Madrid Avoid Upset, Leicester Move Closer To Last 16 As Dortmund Qualify

Only Borussia Dortmund joined the early qualifiers, Arsenal, Paris, Atlético, Bayern in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, in a night of several dramas on Wednesday.

In Warsaw, Poland, Real Madrid movement to the next stage was frustrated by Legia Warszawa. The champions  blew a two goal lead and were almost heading home in defeat after Thibault Moulin shot the hosts ahead on the 83rd minute. But Mateo Kovacic cancelled the goal and handed Madrid a point.

In Turin, Lyon equalised late to  prevent Juventus and Sevilla from progressing.  And Radamel Falcao inspired Monaco to a handsome victory over CSKA Moskva.

Group E

Monaco 3-0 CSKA Moskva
Monaco strengthened their position as section leaders with this comfortable win. Valère Germain and a first-half double from Radamel Falcao, who now has 42 goals in 46 UEFA competition appearances, had the Ligue 1 club 3-0 up by half-time.

Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Bayer Leverkusen
Kevin Kampl silenced the majority of the 85,000 fans at Wembley when he made no mistake after a shot was deflected into his path. The Slovenian international’s 65th-minute breakthrough means the Werkself are two points clear of third-placed Spurs and the same number behind leaders Monaco.

Group F
Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Sporting CP
Adrián Ramos, deputising for the dropped Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, headed the Schwarzgelben into an early lead. It was sufficient for Thomas Tuchel’s men, who also rattled the crossbar through Christian Pulišić, to confirm their participation in the 12 December draw for the last 16. 

Legia Warszawa 3-3 Real Madrid
Legia mounted an unlikely comeback from 2-0 down, and momentarily led 3-2 late on, to prevent the holders from advancing. The visitors were cruising when Gareth Bale, with a thumping half-volley inside 60 seconds, and Karim Benzema struck. Vadis Odjidja and Miroslav Radović had other ideas and a famous result was in the offing when Thibault Moulin (83) scored with a shot via Keylor Navas’s left-hand post. Mateo Kovačić spared the Whites’ blushes.

Group G
København 0-0 Leicester City
Denmark No1 Kasper Schmeichel saved leaders Leicester from defeat with a last-gasp stop, diving to his right to palm away Andreas Cornelius’s downward header.

Porto 1-0 Club Brugge

A deflected André Silva header, the ball looping in off Brugge’s Tomás Pina, proved decisive in northern Portugal. It lifted the Dragons, now in outright second spot, to within three points of frontrunners Leicester and two clear of FCK in third.

Group H
Sevilla 4-0 Dinamo Zagreb
Luciano Vietto’s neat turn and finish just after the half-hour mark set Sevilla on their way. The 45th-minute dismissal of Petar Stojanovič made Dinamo’s task even stiffer and, sure enough, Sergio Escudero, Steven N’Zonzi and Wissam Ben Yedder added further gloss. Lyon’s late equaliser in Turin, however, kept the champagne on ice.

Juventus 1-1 Lyon
Gonzalo Higuaín’s first-half penalty seemed to have secured Juventus the victory they needed to progress. Lyon, however, levelled with five minutes left, Corentin Tolisso heading in Rachid Ghezzal’s free-kick and denying Gianluigi Buffon a clean sheet on his 100th appearance in the competition proper.

Source: UEFA.com