UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL RESULTS FOR ATLETICO DE MADRID - FC BARCELONA

UEFA Champions League Football tonight with the last games of the remaining Groups after yesterday matches settled the 8 Clubs from A to D that go through to the next stage of the tournament. Tonight two Spanish Football Clubs had Group duties that were already qualified except for FC Barcelona which was playing for the top spot of Group H something achieved after their victory, along with Atletico de Madrid which also won their match leaving out of Champions League their opponents Porto.

Here are all the final results - scores & goalscorers.

Atletico de Madrid won 2 - 0 Portuguese Club Porto in their Group G match & in the process eliminated the visitors from Champions. To stay alive Porto needed to win in Madrid with Zenit St Petersburg losing their match, the last part occured except for the first part.

Porto tried hard & may I add were extremely unlucky as Football can be very cruel. Firstly they missed a penalty in the 27th min stopped by Atletico goalkeeper Aranzubia in for Courtois. Secondly they hit the "wood-work" 4 times! This was extremely frustrating for Porto as they could not convert their chances.

Atletico on the other hand were lethal with their opportunities. Raul Garcia scored a "beauty" in the 14th min & later in the 37th min Diego Costa got the second goal. The damage was done relatively early to Oporto as the latter played uphill & full of nerves ever since.

This is European Football.

FC Barcelona had already qualified for the next round of Champions but was looking tonight against Celtic Glasgow to secure the top spot of Group H. The Spanish Football Club did so winning 6 - 1 with dominance & with an exhibition of Football that included a HAT-TRICK from Neymar.

Barça,  & Neymar,  were questioned in the last week for two straight losses ( Ajax & Athletic Bilbao in Liga ) with speculated dressing room rumbles & conflicts. Tonight they cleared "misunderstandings" again & got back into their winning way with a match performance that will shut a many mouths & lift their confidence. The goals came in the following order:

• Pique 6th min
• Pedro 40th min
• Neymar 45th min
• Neymar 48th min
• Neymar 58th min
• Tello 72nd min

Celtic managed a consolation goal from the Greek International forward Samaras in the 88th min.

Neymar tonight played in the position that Messi occupies normal & when fit & his performance has two interpretations: 

1 . Great news for Barça as there is a reliable substitute when Messi is not available,  & 

2. Now that there is a reliable "on the rise World Star" Messi is not longer indispensable. 

The Brazilian is quietly & progressively growing in stature at Barça, in Spanish Football & on the World stage. The upcoming Brazil World Cup Finals could make the youngster "the new King". Obviously lets be positive & see these developments & Neymar rise as a stimulus for Messi to make sure no one takes his throne just yet.

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UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE GROUP RESULTS | ATLETICO DE MADRID - FC BARCELONA

UEFA Champions League Group matches this Tuesday with Spanish Football Clubs Atletico de Madrid & FC Barcelona in action. Both Spanish Teams are secure for the next stage & have the role of deciding how the rest of the Clubs in their Groups fair especially for the important second place. Here are the final scores-results & all the goalscorers.

Russian Club Zenit St Petersburg hosted Atletico de Madrid in their Group G match. The Russians needed a win to open up their chances for the important second place of the Group. The final score was 1 - 1 & this leaves the Russians at the mercy of other results - the other Clubs in the Group - to which they have no control.

Atletico de Madrid went into this match with the top spot secured & left out 6 regular players to give the bench some playing time. This did not lower quality & intensity of the team as Zenit found out as the Spaniards played well & were very dangerous creating goal opportunities most of the match.

Zenit created their own chances but failed to convert while the Atletico defence lead by Miranda & goalie Courtois kept things relatively under control. Atletico was rewarded for their intense game in the 52nd min when in a deadly counter-attack Adrian scored to put Atletico ahead. The equalizer came for Zenit under unlucky circumstances when a ball hit Atletico defender Alderweireld (own goal) & lobbed the ball high towards the goal doing "strange things in the air" that put off goalie Courtois as the ball sneaked in the top corner of the goal.  

From here Zenit attacked more to find another goal but Atletico managed to starve off their fire & enthusiasm & secure the result which keeps the Spanish Football Club undefeated in Champions League. 

Ajax of Amsterdam managed a gutsy & well earned victory - with 10 men - over FC Barcelona in their Group H match. Barça needed a point to guarantee the top spot of the Group while Ajax needed a victory to keep alive their aspirations for the second Group place in competition with AC Milan who won their match against Celtic Glasgow.  The final result was 2 - 1 with a brilliant first half from Ajax & later withstanding the Barça onslaught in the 2º half with only 10 men. 

The match highlighted the importance of Sergi Busquets for Barça. The nearly "always" invisible midfielder was missing tonight & the Barça team was cut in half & without a bridge to balance the defensive & attacking forces. Song did his best but perhaps his lack of playing time showed, as did with Barça goalie Pinto who gave a few unnecessary scares during the game.

Ajax is a young team, with plenty enthusiasm & nerve which out possessed FC Barcelona in ball domination in the first half, something unheard off in the pass seasons when playing against the Spaniards. The Dutch side pressured & forced Barcelona to make mistakes, errors that brought about their first goal in the 19th min by Severo & their second in the 41st min by Hoesen. It was possibly the worst 45 min from Barcelona under Coach "Tata" Martino.

The second half started badly for Ajax & with relief for Barça. A terrible back pass by Ajax defender Van Rhijn gave not option to his team-mate Veltman to foul Neymar in the penalty area. The penalty was called & he received a red card leaving his side down to 10 men. The replay showed the foul was outside the area but Xavi Hernandez converted the penalty to give Barça wings in the 50th min.

From here onwards it was all one way traffic with Barça attacking in waves. The young Ajax team defended in mass & managed to keep out & halt the Barcelona efforts to take a memorable victory & important three points.

Barça was without important players Messi, Alves, Adriano, Alba, Valdes..., but this should not take away the enormous effort from the young Dutch team which played their game , their strategy & their goals. They after all were playing for their Champions League future.

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UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS | ATLETICO DE MADRID - FC BARCELONA GROUP GAME SCORES

UEFA Champions League tonight for the two remaining Spanish Football Clubs which were scheduled to play their Group games - Atletico de Madrid & FC Barcelona - with each gaining positive results & securing their place in the next stage of the tournament. Here are the final results - scores & all the goalscorers.

Atletico de Madrid won 4 - 0 Austria Vienna & secured the top spot of Group G & into the next stage. The Spanish Football Team continues with its "sweet moment" & it´s the 4th win in Champions League. Excellent Football & play from the beginning to the end that gave few options to the Austrian Team. The goals came in the following order:

• Miranda 10th min
• Raul Garcia 25th min
• Filipe Luis 46 th min
• Diego Costa 82nd min

The scoreline could have been more for At. Madrid but Diego Costa failed to convert a penalty opportunity after Austria Vienna goalie Linder stopped the shot. 

FC Barcelona managed to shake off an "annoying" AC Milan & finally win 3 - 1 in their Group H game. Barça secures their presence in the next stage of the Champions League tournament.

The first half saw Barça dominant as Milan defended & waited in their own half. With this attitude from the Italians it was not too long before the continuing Barça attacks would give their rewards. The first prize came in the 30th min when Milan defender Abate fouled Neymar in the area. Lionel Messi converted the penalty for the first goal of FC Barcelona. Did not take long before the second Barça goal came when Busquets converted a Xavi free kick into a 39th min goal. Then the surprise, right before the end of the 1ºst half a Kaka play ended in an own goal from Barça defender Pique. This was to lift Milan in the second half , bring on Balotteli & look for the equalizer.

The Milan change of mentality in the second half from defensive to attack paid dividends & had Barça on the back foot creating numerous chances of goal. What let Milan down was the lack of effectiveness & finishing that would have lifted the nerves of an already rattled Barça. In Football if you don´t take your chances you pay the price & Barça brought on Cesc Fabregas who gave a pass to Lionel Messi in the 82nd min & broke through the Milan defence to score the third. This took all the wind out of the Milan sails & the match ended 3 -1 for FC Barcelona.

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UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | FC BARCELONA - ATLETICO DE MADRID POSSIBLE STARTING 11 TEAM LINE UPS

UEFA Champions League ( Round 3 ) Football returns tonight with two Spanish Football Clubs in action: FC Barcelona & Atletico de Madrid. As habitual with Spanish Sports daily "Sport", they provided a pre-match infograph of the teams & their speculated possible starting XI line-ups.

FC Barcelona travels to AC Milan for their Group H match. Barça tops the Group with 6 points & Milan is second with 4 points. Important match for both if they wish to consolidate their Group & open up distance over their rivals. The Italians are not having their best season & are the underdogs for this encounter, plus there is a cloud over the state of form with Mario Balotelli, although some think its being over exaggerated by Milan in a psychological pre-match tactic. 

The speculated FC Barcelona starting 11 team line-up is:

Valdes, Alves, Pique, Mascherano ( Puyol ), Adriano, Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, Alexis, Messi & Neymar.

Spanish Football Club Atletico de Madrid travels to Vienna to play Austria Vienna in their Group G match. Atletico de Madrid currently tops the Group with 6 points while Austria Vienna is third with 1 point. For the home side a victory is extremely important to stay alive in the competition while Atletico could put a foot into the next stage of Champions League with  a victory.  The only doubt with Atletico is with its inform player Diego Costa who is suffering injury & is doubtful, although there is a slight chance he may make it. Just in case, Adrian is available to take the position.

The speculated Atletico de Madrid starting 11 team line-up is

Courtois, Juanfran, Miranda, Godin, Felipe Luis, Mario Suarez, Gabi, Koke, Arda Turan, Diego Costa ( Adrian ) & David Villa. 

In both cases, the teams are speculations & may easily suffer changes before the games. From here we wish luck to both Spanish Football Clubs tonight.

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE GROUP RESULTS | VALENCIA CF - FC BARCELONA

Will apologize from the onset for this post which will be brief & not as extensive as usual. Tough & long day at the office, past midnight & just got in.

However, enough about my woes, your here for Spanish Football news & Clubs, & two of them had Champions League Group duties tonight with good results. Here are the final results & the goalscorers.

Soldado

VALENCIA CF won away to BATE BORISOV 0 - 3 in their Group G match. The Spanish team keeps the momentum of recent good play & results & their forward ROBERTO SOLDADO starred with a HAT - TRICK. Three great goal scored in the 45th, 55th & 68th min.

Iniesta

FC BARCELONA won their Group F game against CELTIC GLASGOW 2 - 1 & in the 94th min via the JORDI ALBA winner. The Scots played a great match, brave & withstanding. They gave Barça a few shakes including the opener by SAMARAS in the 18th min. ANDRES INIESTA put things back in place with his 45th min equalizer.

FC Barcelona played better & controlled the ball more & Celtic goalie Foster was a "wall" keeping out numerous clear opportunities from Barcelona. Even the post got into the party against Barça wishes , but they managed the victory which is what finally counts.

Deserved win by Barça,  but by a hairs breath. 

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TUESDAY GROUP RESULTS | VALENCIA CF - FC BARCELONA WIN

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Group duties for SPANISH FOOTBALL Clubs Valencia CF & FC Barcelona tonight. Here are the final results with all the scorers.

JONAS

VALENCIA CF hosted French Club LILLE for their Group F encounter. The Spanish team needed to win tonight in order to maintain themselves with real hopes of being a contender to pass the Group stage.

Tonight they got their game together with dominate Football & a very synchronized  forward line that allowed Valencia to win 2 - 0. Soldado connected well with JONAS who had his night scoring both goals, first in the 38th min & the second in the 74th min.
Lille lost Debuchy to a red card in the 86th min.

Vital three points for the Spaniards & a real confidence booster that will lift their spirits after an uneven start to this season.

Fabregas

FC BARCELONA travelled to the always difficult Stadium of BENFICA to play their Group G match. They managed a deserved 0 - 2 victory over the Portuguese Club with moments of total dominance & multiple chances.

Benfica also had their periods of good Football & were only stopped by a agile Barça goalie in Valdes. Said this, Benfica also missed their opportunities & with Barça you usually pay a high price.

Barça got their first goal in the 6th min when ALEXIS slipped in a Messi pass. The second came via CESC FABREGAS in the 55th min with again Messi setting the whole situation up by dragging defenders to give Cesc a clear run & shot.

The end of the game gave us terrible news for Carles Puyol who serious injured his elbow & it all looked very bad. Unlucky for the Barça Captain who had recovered from another injury to be in this match tonight. The other unfortunate event was the Busquets sending off with a red card towards the end. A red card which was harsh & perhaps not necessary to show from the referee.

End result, a win & three points for Barça, which sets them up for this weekends big "Clasico" against Real Madrid in La Liga.

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE GROUP G 2010 - 2011 RESULT | REAL MADRID 4 AUXERRE 0 | BENZEMA HAT-TRICK

The last Spanish Club with CHAMPIONS LEAGUE duties tonight was REAL MADRID hosting French team AUXERRE in their Group G match. The Spanish side lined up an "alternative team" to give some of the substitutes a run while Xabi & Ramos served suspensions  & Casillas, Ozil, Di Maria & Khedira had a rest. The opening 11 were:

Dudek; Arbeloa, Albiol, Carvalho, Marcelo; Lass, Granero, Diarra; Pedro León, Benzema & Cristiano Ronaldo


Real Madrid had the Top Group spot assured & Auxerre were playing more for their pride. The final result ended with a 4 - 0 victory to Real Madrid, the debut of 18 year old Madrid youngster SARABIA, an injury to Dudek at the end of the 1ºst half thus giving another youngster ADAN a run & the HAT-TRICK of KARIM BENZEMA.

Cristiano Ronaldo scores against Auxerre

The French team was fairly "timid" most of the first half ( & most of the night) & Real Madrid dominated the ball with Cristiano Ronaldo finding BENZEMA in the 17th min for the Frenchmen to header the opener. From here the French team found their best moments & even brought out two goal stopping saves from Dudek before being retired with a jaw injury after colliding with an Auxerre player in the 45th min.

Hat-Trick man Karim Benzema

The 2ºhalf started strong for the home team when CRISTIANO RONALDO riffled a Marcelo pass for the second goal in the 47th min. Auxerre had some minor opportunities but Real was in control with BENZEMA scoring his second & third for Madrid in the 71st min. CR7 retired to allow youngster SARABIA to debut & he did some interesting things showing why he is considered a "promise". Then in the 88th min BENZEMA anticipated the French goalkeeper pass to a defender which he stole & chipped into the goal for his HAT TRICK. The French forward was visibly happy with his three goals & we all hope this manages to lift his confidence & assist him to continue improving with his play.

Real Madrid now waits until the next stage "knock-out" team match ups draw on the 17th of December to be held in Lyon (France). Will the next opponent be Inter Milan, Arsenal, Copenhague...? Stay tuned. Tweet

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE GROUP G 2010 - 2011 RESULT | AC MILAN 2 REAL MADRID 2

The CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Group G match between AC MILAN - REAL MADRID finished with a 2-2 draw result. However before I get into the details there is something that I which to leave clear forever in the cyber-space: the Football - Soccer Referee Howard Webb is a very bad Referee. Mr Webb highlighted his poor umpiring manners in the FIFA World Cup Final & tonight he showed his total incompetence with three Red Cards that he did not show to the Italians & a second Milan goal which was clearly off-side as the image below illustrates.

AC Milan Inzaghi second goal offside that wasn´t called.

Back to the game. A magnificent spectacle between theses two great historical European Clubs which started intensely & was a nail bitter right up till the end. Real Madrid continues another year not being able to win a European game at San Siro & the "curse" remains, although the Spanish Club will be glad to secure their qualification for the next phase of the Champions League. 

Gonzalo Higuain scores Real Madrid´s first goal

After the Italians put on a tough atmosphere on the field with tight pressure right from the beginning, Real Madrid winger DI MARIA gave a "golden pass" to GONZALO HIGUAIN who scored the opener in the 45th min & become the player to score Real Madrid s  700th European Cup goal. Before this Pirlo had stopped two clear goal opportunities off his own line & goal keeper Abbiati had done some great saves to keep Milan still breathing after the first 45 minutes of the match.

Gattuso was a sticky thorn on the limit of the rules

AC Milan midfielder & Captain GATTUSO took his play to the very limit of the rules to become a Milan hero & idol tonight, & a player who should have been sent off with a Red Card on various occasions for the Spanish, along with defender Abate & Inzaghi before scoring his goals.

Inzaghi equalizes for AC Milan

But along with the local hero Gattuso, veteran Milan striker INZAGHI came on in the second half & managed to score two goals - 67th min & 71st min - with the first coming from a terrible Pepe slip while defending Ibrahimovic who passed & the second goal that was a clear offside that was not given. Inzaghi continues & gets ahead of Spaniard Raul as European Footballs highest goal scorer with 70 goals.

Pedro Leon scores the equalizer for Real Madrid - 94th min

Real Madrid Coach Mourinho reacted & put on Pedro Leon & Karim Benzema to give the Spanish Club fresh legs upfront & attempt to equalize. The endeavour looked almost impossible as the Italian were holding on with all the strength, until Benzema grabbed the ball midfield & passed the straight onto PEDRO LEON in the area who shot the ball under Milan keepers Abbiati´s legs to put in the second & the equalizer in the 94th min.

Bitter sweet end for Real Madrid who failed to win in San Siro, they could have done better if they had put in their many & earlier chances & were unfairly affected by some terrible referee errors. However, they should be very happy for their game comeback & for securing their participation for the next stage. Tweet

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REAL MADRID 2 AC MILAN 0 | RESULT GROUP G CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2010 - 2011

REAL MADRID CF practically ensured its qualification onto the next stage of the 2010 - 2011 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE after they defeated 2 - 0 AC MILAN in their Group G match,  thus making it three straight wins to secure top spot of the group ladder with 9 points. The result was just as Real Madrid could have scored three - four more clear goals had luck gone their way. 

Cristiano Ronaldo scores against AC Milan from a free kick

The damage was done early when CRISTIANO RONALDO in the 13th min powered a free-kick that went through a "defensive hole" in the Milan wall. There was nothing the Italian goalkeepr could do as he was taken by complete surprise. Then a minute later while Milan was still recovering from that blow, Real Madrid midfielder OZIL scored the teams second with a deflection from defender Bonera which again left the Milan keeper without options.

Ozil scores Real Madrid´s second goal in the 14th min

AC Milan reacted & actually took control of the match for about 15 mins & created good chances that were not driven home. Midfieder Seedorf sent a shiver through the Madrid spine when he missed a clear chance that woke up Madrid again who took back control of ball & game. This time Ronaldo , Di Maria & Higuain was stopped by an effective Milan keeper Amelia who made important saves to avoid a "white-wash".

The second half was practically all Real Madrid as they attacked & attacked but could not convert the 2 - 0 lead into something more in line with the actual play on the field. Milan only managed to scare Madrid a couple of times with a Pirlo free-kick that hit the bar & Robinho (sub-late) whos shot was stopped by Casillas.


Various observations before ending. Real Madrid are progressing in a positive manner as they are managing to effectively build a solid block with everyone defending & pressuring the opponents. Di Maria , Ozil & Higuain not only played forward but defended all night in their own area , running & stopping the Milan creation. Khedira is complementing magnificently Xabi Alonso allowing the latter freedom to be more creative, along with a very solid & disciplined defensive line that was great tonight in all aspects. But it is Brazilian MARCELO who for me was "Man of The Match" with his excellent defending & forward attacks that showed that he is evolving rapidly into a World Class Level player, & still so young. Lastly, Ronaldo does not need words with his 100% effort, danger & skills, forgetting that his temper showed signs tonight during moments of the game.

In conclusion, a great result , with this important test for Real Madrid getting an A note as it indicates that Mourinho is progressing with his ideas & with this team & that they only can get better & better. Tweet

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FIFA WORLD CUP 2010 | 32 TEAMS | GROUP G

Source Blog: Sp Ftball Sprts /
Today we feature GROUP G of the upcoming FIFA WORLD CUP 2010. A difficult group with Top Nations that will eventual meet up in the finals stage of the tournament with the Group where Spain is found, a Group that will be featured tomorrow.

GROUP G

BRAZIL
NTH KOREA

IVORY COAST
PORTUGAL

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