Madrid's head coach Alvaro Arbeloa reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Levante in Madrid, Spain, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Breton)

DENVER (AP) — Luka Doncic had 38 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists, and the Los Angeles Lakers rallied to beat the Denver Nuggets 115-107 on Tuesday night.

LeBron James, who was not voted an All-Star starter for the first time since his rookie season, scored 19 points for Los Angeles, which played the second half without center Deandre Ayton due to a left eye injury.

Jamal Murray scored 26 of his 28 points in the first half for Denver and added 11 assists, but shot just 1 for 5 in the second half.

With Denver Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II sitting courtside, the short-handed Nuggets led by 16 in the third quarter despite missing four rotation players, including Nikola Jokic, who has missed the last 12 games with a hyperextended left knee.

Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson scored 18 apiece for the Nuggets.

A close game added to the budding rivalry that began in the 2023 Western Conference finals, when Denver swept the Lakers on its way to the NBA title.

It appeared the Nuggets would cruise to another win after jumping out to a 13-point lead in the first quarter and had a strong end to the second quarter.

Murray finished the first half with a 35-second flurry to give Denver a 71-57 lead. He fed Gordon for a lob dunk, assisted on Watson’s 3-pointer with 7.3 seconds left and then drained a 56-foot heave at the horn.

Murray missed both of his shots in the third quarter when Los Angeles outscored the Nuggets 29-17 to close within 88-86.

The Lakers tied it early in the fourth and took their first lead on two free throws by Doncic with 6:42 left during a 16-0 run that turned a two-point deficit into a 108-96 lead.

Lakers: Head back to Los Angeles for a road game at the Clippers on Thursday night.

Nuggets: Begin a three-game road trip at Washington on Thursday night.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts to a Denver Nuggets three point basket during the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon dunks against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Nuggets forward Spencer Jones (21) fouls Los Angeles Lakers forward Luka Dončić (77) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray celebrates a three point basket against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Nuggets guard Peyton Watson (8) goes up for a shot against Los Angeles Lakers forward/guard Luka Dončić (77). during the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)