It was a famous night for APOEL, as well as Arsenal and Leverkusen, while Chelsea’s woes continued after another defeat left their Champions League progress in jeopardy.
Group E
| Pos | Team | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bayer Leverkusen | 0 | 9 |
| 2 | Valencia | +8 | 8 |
| 3 | Chelsea | +6 | 8 |
| 4 | Genk | -14 | 2 |
Bayer Leverkusen 2 (Derdiyok 73’, Friedrich 90’) def Chelsea 1 (Drogba 48’)
The Germans were sent into the last 16 after Manuel Friedrich’s last-gasp header, as Chelsea were dealt a major blow. The Blues host Valencia on matchday six, with the victor of that game to progress. Didier Drogba had put Chelsea ahead in Leverkusen, but Eren Derdiyok levelled late, before Friedrich’s dramatic winner from a set-piece.
Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas said: “Any negative result is difficult. We were organised and compact but we’ve conceded in the details and those details made the difference tonight. Our concentration and focus was better, but this can happen. We thought we had the game in our hands at 1-0 because we were solid. We had a good chance to make it 2-0, didn’t take it and paid heavily in the last minute.”
Valencia 7 (Jonas 10’, Soldado 13’, 36’, 39’, Pablo Hernandez 68’, Aduriz 70’, Costa 81’) def Genk 0
The Spanish club went on a romp at the Mestalla, recording their best ever win in Uefa competition. Skipper Roberto Soldado was the star of the night with a first-half hat-trick as Valencia ensured a score draw in London on matchday six will be enough for them to progress.
Valencia coach Unai Emery said: “In our last match against Chelsea any draw of 1-1 or better will do us. Our mentality will be to go there to win. We’ll have a chance in London to see what we are capable of. We will have to play with intelligence and strength and try to enjoy the moment.”
Group F
| Pos | Team | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | +3 | 11 |
| 2 | Marseille | +2 | 7 |
| 3 | Olympiacos | 0 | 6 |
| 4 | Dortmund | -5 | 4 |
Arsenal 2 (van Persie 49’, 86’) def Borussia Dortmund 1 (Kagawa 90’)
The Gunners confirmed their progress into the final 16 after a 2-1 victory over the German champions with Robin van Persie once again the hero for Arsene Wenger’s side. Alex Song set up his opener brilliantly, but it was the Dutchman who continued to impress.
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger hailed RVP when he said: “He is in a period where he doesn’t have to look for goals, they just come naturally for him, and he’s always in the right place at the right moment. He got two again tonight from positions where it looks easy, but it’s not easy, because he understands the game so well. Overall it was a good game.”
Marseille 0 def by Olympiacos 1 (Fetfatzidis 83’)
In a tight affair in France, OM missed the chance to seal their passage into the knockout phase after Ioannis Fetfatzidis’s fine late strike. The match was a cagey clash, with Marseille keeper Steve Mandanda producing some fine saves, before the Greeks late winner.
OM boss Didier Deschamps said: “We had a final to play tonight; unfortunately, we lost without having delivered the game we expected. Even a draw would have been enough tonight. I cannot say Olympiacos’s win is undeserved. We struggled to keep the ball and create chances. We made some, but it was not enough to win.”
Group G
| Pos | Team | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | APOEL | +2 | 9 |
| 2 | Zenit St Petersburg | +2 | 8 |
| 3 | FC Porto | 0 | 7 |
| 4 | Shakhtar Donetsk | -4 | 2 |
Zenit St Petersburg 0 drew with APOEL Nicosia 0
The Cypriots became the first ever club from their nation to reach the final 16 after claiming a goalless draw in Russia, during a game interrupted by members of the crowd letting off flares. APOEL defended stoutly, with Zenit the better side, and the Cypriots managed to hold on for a famous result.
APOEL coach Ivan Jovanovic said: “I am the happiest man in the world right now. We have achieved something which three months ago we had no right to even dream of. This is a crowning moment for all the effort we have made since the summer, a crowning moment for all those associated with the club.”
Shakhtar Donetsk 0 def by FC Porto 2 (Hulk 79’, Rat og 90’)
Porto are one win away from the last 16, after claiming a fine 2-0 away win in Ukraine, with the result eliminating Shakhtar, last season’s ECL quarter-finalists, from all European competition. Luiz Adriano had hit the post in the first-half, but Porto got the goals late on, with Hulk and Razvan Rat’s own goal enough.
Porto boss Vitor Pereira said: “Today we saw a very consistent FC Porto that knew what it wanted. Then the players’ talent did the rest. Hulk played in the middle today because his capacity to explode and his quality enables him to play as a winger or in the middle. Today we felt that it would be best to play him in the middle. We weren’t at our best but sometimes a team needs to hit the bottom to be able to rise again. Real teams and men appear at these moments.”
Group H
| Pos | Team | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FC Barcelona | +12 | 13 |
| 2 | AC Milan | +3 | 8 |
| 3 | Viktoria Plzen | -7 | 4 |
| 4 | BATE Borisov | -8 | 2 |
AC Milan 2 (Ibrahimovic 20’, Boateng 54’) def by FC Barcelona 3 (van Bommel og 14’, Messi pen 31’, Xavi 63’)
Barca clinched top spot in Group H after a thrilling 3-2 victory at the San Siro, with Lionel Messi’s superb throughball setting up Xavi for the winner. Earlier Barca had enjoyed a 2-1 lead going into the interval, only for Kevin-Prince Boateng to produce a fine goal to level. But Xavi had the ultimate say after the Argentine’s wizardry.
Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola said: “We competed well. We wanted to finish top of the group so that we have the opportunity to rest [ahead of 10 December’s El Clasico]. The important thing is that the fans enjoyed tonight’s game. If the supporters are entertained then that is what it is all about because they are who we play for.”
BATE Borisov 0 def by Viktoria Plzen 1 (Bakos 42’)
The Czech champions claimed a deserved victory in Belarus, with star goalscorer Marek Bakos getting the game’s only goal shortly before the break. BATE were poor for the most of the evening, in a game where victory would’ve sealed their spot in the Europa League. Now it’s Plzen who are likely to continue in Europe.
Plzen coach Pavel Vrba said: “We controlled the game well. We deserved the victory and I hope we will play in the Uefa Europa League in the new year. The opening minutes showed our intent to play offensive football and we created two chances very early. The home goalkeeper kept them out but finally we scored at the end of the first half.”