Champions League Round Up-20th Oct 2009

It was a pulsating finish to another round of Champions League matches, their was plenty of drama so lets get into the action:

Group E:
Liverpools Woeful Start Continues:
Liverpool misery continues as they were unable to beat Lyon, in a crucial game they were missing key players such as Torres the defeat means Liverpool have lost their last four games in a row something thats not happend to the Merseyside outfit for over 20 years. If the defeat wasnt bad enough Steven Gerrard had to limp off during the first half due to his reaccuring groing injury, it was Liverpool who took the lead through Benayoun who gave them the lead after 41mins but Lyon equlised after 72mins after Maxime Gonalons. In a move to get victory Rafa Benetiz brought in Voronin in a attempt to get victory but it wasnt to be and Delgado close range finish broke Liverpool hearts and Liverpool slumped to 3rd in their group 3points behind Fiorentina.

Debreceni show spirit in 7 goal thriller
In the other game their was a 7 goal thriller between Debreceni VSC and Fiorentina, the Hungrian champions put up a spirited fight but lost. The action started fast and furious as it only took 2 mins for Debreceni VSC to take the lead through Czvitkovics goal it was also their 1st goal of the campaign but it was short lived as Adrian Mutu equalised with his 1st goal of the game and 4 minutes later Girlardino put them 2-1 ahead, the Hungarian champions almost equlaised but Vargas shot rattled the crossbar but it was Fiorentina that scored again as the goalscorers combined as Girlardino passed the ball to Mutu who blasted his shot from 20yards out and it went in of the post making it 3-1 and it looked like Fiorentina had it wrapped up but Debreceni VSC got one back 8minutes later a piece of individual brilliance from who cut in on the left and curled a shot past a helpless Frey, and it was 3-2 and game on but Fiorentina scored again as the goalkeeper could only parry Mutus shot leaving Santana with the rebound and put it in making it 4-2 in the 37th minute. Debreceni VSC tried to find a way back in but were unable to but they got some consolation after Coulibaly header found its way past the keeper ending the match 4-3.

Group F:
Barcelona Stunned by Russian Champions:
The upset of the night come as Rubin Kazan defeated Barcelona 2-1 in their own backyard, this leaves the group wide open as the two favourites both dropped points. It took only 2minutes for the Catalan giants to fall behind as Ryazantsev's stunned the home crowd with a vicious 30yard strike that left Veldes with no chance giving Rubin Kazan a 1-0 lead, Ibrahimovic almost gave an instant reply only to see his chance be palmed away Barcelona continued to pile on the pressure and Messi almost equalised as he blasted the ball only to see his effort tipped wide by the inform Ryzhikov. The Russian champions almost made it 2-0 when Alejandro Dominguez forced Valdes to make a save from his superb free kick but Barcelona found their equaliser after the break Xavi played in Ibrahimovic who chested the ball and sent his shot passed the keeper making it 1-1 sensing victory Barcelona continued to bombard the goal but they could not break down the stubborn defence and it was Rubin Kazan who got the winner as Gokdeniz Karadeniz fired past Valdes to make it 2-1 and stun the Nou Camp into silence.

Inter survive:
Inter Milan survived a huge scare as they had to come back twice to draw with Dynamo Kiev, Mourinhos men found themselves behind on two occasion the 1st came when Mikhalik gave Dynamo the lead after 5mins after poor defending let the midfielder drive home the opening goal. It was a defensive error on the other end that allowed Inter Milan back in the game as Stankovic took advantage of poor defending and put in the equaliser making it 1-1, but Dynamo Kiev were not done yet and their were soon ahead as Lucio found his own goal making it 2-1giving the Ukranians the lead going into half time. Inter seeked and found their equaliser through a Walter Smith goal and the game finished 2-2 but Inter go bottom becuase of the Rubin Kazan beat Barcelona the group is in for a explosive finish.

Group G:
Sevilla continue dominance:
Sevilla continue their dominance of Group G and their 100% start to the group stages, as the beat Stuggart 3-1, Stuggart started well but Sevilla broke the deadlock after 23mins when Sebastien Squillaci headed home, and the Spanish teams class was shown in the 2nd half and they doubled their lead after Lehmann's poor punch allowed Jesus Navas to slot home giving them a comfortable 2-0 lead, Sebastien Squillaci tripled Sevillas lead as he scored his 2nd goal of the game, highlighting Sevillas dominance. Stuggart pulled one back Elson scored a fantastic goal from 30yards out but in the end it was a comfortable 3-1 win for Sevilla.

Rangers thumped by Romanian Champions:
Rangers were embarassed 4-1 by Unirea Urziceni things got off to a good start for the scottish club as they were ahead after 2minutes when Pedro Mendes shot deflected of Vilana giving Rangers the perfect start but it was all downhill from their as Bilasco scored the equliaser after Brandon cross was met by Bilasco giving them the eqaliser making it 1-1, then the Romanians took the lead when Fernandez's back heel was deflected of subsitute Lafferty giving the Romanians a 2-1 lead thing got worse when Balans free kick was headed in by Rangers defender Lee McChulloh giving Unirea a 3-1 lead and just when things got not get any worse they did when Brandens shot found its way to the back of the net making it 4-1 and game over, the result leaves Rangers rock bottom.

Group H:

Late Drama in Holland:
Arsenal let victory drop in that dying minutes in Holland, Fabregas gave Arsenal the lead when Van Persie sqaured the ball to Fabragas who slotted in to give Arsenal the lead, Arsenal who were looking to continue their 100% start to the Champions League could not found the 2nd goal despite controlling and dicatating most of the play chances were created but their was no finish chances included a 18 yard shot from Van Persie who was stopped by the keeper and a free kick by Van Persie which was well saved. In the end Arsenal were made to pay for their failure to score deep into stoppage time when a long free kick found its way to Mendes Di Silva who smashed home rescuing a valuable point and ending Arsenal perfect start to the Champions League.

More Late Drama this time in Greece:
Olympiacos continued to keep pace with Arsenal thanks to a late winner by Stoltidis, Standard Leige actually took the lead after 37minute after Igor De Camargo slotted home after receiving a clever through ball from Milan Jovanovic, but the lead lasted only 7minutes when Sinan Bolat goalkeeping error allowed Kostas Mitroglou to head home a equliser. The game headed into half time 1-1 and both teams looked for a winner with Olympiacos getting the better of the chance and as the game drew a close it didnt seem likely until subsitute after a corner was flicked on by Bravo and goalkeeper Dudu made a mistake allowing Stoltidis to convert into a goal giving them a 2-1 win and sending them 2nd in the group.