UEFA Champions League Group Action Reaction - 11/23/11

Following today's matches, all teams in the UEFA Champions League have played five of their six matches in group play. Here is some of the notable scores from the past few days:

Napoli 2 Manchester City 1 (Group A)

You might remember I blogged about Manchester City's early success three weeks ago (http://fireawayblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-good-is-manchester-city.html). I mentioned for them to be considered among the cream of the crop in Europe they would have to succeed in the UEFA Champions League. Well, they struggled once again. Manchester City controlled the majority of possession (70%), but struggled to put the ball in the net. They had 17 shots, including 8 shots on goal, and 5 corners. However, they only scored once. On the other hand, Napoli forward Edinson Cavani didn't seem to have the same problem. The Uruguayan striker scored twice. Bayern Munich has already clinched its spot in the Final 16 as the group's winner. Following this result, Napoli currently sits in 2nd with 8 points, while Manchester City is third with 7. This means that for Man City to advance they have to beat Bayern Munich in their final game. They also would need winless Villarreal to win or tie against Napoli.

Trabzonspor 1 Internazionale 1 (Group B)

Inter Milan got the tie they needed in this match, which combined with Lille's 2-0 victory over CSKA Moscow, sends them into the Final 16 as the guaranteed group winner. Trabzonspor outshot Inter 22-9, but Brasilian keeper Julio Cesar reminded viewers why he is one of the best in the world. Trabzonspor is in 2nd with 6 points, while Lille and CSKA Moscow now are tied with 5. This means that it will come down to the final group games, as any of these three can advance. Trabzonspor plays Lille and advances automatically with a win. CSKA Moscow plays Inter.

Manchester United 2 Benfica 2 (Group C)

Manchester United stumbled in this one at Old Trafford. United overcame an early own goal with 2 goals of their own. In the 59th minute, Darren Fletcher put them in the lead 2-1. However, one minute later Pablo Aimar scored the equalizer. Both these teams remain tied for the lead in the group with 9 points, but FC Basel is right there with 8. Benfica has to like their odds in their final match against Otelul Galati, who has lost all five of their games. This means that the key final matchup will be the big one between Manchester United and FC Basel. It would be shocker if United failed to advance.

Lyon 0 Ajax Amsterdam 0 (Group D)

With Real Madrid (5-0-0) advancing after dominating the group, Lyon and Ajax knew they were battling to be the second team to advance from the group. Both teams had some great opportunities, but the game ended in a scoreless draw. Thanks in large part to two stellar saves by Kenneth Vermeer late, Ajax maintained their 3 point edge over Lyon in the group standings. Ajax will advance with at least a tie against Real Madrid. Lyon will need to score a lot of goals in a win over last place Dinamo Zagreb and an Ajax loss to have a shot at advancing.

Bayer Leverkusen 2 Chelsea 1 (Group E)

Chelsea knew what they needed to do in this game. They needed to take care of business like they should and pick up a win. They were on their way to this when Didier Drogba put them up 1-0. It seemed bad enough when they let Eren Derdiyok score the equalizer in the 73rd minute. Then, in stoppage time, Manuel Friedrich scored the shocking winning goal. Bayer Leverkusen is now in first place in the group and will advance with a mere draw against winless Racing Genk, who lost 7-0 to Valencia. Valencia now holds the goal differential edge over Chelsea. This means that Chelsea would need either a win or a scoreless draw against Valencia in their final match to advance.

Olympiakos 1 Marseille 0 (Group F)

While most of the talk is about Arsenal advancing as the group winners, this result had the most affect on the rest of the group. Olympiakos now has a shot of advancing thanks to a goal in the 82nd minute by substitute Ioannis Fetfatzidis. The sub scored just seven minutes after coming on the pitch. Marseille remains in second with 7 points. Picking up their second win, Olympiakos is now third with 6 points. Borussia Dortmund have 4 points and still has a slim chance of advancing. They would need a victory over Marseille to have a chance. Olympiakos needs at least a tie against Arsenal. Any of these three teams are capable of advancing.

Zenit St Petersburg 0 Apoel Nicosia 0 (Group G)

Apoel Nicosia knew they would advance with a draw, so they decided to play defensively from the onset. That is the way it remained the whole game as they only had 2 shots the whole game. Zenit St Petersburg did all they could to score as they fired 23 shots, had 8 of those on goal, and 10 corners. With the scoreless draw, Apoel Nicosia became the first Cypriot team to advance. This means that the group's decisive final game between Zenit St Petersburg and FC Porto will determine which of the two will advance. Zenit holds a one point edge in the standings, which means that FC Porto will need a win to advance.

Barcelona 3 AC Milan 2 (Group H)

This was the premier match people wanted to watch. After a 2-2 draw in the last matchup back in September, what would happen in this one? Mark Van Bommel's own goal put Barcelona up to start. In the 20th minute, Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored the equalizer against his old side. Lionel Messi put Barca back on top following a somewhat questionable penalty kick call. Kevin-Prince Boateng tied it up once again in the 54th minute. In the 63rd minute, Messi had a beautiful run to setup Xavi for the winning goal for Barca. Barcelona wins the group as both sides advance to the Final 16 in what was a well-played game by both sides.