The last two days of the UEFA Champions League group stage began today, and here are all the goals and highlights from tonight’s games from groups A-D
Group A
Bordeaux, in a meaningless match for them, beat Maccabi Haifa 1-0 (Jussie, 12) in Israel, finishing an almost flawless group stage, finishing on top of group A with 16 points. The Israeli champions became the first team in the history of the Champions League to finish the group stage with no goals and no points as well.
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In the group’s second game and the one that actually mattered, Bayern Munich stunned Juventus 4-1 in Torino, leaving the Italians with Europa league consolation. Trezeguet put Juve ahead, but a horrid Juve defense, especially in the second half, helped Bayern (Butt, Olic, Gomez, Tymoschuk) complete a great victory.
Group B
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Wolfsburg needed a win over United and hope that CSKA will come up short in Turkey for them to advance into the next stage, but a Michael Owen hat trick sent the German champions who are struggling domestically as well this season to the Europa League, as United finished first in the group, sealing it with a 3-1 win (Dzeko scored for Wolfsburg).
In Turkey, CSKA Moscow needed a win to finish second in the group and qualify onto the next round, and a dramatic Aldonin goal (90th minute) gave them the 2-1 win.
Group C
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In Group C, Real Madrid qualified from the top spot as they beat Marseille 3-1 in France, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring two goals (Amazing first goal), while Marseille failed to get the win they needed for a second place finish, leaving Deschamps’ side with a Europa League spot.
AC Milan got themselves into a little bit of trouble, falling behind early against FC Zurich, but Real’s win in Marseille meant that the 1-1 draw (Ronaldinho equalized with a penalty) was enough for the Italian for a second place finish, while Zurich ended their continental play for this season.
Group D
In Group D, the only real question was whether Atletico would manage to save something from their disastrous season and qualify for the Europa league through a third place finish. They didn’t really help their own cause, as they got crushed by Porto in Madrid 3-0, with goals from Bruno Alves, Falcao and Hulk.
APOEL Nicosia weren’t too far from causing a huge upset in London, but Chelsea came back from an early deficit (Essien, Drogba), and the 2-2 draw meant the Cypriots finished fourth, sending Atletico to the Europe league.