Its been a round full of drama and excitement past the halfway stage of as a number of top teams have cemented their place in the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League while few other teams continue to stutter with the prospect of dropping to the Europa league while elimination has already been confirmed for some.
As it stands, Bayern Munich, Club Brugge, Manchester City, Napoli, Real Madrid. The two Scottish teams Celtic and Rangers as well as Viktoria Plzen dropping out entirely.
Perhaps most impressive in the round has been Napoli who turned on the style once again at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium to defeat Ajax 4 goals to 2 with Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen scoring the 4th goal upon his return from Injury.
However, the biggest disappointment so far has been Barcelona playing out an enthralling 3-3 draw at home with Inter. A result which did their course little to no good with the team having won only one out of their four games against lowly Viktoria Plzen and are in real danger of dropping to the Europa league.
Below, we take a group by group review of the matchday results.
GROUP A
In group A, Victor Osimhen’s Napoli beat Dutch giants Ajax 4-2 to continue their winning streak in the group stage with four wins in four games. The match took place at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona as the home team maintained the lead throughout the game and never gave the visitors a chance to bounce back. On the other hand, Premier League giants Liverpool showed a goal fest after conceding before 20th minute. Mohammad Salah scored a hattrick while Roberto Firmino scored a brace to help their side beat Rangers 7-1.
GROUP B
Club Brugge are experiencing a dream Champions League season as they are on the top of the table with three wins in four games.
The Belgians held Atletico Madrid to a goalless draw at the Metropolitano Stadium to keep their unbeaten run intact. FC Porto defeated Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 in an away game to claim the second spot in the points table with two wins in four outings in a game highlighted by missed chances for the home side including a penalty.
GROUP C
Group C is the unarguably the group of death in this year’s Champions League and its been one hell of a ride for Barcelona.
It was a goalfest between Barca and Inter Milan as both the teams scored three goals each to play a draw against each other in the group.
With the draw, Inter Milan are on the second spot with seven points in four games while the Catalans have four points in four games.
Bayern Munich continue their domination to maintain the top spot with four victories in four games as they defeated Viktoria Plzen 4-2 away from home.
GROUP D
The Group D fixtures include matches between Tottenham Hotspur and Eintracht Frankfurt, and Marseille and Sporting CP. While Tottenham defeated 10-men Frankfurt 3-2, Marseille got the better of 9-men Sporting. Heung-min Son scored a brace while Harry Kane scored a penalty to help Spurs win the game while Alexis Sanchez scored the winner for Marseille after Matteo Guendouzi scored the 20′ opener.
GROUP E
Eaier in Tuesday in this group Chelsea defeated AC Milan 2-0 at San Siro to maintain their top spot while RB Salzburg played a 1-1 draw to keep their unbeaten run intact. After facing two consecutive losses against Chelsea, AC Milan are placed on the third position one win and two losses and a draw.
GROUP F
Defender Antonio Rudiger scored a last-minute goal to salvage a point for Real Madrid against Shakhtar Donetsk as the teams played a 1-1 draw. Real Madrid continue their domination in Group F with 10 points in four matches followed by RB Leipzig (6 points), who defeated Celtic 2-0 to claim the second spot.
GROUP G
Manchester City played a surprising goalless draw with Danish football club FC Copenhagen. Man City left back Sergio Gomez received a 30′ red card which reduced the English club to 10 men after Copenhagen goalkeeper saved a penalty from forward Riyad Mahrez. Maccabi attacking midfielder Omar Atzili scored a brace to help his team secure their first win in the campaign. On the other hand, German club Dortmund played a 1-1 draw against Spanish side Sevilla at home and maintained their second place in the group
GROUP H
PSG were again held on a 1-1 draw by Portuguese club Benfica Lisbon as both the teams found the back of the net through a spot kick. Benfica equalized in the 62nd minute as Joao Mario scored the penalty and the Portuguese side celebrated just like Cristiano Ronaldo’s 700th club goal celebration, ‘peace of mind’. With two wins in four games, PSG and Benfica are on top two spots. Israeli side Maccabi Haifa stunned Juventus 2 nil at the Samuel Ofer stadium leaving both teams with three points from four games each.