Grading Every 2014/15 Champions League Team on Matchday 6
Audiences will have to wait until February for the Champions League to make its return after this season's group stage was brought to an end on Wednesday.
Matchday 6 saw a host of clubs making their final attempts on the knockout places, while a selection of teams were merely completing formalities, thanks to the work they put in earlier in the tournament.
Read on for the grades of Europe's elite outfits on Matchday 6, where the quality of opposition faced, standard of a performance and scoreline itself are key factors in deciding a club's mark.
Group A
1 of 8
| Team | Grade |
| Olympiacos | A- |
| Atletico Madrid | B |
| Juventus | C+ |
| Malmo | D |
Atletico Madrid failed to make it two for two against Juventus after drawing 0-0 in Turin on Tuesday evening, but their efforts in frustrating the hosts were still enough to top Group A.
This was perhaps the least imaginative performance we've seen from Diego Simeone's men in the Champions League campaign thus far, and it was Massimiliano Allegri's tactics that appeared to succeed.
Los Rojiblancos managed just over 30 per cent of the possession against Juve, and it was their defensive stars who shone brightest, with 19-year-old Jose Gimenez performing well alongside Diego Godin.
Carlos Tevez and Fernando Llorente did a fine job of exerting pressure without hitting the net, and the Bianconeri's offensive shortcomings undoubtedly left Atleti more satisfied with the goalless draw.
In Greece, Olympiacos gave a far more entertaining account of their ability, signing off their Champions League season with a flourish after beating Malmo, 4-2.
For periods, the Swedish guests looked as if they could take all three points, but Alejandro Dominguez, Kostas Mitroglou and Ibrahim Afellay led from the front with aplomb.
Defensively, Olympiacos are far from perfect. However, a late rousing of their ability in possession showed a clinical streak in their locker, and they were ultimately unfortunate to be undone by their past results in Group A.
Group B
2 of 8
| Team | Grade |
| Real Madrid | A |
| Basel | B+ |
| Liverpool | C+ |
| Ludogorets Razgrad | F |
It was a depressing day at Anfield as European dreams once again came crumbling down to Europa League level for Liverpool, who were held to a 1-1 draw at home against Basel.
A lack in initiative was what it ultimately came down to, and after Fabian Frei was permitted to open the scoring after 25 minutes, the Reds' battle to surmount the odds was made all the more difficult.
Liverpool's lack of imagination was compounded when Lazar Markovic was sent off just 15 minutes after coming on at half-time. Despite Steven Gerrard's wonderful free-kick equaliser, the mood was a dim one.
Ironically, 10-man Liverpool came into their own as the game wore on, showing a level of passion they should have demonstrated earlier on, but Basel happily and deservedly take their spot in the knockout round.
For Real Madrid, it was another rudimentary win in Europe on Tuesday. They waltzed past Ludogorets Razgrad, 4-0, never looking at real risk of surrendering a goal, never mind a point.
Los Merengues registered 34 shots on goal to Ludogorets' nine, and Champions League debutant Alvaro Medran among those to get on the scoresheet.
An early red card for visiting playmaker Marcelinho took away an aspect of competition, but it was an offence forced by Carlo Ancelotti's side—one they pounced on and used to open the floodgates. Flawless.
Group C
3 of 8
| Team | Grade |
| Monaco | A |
| Bayer Leverkusen | D |
| Zenit St. Petersburg | D |
| Benfica | C |
For almost the entirety of the group phase, Group C has stood out as the most even and, for large periods, most boring of the bunch.
Benfica and Bayer Leverkusen saw to it that both of those themes were supported at the Estadio da Luz on Tuesday with their drab 0-0 stalemate.
The Eagles may be content they didn't record another loss, but for Bayer Leverkusen, it was a sore result that cost them top place in the pool.
Monaco picked the opportune moment to summon their best performance of the European campaign to date, trotting past Zenit St. Petersburg, 2-0.
Aymen Abdennour and Fabinho netted to give the Ligue 1 outfit the result, and try as they might, Andre Villas-Boas' men simply didn't look likely to bag from open play.
Zenit registered just one shot on target, and their best chances looked likely to come from the left boot of Hulk at set pieces.
Monaco didn't have a plethora of chances, either, but they made the ones they did have count. The spoils of war were considerable, too, as Leonardo Jardim's men's spotless performance allowed them to progress as Group C winners.
Group D
4 of 8
| Team | Grade |
| Arsenal | A |
| Borussia Dortmund | C |
| Anderlecht | B |
| Galatasaray | D- |
In classic Arsene Wenger fashion, Arsenal again helped alleviate the pressure on their manager's shoulders with a seamless display in Europe, steamrolling Galatasaray, 4-1, in Instanbul.
Considering second place in Group D was already theirs, many will argue that it was a pointless result for the Gunners, but nevertheless, they were ruthless against a team that's looked dismal in Europe this term.
Aaron Ramsey and Lukas Podolski each had a brace to their name, and Arsenal dominated from the first minute until the last, even with Wenger having the comfort to field several fringe players and a couple of debutants to boot.
The only criticism may be that Gala were allowed to take a late consolation through Wesley Sneijder, but the north Londoners were otherwise flawless against their mediocre opposition.
Anderlecht's trip to Signal Iduna Park coaxed another gutsy performance out of the Belgian giants, and if this season has been a sign of things to come from the club, they can feel highly enthused about the future.
Aleksandar Mitrovic is not a new name to those familiar with European prodigies, and the Serbian did his part to earn his side a 1-1 draw against Borussia Dortmund, who led thanks to Ciro Immobile's opener.
The Black and Yellows were superior in every attacking sense, but as has been the case in their domestic form this season, they couldn't finish their chances and Anderlecht held firm for the large part.
Much of that was thanks to their goalkeeper, Silvio Proto, but Anderlecht can certainly be proud of the pressure they exerted upon Mitchell Langerak's goal.
Group E
5 of 8
| Team | Grade |
| Manchester City | A+ |
| Bayern Munich | A |
| Roma | D |
| CSKA Moscow | D+ |
Manchester City completed their miracle progression from Group E on Wednesday night, after second-half strikes from Samir Nasri and Pablo Zabaleta saw them record a 2-0 win at the Stadio Olimpico.
Losing at home for the second time in the group campaign, Roma were rightly ousted from the competition after failing to make their chances count, despite showing stern promise at the back in the opening periods.
Kostas Manolas in particular gave a good account of Rudi Garcia's defence, but the attacking efficiency of City's deep resources ultimately proved crucial in deciding the tie.
Eliaquim Mangala and Martin Demichelis also thrived under the pressure, showing that while Sergio Aguero may be out, the Citizens at least have talents still starring in defence.
Bayern Munich, meanwhile, cantered to a 3-0 win over CSKA Moscow, a game in which they boasted no less than 71.4 percent of possession, seldom allowing their Russian guests so much as a sniff at goal.
Seydou Doumbia did his best to ensure CSKA had some presence in attack, but such was the hosts' stellar ball retention, it became impossible to make the slightest dent.
Given the amount of chances Bayern had on goal, CSKA may even give themselves a consolatory pat on the back for managing to keep it down to a three-goal margin.
Group F
6 of 8
| Team | Grade |
| Barcelona | A+ |
| Paris Saint-Germain | B+ |
| Ajax | A |
| APOEL | D |
Just when doubts may have been creeping in about Luis Suarez's adaptation to Luis Enrique's setup, the Uruguayan bagged against Paris Saint-Germain to help solidify Barcelona's finish atop Group F.
The Blaugrana's 3-1 win meant the Spaniards leapfrogged their Ligue 1 foes and take the top-seeded qualification berth in Group F, with Lionel Messi and Neymar also getting on the scoresheet.
Despite the headline acts of their forward trio, Barca can actually thank the defence—and Marc Bartra in particular—for managing to repel Zlatan Ibrahimovic's probes for the large part—though the Swede did net PSG's goal.
The two teams were even in terms of shots at goal, Enrique's men merely had the patience and talent to make their chances count.
It was a case of too little, too late as far as Ajax were concerned, finishing the group campaign with a 4-0 trouncing of APOEL in Amsterdam on Wednesday.
Lasse Schone bagged a brace to go along with goals from Davy Klaassen and Arkadiusz Milik, a scoreline that matches what Barca achieved away against the Cypriots.
A long campaign has clearly taken its toll on a weakening APOEL line-up. The gulf in class told the difference, as the Dutch hosts made full use of their 67 per cent grip on possession, with several players putting in seamless performances.
Group G
7 of 8
| Team | Grade |
| Chelsea | A- |
| Schalke | B |
| Sporting Lisbon | B- |
| Maribor | B- |
Chelsea finished the group stage as the highest-scoring outfit in this season's Champions League, thanks to their 3-1 victory over Sporting Lisbon in what was a terrific demonstration of the Blues' depth.
Jose Mourinho saw fit to give second-stringers Kurt Zouma, Filipe Luis, John Obi Mikel, Mohamed Salah and Petr Cech starts, but their pedigree was more than enough to fend off the Portuguese threat.
The scoreline perhaps doesn't tell the full story, though, as Sporting did hold their own for patches, but a slow start saw them concede two in the first 16 minutes. From there, the tie was Chelsea's to play out.
Maribor were similarly unfortunate in their own backyard after surrendering all three points to a Schalke team that still can't seem to find its vicious side.
Roberto Di Matteo went with five at the back in Slovenia, making it of little surprise that the German outfit played out such a low-scoring affair, but their lack of conviction in attack isn't all that encouraging moving into the knockout rounds.
Group H
8 of 8
| Team | Grade |
| Porto | A |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | A |
| Athletic Bilbao | B |
| BATE Borisov | D- |
Porto struck late to secure a 1-1 draw against Shakhtar Donetsk in midweek, capping off the group stage with an unbeaten record to their name, despite having sewn up first place prior to Wednesday's fixture.
It was a closely matched tie for both sides, but with the top two already aware of their fate, a little passion was perhaps lacking among the offensive ranks.
The Dragons controlled almost two thirds of possession, but it was only in the 87th minute that Vincent Aboubakar netted their first, with Shakhtar made to pay for their failures on the ball.
Turnovers were regular for the visitors, and although Porto could have done more with their 14 attempts, they'll be glad to take the result.
Athletic Bilbao did their best to sign off the Champions League season with a flourish and managed just that with their most comfortable win in the competition.
A 2-0 result against bottom side BATE Borisov provided Ernesto Valverde's men with their first goals at home in the 2014-15 Champions League campaign, while the Belarusians were once again hopeless in defence.
BATE managed a miserable one shot on Athletic's goal in a display that summed up their 2014-15 Champions League plight.
All statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com.
