UEFA Champions League: Group Stage pt 6 - End of the Group Stage

 Matchday 6 ⚽🏆

Here were some highlights of the matchday:

• Cristiano Ronaldo scored two penalties for Juventus against Barcelona. The first time he had ever done so in his career.
• Man. Utd were eliminated from the competition after defeat from RB Leipzig in Germany.
• PSG vs Istanbul Basaksehir was suspended on Tuesday and resumed on Wednesday after an alleged racial incident.
• Inter Milan finished bottom of their group as Real Madrid beat B. Monchengladbach, leading to both teams securing qualification.
• I just made you read this bullet point 😂

Hello guys! This is it. The group stage of the 2020/21 UEFA Champions League season came to an end with verdicts being unfolded in all groups. There was heartbreak and there was joy. Let's take a look group by group.

Tuesday, 8 December 2020

Group G

Barcelona vs Juventus

Juventus goals: Cristiano Ronaldo 13' (p), 52' (p), Weston McKennie 20'

Quite the showdown this one. It was Messi versus Ronaldo for the first time since the Portuguese's transfer to Juventus. Ronaldo came out on top in this game after he scored two penalties, to begin and end the scoring of the game. Weston McKennie scored his first-ever Champions league goal with a spectacular volley, 7 minutes after Ronaldo's goal. Barcelona failed to get a goal and as a result, Juventus won the group via a better head-to-head record against the Catalans.

A clash of 🐐s

Dynamo Kyiv vs Ferencvaros 

Dynamo Kyiv goals: Denys Popov 60' 

After an hour of football, Denys Popov's header was the deciding factor in the game. It was a well whipped-in free-kick which found the young Popov, scoring his first-ever goal in the Champions League. Ferencvaros did create chances and looked for a handball in the first-half, however, they could not provide the firepower to discomfort the Ukrainian team. 

Dynamo off to the Europa League

Group F

Lazio vs Club Brugge 

Lazio goals: Joaquin Correa 12', Ciro Immobile 27' (p)

Club Brugge goals: Ruud Vommer 15', Hans Vanaken 76'

Club Brugge red cards: Eduard Sobol 39'

A Joaquin Correa tap-in and a Ciro Immobile penalty were enough to secure Lazio's qualification to the round of 16 for the first time since 1999. Club Brugge fought back through goals from Ruud Vommer and a strong header from Hans Vanaken. The Belgian side finished the game with 10 men as Eduard Sobol was shown a red card after a strong tackle on one of the Lazio players. 

Wet stalemate

Zenit vs Borussia Dortmund

Zenit goals: Sebastian Driussi 16'

B. Dortmund goals: Lukasz Piszczek 68', Axel Witsel 78'

Dortmund emerged the top team of the group after mastering a comeback against their Russian counterparts in this game. Zenit drew first blood threw a Sebastian Driussi strike and it took Dortmund till the second-half to respond thanks to quick thinking from Lukasz Piszczek for the equalizing goal and Axel Witsel with a well-controlled left footed strike to get Dortmund the 3 points. Zenit failed to get a win in the group.

Dortmund progress

Group E

Chelsea vs Krasnodar

Cheslea goals: Jorginho 28' (p)

Krasnodar goals: Remy Cabella 24'

Chelsea, already winners of the group, came with a chilled tone in this game. Krasnodar latched onto this chilled demeanor as Remy Cabella opened the scoring. It only took 4 minutes until Tammy Abraham was fouled in the penalty box, giving way for Jorginho to cancel out Cabella's shot and see both teams settle for a point. Krasnodar continue into the Europa League.

All square in London

Rennes vs Sevilla

Rennes goals: Georginio Rutter 86' (p)

Sevilla goals: Jules Kounde 32', Youssef En-Neysyri 45+2, 81'

Sevilla outclassed the French team in this game. Jules Kounde produced a gem of a strike to open the scoring for the Spanish team, and Youssef En-Neysri doubled the lead in the last moments of the first-half. En-Neysri was to get his brace later in the second-half to put the game well to bed. Rennes could only manage a consolation from a Georginio Rutter penalty five minutes after.

Sevilla dominant

Group H

RB Leipzig vs Manchester United

RB Leipzig goals: Angelino 2', Amadou Haidara 13', Justin Kluivert 69'

Man. Utd goals: Bruno Fernandes 80' (p), Harry Maguire/Paul Pogba 82'

Man. Utd saw their hopes of qualification dash out the window in this game. A sleepy start led to Angelino capitalize early, with Haidara following after in just under 18 minutes. The lead for the Germans extended when Justin Kluivert clipped the ball over David De Gea. Man. Utd began the comeback 10 minutes before injury time as Bruno Fernandes scored from the penalty-spot. Two minutes later, Man. Utd had a second goal, which was not clear to tell who the goal-scorer was 😅. Man. Utd will play Thursday night football next year.

Out and out 🎳

Wednesday, 9 November 2020

Paris Saint-Germain vs Istanbul Basaksehir

PSG goals: Neymar 21', 38', 50', Kylian Mbappe 42' (p), 62'

Istanbul goals: Mehmet Topal 57'

A game that will be remembered for the solidarity taken by the players of both teams after an alleged racial incident that led to the match's suspension. In its resumption, Neymar hit 3 past the Turkish side to take his goal tally to 6 in the competition. Kylian Mbappe scored his first Champions League goals of the year when he put away a penalty in the first-half and had an easy tap-in from an Angel Di Maria pass. Istanbul could only get a consolation from the ball coming off Mehmet Topal. PSG were winners of the group.

French fortitude

Group A

Bayern Munich vs Lokomotiv Moskva

Bayern goals: Niklas Sule 63', Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting 80'

The Champions were without main man Robert Lewandowksi in this game but they got the job done with the presence of other players. Bayern created chances in the first-half but did not find the net. It took till the 63rd minute for Niklas Sule to head home the game's first goal. Eric Choupo-Moting was to seal the game off ten minutes before injury time to give the Russian team minimal chance of a comeback. Bayern were unsurprising winners of this group as they aim to retain the trophy this season.

What can stop Bayern?

RB Salzburg vs Atletico Madrid

Atletico goals: Mario Hermoso 39', Yannick Carrasco 86'

Atletico made sure not to give Salzburg a chance of winning after Mario Hermoso scored his first goal for the club in the Champions League to put them in front going into the second-half. Atletico kept their lead intact and punished Salzburg for their missed chances 4 minutes before stoppage time as Yannick Carrasco produced a clean finish to put hammer on nail.

Salzburg come away with nothing

Group B

Inter Milan vs Shakhtar Donetsk

Inter Milan spoiled their chance of progressing to the round of 16 as they failed to get even a goal in this match. Likewise, Shakhtar failed to seize the opportunity after beating Real Madrid twice in the group. Alexis Sanchez had the chance of winning it for Inter but his header was blocked by teammate, Romelu Lukaku. A rather frustrating end to their 2020/21 campaign, similar to last season.

End of the road

Real Madrid vs Borussia Monchengladbach

Real Madrid goals: Karim Benzema 9', 31'

Real Madrid saved themselves from dropping to the Europa League by displaying resilient character against a dangerous B. Monchengladbach team. Karim Benzema scored two pin-point headers to give the Spanish team enough firepower to win the game. B. Monchengladbach couldn't quite find their spark in this game, but they too qualified to the round of 16 after being aware of the other match of the group.

A win was enough

Group C 

Olympiacos vs Porto

Porto goals: Otavio Edmilson da Silva Monteiro 10' (p), Mateus Uribe 77'

Olympiacos red cards: Ruben Semedo 79'

Porto cemented their qualification by getting the better of Olympiacos on their own turf. A VAR check in the 9th minute guaranteed Otavio Edmilson da Silva Monteiro the responsibility of taking a penalty which started Porto's game well. Olympiacos missed plenty of chances to score and paid for such when Mateus Uribe blasted in for the Portuguese team's second.

Porto outdoing Olympiacos

Manchester City vs Marseille

Man. City goals: Ferran Torres 48', Sergio Aguero 77', Alvaro Gonzalez 90' (OG)

Man. City have been nothing short of imposing in their group. No goals in the first-half because they came in the second. Ferran Torres started, and a returning Sergio Aguero also slipped onto the scoresheet. Raheem Sterling put enough pressure on Marseille's Alvaro Gonzalez to make it 3 for City. Marseille were simply toothless. Man. City and Porto move on.

City stride on

Group D

Ajax vs Atalanta

Atalanta goals: Luis Muriel 85'

Ajax were left gutted as they were also knocked out of the group stage last season, on the final matchday. Atalanta only needed the win and they achieved that from the foot of Luis Muriel. Atalanta make it to the round of 16 of the Champions League for the second-time in their history.

Round of 16 ticket booked

Midtjylland vs Liverpool

Midtjylland goals: Alexander Scholz 62' (p)

Liverpool goals: Mohamed Salah 1'

Mohamed Salah found the net within 60 seconds of the game to foil Midjylland's game plan. It worked, but not for very long. Alexander Scholz scored from the spot to give the debutant team an equalizer and with no further threat from both teams, the game finished in a draw. Midtjylland grabbed two points from two games despite finishing bottom of the group.

No fiery affair in this one

The results for matchday 6 were as follows:

Tuesday, 8 December 2020

Lazio 2-2 Club Brugge              ←Click here to watch this game

Zenit 1-2 B. Dortmund              ←Click here to watch this game

Rennes 1-3 Sevilla                     ←Click here to watch this game

Chelsea 1-1 Krasnodar              ←Click here to watch this game

Dynamo Kyiv 1-0 Ferencvaros     ←Click here to watch this game

Barcelona 0-3 Juventus               ←Click here to watch this game

RB Leipzig 3-2 Man. Utd            ←Click here to watch this game

Wednesday, 9 December 2020

PSG 5-1 Istanbul Basaksehir        ←Click here to watch this game

Ajax 0-1 Atalanta                         ←Click here to watch this game

Midtjylland 1-1 Liverpool            ←Click here to watch this game

Bayern Munich 2-0 Lokomotiv Moskva    ←Click here to watch this game

RB Salzburg 0-2 Atletico Madrid      ←Click here to watch this game

Inter Milan 0-0 Shaktar Donetsk        ←Click here to watch this game

Real Madrid 2-0 B. Monchengladbach    ←Click here to watch this game

Olympiacos 0-2 Porto          ←Click here to watch this game

Man. City 3-0 Marseille       ←Click here to watch game

Wow...it's all done now, the 2020/21 group stage 😳🥺, but anywho's 😂 we look forward to the round of 16 draw taking place 14 December. I'll be hoping to get that article done too. After that, I wait until February for the round of 16, so this is kind of my break.

It was a pleasure writing this guys. Stay tuned for news and player profiles ⚽🏆📰👤

See you at the draw ⚽❗🎰