UEFA Champions League 2014: Updated Groups and Tracking Last-16 Qualified Teams
Four groups wrapped up their group-stage action on Tuesday, as the final seedings of the first eight teams moving to the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League became clear.
Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Borusia Dortmund and Arsenal had already qualified from these four groups, and they were joined by Juventus, FC Basel, AS Monaco and Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday.
Manchester City and Schalke 04 joined the group on Wednesday, setting the field of 16 teams still in the running to win this year's Champions League trophy.
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Here's the full schedule for Matchday 6 of the Champions League:
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Juventus | 0 - 0 | Atletico Madrid |
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Olympiakos | 4 - 2 | Malmo FF |
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Liverpool | 1 - 1 | Basel |
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Real Madrid | 4 - 0 | PFC Ludogorets Razgrad |
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Benfica | 0 - 0 | Bayer Leverkusen |
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Monaco | 2 - 0 | Zenit St. Petersburg |
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Borussia Dortmund | 1 - 1 | Anderlecht |
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Galatasaray | 1 - 4 | Arsenal |
| Wednesday, Dec. 10 | Bayern Munich | 3 - 0 | CSKA Moscow |
| Wednesday, Dec. 10 | Roma | 0 - 2 | Manchester City |
| Wednesday, Dec. 10 | Ajax | 4 - 0 | APOEL Nicosia |
| Wednesday, Dec. 10 | Barcelona | 3 - 1 | Paris Saint Germain |
| Wednesday, Dec. 10 | Chelsea | 3 - 1 | Sporting CP |
| Wednesday, Dec. 10 | Maribor | 0 - 1 | Schalke 04 |
| Wednesday, Dec. 10 | Athletic Bilbao | 2 - 0 | BATE Borisov |
| Wednesday, Dec. 10 | FC Porto | 1 - 1 | Shakhtar Donetsk |
Here are the updated group standings:
| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Atletico Madrid | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 3 | 11 | 13 |
| 2 | Juventus | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 10 |
| 3 | Olympiakos | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 13 | -3 | 9 |
| 4 | Malmo FF | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 15 | -11 | 3 |
| 1 | Real Madrid | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 14 | 18 |
| 2 | Basel | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 8 | -1 | 7 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 9 | -4 | 5 |
| 4 | PFC Ludogorets Razgrad | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 14 | -9 | 4 |
| 1 | Monaco | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 11 |
| 2 | Bayer Leverkusen | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 10 |
| 3 | Zenit St. Petersburg | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | -2 | 7 |
| 4 | Benfica | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 6 | -4 | 5 |
| 1 | Borussia Dortmund | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 4 | 10 | 13 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 8 | 7 | 13 |
| 3 | Anderlecht | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 10 | -2 | 6 |
| 4 | Galatasaray | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 19 | -15 | 1 |
| 1 | Bayern Munich | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 4 | 12 | 15 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 8 |
| 3 | Roma | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 14 | -6 | 5 |
| 4 | CSKA Moscow | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 13 | -7 | 5 |
| 1 | Barcelona | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 15 |
| 2 | Paris Saint Germain | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 13 |
| 3 | Ajax | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 10 | -2 | 5 |
| 4 | APOEL Nicosia | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 12 | -11 | 1 |
| 1 | Chelsea | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 3 | 14 | 14 |
| 2 | Schalke 04 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 14 | -5 | 8 |
| 3 | Sporting CP | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 7 |
| 4 | Maribor | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 13 | -9 | 3 |
| 1 | FC Porto | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 4 | 12 | 14 |
| 2 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 15 | 4 | 11 | 9 |
| 3 | Athletic Bilbao | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 6 | -1 | 7 |
| 4 | BATE Borisov | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 24 | -22 | 3 |
And here is the full list of teams that have qualified for the knockout stages (*indicates group winners):
| A | Atletico Madrid* | E | Bayern Munich* |
| A | Juventus | E | Manchester City |
| B | Real Madrid* | F | Barcelona* |
| B | Basel | F | PSG |
| C | Monaco* | G | Chelsea* |
| C | Bayer Leverkusen | G | Schalke 04 |
| D | Dortmund* | H | Porto* |
| D | Arsenal | H | Shakhtar |
Manchester City beat AS Roma, Advance to Round of 16
Only two more spots were up for grabs on Wednesday, with Premier League champions Manchester City grabbing one of the tickets thanks to a 2-0 win away at AS Roma.
Schalke 04 booked their spot in the round of 16 with a 1-0 win in Maribor, leaping over Sporting Lisbon, who suffered a 3-1 loss at Chelsea.
The Citizens needed to win at the Stadio Olimpico to have any chance of qualifying for the knockout stages, and AS Roma's official Twitter account reminded the team of their record on Italian soil after their first meeting, via Bleacher Report UK:
The Giallorossi had the brighter start and needed only a draw to qualify, but Joe Hart played a wonderful first half, denying Gervinho from a sure goal with a fantastic save.
The players were visibly nervous at the start of the second half, knowing a single goal could turn the match on its head. And an hour into the match, Samir Nasri blew the fixture wide open with a bang, per Paddy Power:
Due to the head-to-head permutations, the Romans needed to win the match, as a 1-1 draw would still see City qualify. The hosts pushed forward but luck eluded them, with one shot being cleared off the line and another stranding on the post.
And as so often is the case in football, Roma were punished for their inefficiency on the other end of the pitch. Nasri found Pablo Zabaleta, who didn't miss, via City Watch:
"Zabaleta's goal with the superb Nasri involved again. https://t.co/bLqiWdA38O
— City Watch (@City_Watch) December 10, 2014"
Bayern Munich's 3-0 win over CSKA Moscow means the Russians are eliminated from European competition and Roma will move down to the Europa League. City will go into Monday's draw for the Champions League's round of 16 as runners-up in Group E.
Match-winner Nasri was proud of the squad, as he told Sky Sports after the match (h/t Football Italia):
"I think the performance of the team was amazing.
It was important for me to score, after the surgery I took a while to get to my full level, now I am. With Yaya Toure and Kun Aguero missing, it was important to show we were a team and we did it.
At 1-0 the save Joe Hart made was amazing.
"
Joining the Citizens in Pot 2 for the draw on Monday are Schalke 04, with Max Meyer scoring the only goal in their 1-0 win over Maribor. The Germans needed Sporting to lose at Stamford Bridge to qualify, and Chelsea did their duty on Wednesday, winning 3-1.
Bundesliga VAVEL's Marco Conradie was far from satisfied, however:
"Max Meyer was the hero for Die Köningsblauen, but they very nearly threw it all away with a couple of quite mediocre prior performances.
— Marco Conradie (@MarcoConradie10) December 10, 2014"
The draw will take place on Monday in Nyon, Switzerland, where the full schedule of the round of 16 will be determined. Teams from the same association can't be paired together, and clubs can't meet an opponent from the group stages.
Juventus Go Through, Heartbreak for Liverpool
Juventus secured their spot in the knockout stages with a goalless draw against last year's finalists Atletico Madrid, while Liverpool battled until the final seconds but ultimately fell short against FC Basel.
The Bianconeri enjoyed the bulk of possession but were saved by veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon on several occasions against Atletico, who had already qualified for the knockout stages.
The best of the lot came after just seven minutes, as shared by this fan:
"La parada de Gianluigi Buffon a Koke. Qué gran portero sigue siendo pese a sus 36 años. https://t.co/69XaDNOBXO
— ALBERTO (@Albertprat19) December 9, 2014"
Olympiakos needed the Italian champions to lose on Tuesday and beat Malmo to advance, and the Greeks held up their end, knocking the Swedes out of Europe by winning 4-2. The Spanish champions could come through, however, meaning Olympiakos will be relegated to the Europa League.
They'll be joined by Liverpool, who didn't do enough at Anfield to get past Basel, playing out a 1-1 draw. Steven Gerrard gave the Reds hope with a splendid free-kick after the visitors had taken a first-half lead.
KICK TV shared the Vine:
Lazar Markovic had been dismissed prior to that goal after he appeared to swipe at Behrang Safari's face. Even with just 10 men on the pitch, though, the hosts fought valiantly until the final whistle.
The Swiss side were the better team on the night, however, and deservedly booked their spot in the round of 16. As shared by The Independent's Ian Herbert, manager Brendan Rodgers agreed:
Group D had already been decided coming into Tuesday's fixtures, but Group C was still wide open. Monaco grabbed qualification and the top seed by beating Zenit St. Petersburg 2-0, and Bayer Leverkusen will also advance after a goalless draw with already eliminated Benfica Lisbon.
Manchester City will battle for their Champions League survival against AS Roma on Wednesday, while Sporting and Schalke can still qualify from Group G, where Chelsea are already sure of the top seed.
