Spurs star, United soar but Barça stall
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
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Tottenham Hotspur FC moved to the top of Group A by inflicting FC Internazionale Milano's first defeat on a night when FC Barcelona were held and two debutants were knocked out.
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Tottenham Hotspur FC ended FC Internazionale Milano's unbeaten start to their UEFA Champions League title defence on a night when domestic rivals Manchester United FC strengthened their hold on their group. Olympique Lyonnais and FC Barcelona were pegged back while two debutants have been eliminated.
Spurs trailed Inter by three points in Group A after losing 4-3 in Milan a fortnight ago but the tables were turned in London as a 3-1 win sent Tottenham top on head-to-head record; Samuel Eto'o's consolation was his seventh of the competition. FC Twente are two points behind the leaders after scoring two late goals to secure their first UEFA Champions League victory, 2-0 at SV Werder Bremen.
Lyon were the only side in action on Tuesday who won their three opening games but that run ended with a 4-3 defeat at SL Benfica, who like Inter a fortnight ago were four up at one stage. FC Schalke 04 reduced Lyon's Group B lead to two points with a 0-0 draw at Hapoel Tel-Aviv FC, with Benfica a point further back in third. The Israeli side got off the mark in their debut UEFA Champions League campaign though they can now only hope for UEFA Europa League football in spring.
Manchester United FC opened up a three-point lead in Group C after a 3-0 win at Bursaspor that ends the Turkish debutants' ambitions of progress in this competition. Valencia CF defeated Rangers FC by the same scoreline to leapfrog their opponents into second spot.
FC København fell behind at home to FC Barcelona to a Lionel Messi goal but equalised within seconds for a 1-1 draw. The Danish side remain within a point of Barça in Group D and remain four ahead of third-placed FC Rubin Kazan, held 0-0 by Panathinaikos FC.
The fifth set of games in these groups are on 24 November but on Wednesday the likes of FC Bayern München, Chelsea FC, Real Madrid CF and Arsenal FC could ensure their round of 16 places when Matchday 4 is completed.
Click on the result for match report:
Group A
Tottenham Hotspur FC 3-1 FC Internazionale Milano
SV Werder Bremen 0-2 FC Twente
Group B
Hapoel Tel-Aviv FC 0-0 FC Schalke 04
SL Benfica 4-3 Olympique Lyonnais
Group C
Valencia CF 3-0 Rangers FC
Bursaspor 0-3 Manchester United FC
Group D
FC Rubin Kazan 0-0 Panathinaikos FC
FC København 1-1 FC Barcelona
