Grading Every 2014/15 Champions League Team on Matchday 5
The Champions League made its way back to centre stage this week as the penultimate round of group-stage fixtures set the European elite up for an almighty December climax.
As always, though, not everyone can be a winner, and while some clubs turned their luck around and kept the Champions League dream alive, others continued drab runs of form in European competition.
Based on the standard of their respective opposition, the scoreline itself and the manner in which a result was achieved, we've once again handed each participating team a grade for their Week 5 performance.
With only a few places left in the round of 16, now is when sides will start to show desperation in their respective hunts to progress, resulting in some anomalous displays from continental giants.
Group A
1 of 8
| Club | Grade |
| Atletico Madrid | A+ |
| Juventus | B+ |
| Olympiacos | F |
| Malmo | D |
Mario Mandzukic became the first Atletico Madrid player to net a Champions League hat-trick to effectively seal their place as Group A winners on Wednesday, as Los Rojiblancos routed Olympiacos 4-0 at the Vicente Calderon.
It took Raul Garcia just nine minutes to open the scoring against the Greek visitors, and Atleti never looked likely to relinquish their grip on the game, as Olympiacos barely threatened Miguel Angel Moya's goal.
It was a flurry of defensive errors from the visiting side that paved the way to victory for Diego Simeone's men, and Olympiacos were shown to be off the pace in a major way as Atletico steamrolled through.
Juventus' 2-0 win at Malmo wasn't quite as destructive, but a second-half raising of the tempo saw to it that Massimiliano Allegri's side reigned supreme.
The Swedish hosts did threaten in their own way, though, and managing to go in level at the interval was something of an achievement, but ultimately, a gulf in stamina and overall squad depth told.
Juve still aren't safe, however, and it could be their lack of conviction in front of goal that comes back to haunt them should things not go to plan when they face Atletico on Matchday 6.
Group B
2 of 8
| Club | Grade |
| Real Madrid | B |
| Basel | B- |
| Liverpool | C |
| Ludogorets Razgrad | C+ |
Week 5 wasn't exactly replete with superstar performances in Group B, as Liverpool saw out what they will consider a disappointing 2-2 draw against Ludogorets Razgrad, while Real Madrid only just edged their way past Basel.
In some ways, the Reds' draw in Sofia means the same as a win, with the club still needing to beat Basel in their climactic group closer next month, but this was another lacklustre display from the Merseysiders.
It's become an all too familiar storyline, but what's more damning is that the Bulgarian hosts even built up a 58 per cent chunk of possession and managed more than double the amount of attempts on goal that Liverpool did.
Granted, Ludugorets have been a surprisingly tough enemy this season, but this was still a game Liverpool were expected to win and leaves the home team far more content with their point.
Real will also have been seeking more from their performance after Cristiano Ronaldo came to their rescue in Switzerland.
Basel applied the greater pressure of the two sides in what they'll take as a hugely positive display, during which only a lacking clinical touch in attack proved to be their undoing.
Group C
3 of 8
| Club | Grade |
| Bayer Leverkusen | B+ |
| Zenit Saint Petersburg | B+ |
| Monaco | B+ |
| Benfica | C+ |
Only two goals were amassed between Group C's bastions in Week 5 in what was a terrifically close battle on all fronts, with Monaco and Zenit Saint Petersburg earning 1-0 wins over Bayer Leverkusen and Benfica respectively.
The Ligue 1 representatives will be most satisfied with their three points, but their victory didn't come without a bout pressure at the BayArena, Bayer registering 23 shots on goal compared to Monaco's four.
However, Monaco bided their time and Lucas Ocampos popped up in the 72nd minute to bag the most crucial statistic of the night and help his team rise to second in the pool.
Roger Schmidt will be extremely frustrated with his side's failure to make any of their chances count despite winning the fixture in tackles, aerial duels and every other aspect along the way.
Benfica also proved to be staunch opposition in Russia but were left without so much as a point to their name, as Danny's 78th-minute nudge ultimately undid the Eagles' earlier work.
Luisao's red card in stoppage time summarised a lack of good fortune for the Portuguese visitors and capped off a bad day at the office, and although Zenit were deserving of their victory, either side could have taken a result.
Group D
4 of 8
| Club | Grade |
| Borussia Dortmund | B- |
| Arsenal | A |
| Anderlecht | A |
| Galatasaray | D+ |
Just as he has done on so many occasions during his career, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger alleviated a great deal of growing pressure from his shoulders after seeing his side muster a terrific display on Wednesday evening.
Out of canter with some Gunners performances the Emirates Stadium has witnessed of late, the north Londoners were deserving victors against the Borussia Dortmund, who struggled in front of goal without Marco Reus' presence.
Alexis Sanchez was on form as usual, but Wenger will have also been pleased to see Santi Cazorla at his finest creatively, while Yaya Sanogo's second-minute strike is also a major boost for the team in terms of attacking depth.
If the Gunners were seen to be slightly dominant in England's capital, Anderlecht were all the more so at the Constant Vanden Stock Stadium, where they rampaged over Galatasaray in another 2-0 result.
Building on their 3-3 draw against Arsenal, this was the most confident Anderlecht performance seen in Europe this term. A brace from centre-back Chancel Mbemba Mangulu was fitting, as this game was not just a display of Anderlecht's attacking fortitude.
The Belgians restricted Gala to just three shot on target, with Burak Yilmaz managing to hit the post late on, but their fate was already sealed by then.
Group E
5 of 8
| Club | Grade |
| Bayern Munich | B- |
| Manchester City | A- |
| Roma | C+ |
| CSKA Moscow | B- |
A win over Bayern Munich is no common feat, so awarding Manchester City an imperfect grade for their 3-2 victory against the Bundesliga giants may seem a tad harsh.
However, considering the Citizens conceded two goals after Mehdi Benatia's 19th-minute red card and left two of Sergio Aguero's three goals until the final eight minutes of the fixture, their result wasn't exactly comprehensive.
In fact, another day might have seen Pepe Guardiola's men come out of the tie as victors, and even with a one-man disadvantage, the visitors still managed to boast 52.6 per cent of possession.
Roma gave a similar account of themselves en route to a 1-1 draw at CSKA Moscow, but the main difference being that Rudi Garcia's men don't have a red card on which to attribute their failure to win.
After Francesco Totti's opener, the Giallorossi led for more than half the match but welcomed a wave of pressure, which finally told when a Vasili Berezoutski cross evaded everyone on its way into the net during stoppage time.
CSKA Moscow had the majority of shooting opportunities and were fully deserving of their point, knocking at the Roman door with such persistence that it eventually gave way.
Group F
6 of 8
| Club | Grade |
| Paris Saint-Germain | A |
| Barcelona | A- |
| Ajax | C+ |
| APOEL | F |
As predicted, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona head toward the final group-stage matchday knowing that the winner of their meeting will top Group F. Following Week 5, the Ligue 1 giants currently lead the group by a single point.
And it was another batch of near-spotless performances from both teams, as PSG fought off Ajax to emerge as 3-1 victors while Barca trampled over APOEL 4-0 in Cyprus.
It was of some surprise to see Ajax claim an advantage in the possession stakes at Parc des Princes, merely losing out to the potency of Laurent Blanc's side's counter-attacks.
For APOEL, it was a case of that and much, much more on Tuesday, as Lionel Messi netted a hat-trick to go along with Luis Suarez's opener in Cyprus.
Barca accounted for a ridiculous 75 per cent of possession, and as has been the case for numerous victims of the Blaugrana of late, APOEL never really stood a chance with Luis Enrique's men in this kind of mood.
Seldom has the phrase "you can't win without the ball" ever rung so true.
Group G
7 of 8
| Club | Grade |
| Chelsea | A+ |
| Schalke | F |
| Sporting Lisbon | A |
| Maribor | D |
When facing a team of Chelsea's calibre, one can be forgiven for shuttling a certain amount of goals, but a 5-0 defeat to the Blues on Tuesday is proof that Schalke are not the team they once were.
This was a demolition from Jose Mourinho's men, beginning with John Terry's second-minute opener and not relenting until Ramires struck their fifth 12 minutes from full time.
The Veltins-Arena support will have had few protests to make about the result; their side were overcome and outclassed in every regard, so much so that you'd struggle to believe the match was played in Gelsenkirchen.
Meanwhile, Sporting Lisbon's European rise continued, and while their 3-1 mauling of Maribor wasn't quite of the same standard as Chelsea's victory over Schalke, the Portuguese giants will be content with their work.
Nani had another night to remember, as he netted the second of three Sporting goals from one of the team's 23 shots on goal.
In contrast, the Slovenian visitors managed just four attempts on goal, leading to a fairly simple day's work for the home side's defence.
Group H
8 of 8
| Club | Grade |
| Porto | A |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | D |
| Athletic Bilbao | A |
| BATE Borisov | F |
As if Porto's place as Group H winners wasn't secure before, the Dragons made it official on Tuesday evening thanks to a 3-0 thrashing of BATE Borisov, who must be getting sick of heavy Champions League defeats.
The Belarusians have lost four of their five group-stage fixtures this season by a margin of three goals or more, and it's only a 6-0 defeat in the reverse fixture that sees their grade limited.
Hector Herrera was involved in all three goals for the visitors, who for the second outing in a row went unanswered and now boast a goal difference of plus-12—the joint-highest of any Champions League side at present.
Shakhtar are fortunate that the fine work done in the previous four weeks of Champions League action, coupled with Athletic's inadequacies, had already ensured them of a place in the round of 16.
As a result, their 1-0 defeat at home to the Spaniards on Tuesday can be forgiven, but it still results in a paltry grade, especially when compared to the free-flowing attacking performances we've become used to seeing from the Ukrainians.
A Mikel San Jose goal separated the two teams in Lviv, where Athletic absorbed a wealth of pressure. Ernesto Valverde may well wonder how his men haven't managed more of these results so far.
All statistics come courtesy of WhoScored.com.
