Europa League: Another great night for Russian clubs

In Group B, Rubin Kazan held Bordeaux in a goalless draw at home; in Group C Krasnodar beat Qäbälä FK 2-1 and in Group H, Lokomotiv Moskva beat the Albanian visitors Skënderbeu 2-0. After this week's Champions League successes, another great night for Russian soccer.

Europa League Matchday 2

Rubin Kazan held the visitors Bordeaux, enjoying 2 shots on target to the visitors' 1, while the French team had 8 shots in total against 6. Rubin gets the first point of the operation in Group B. In Group C, Krasnodar: Wanderson (8) and Smolov (84) scored for the home team against a spirited Qäbälä from Azerbaijan, which saw Dodô equalize on 51'. Three points for the Russian side. In Group H, Lokomotiv Moskva sums 6 points from two games, this time beating the Albanians Skënderbeu with goals from Niasse (35) and Samedov (73).

Matchday 2 results and standings

Group A

Celtic 2 Fenerbahçe SK 2; Molde FK 1 Ajax 1

 Matchday 1

AFC Ajax (Netherlands) 2 Celtic FC (Scotland) 2

Fenerbahçe SK (Turkey) 1 Molde FK (Norway) 3

 

Ajax 4; Molde 4; Celtic 2, Fenerbahçe SK 1

 

Group B

Rubin 0 Bordeaux 0; Liverpool 1 Sion 1

  

Matchday 1

FC Girondins de Bordeaux (France) 1 Liverpool FC (England) 1

FC Sion (Switzerland) 2 FC Rubin Kazan (Russia) 1

 

Sion 4; Bordeaux 2; Liverpool 2; Rubin 1

 

Group C

Krasnodar 2 Qäbälä FK 1; PAOK 1 Dortmund 1

 

Matchday 1

Borussia Dortmund (Germany) 2 FC Krasnodar (Russia) 1

Qäbälä FK (Azerbaijan) 0 PAOK FC (Greece) 0

 

Dortmund 4; Krasnodar 3; PAOK 2; Qäbälä FK 1

 

Group D

Brugge 1 FC Midtjylland 3; Legia 0 Napoli 3

 

Matchday 1

FC Midtjylland (Denmark) 1 Legia Warszawa (Poland) 0

SCC Napoli (Italy) 5 Club Brugge KV (Belgium) 0

 

Napoli 6; FC Midtjylland 6; Brugge 0; Legia 0

 

Group E

D. Minsk 0 R. Wien 1; Villarreal 1 Plzeň 0

  

Matchday 1

FC Viktoria Plzeň (Czech Republic) 2 FC Dinamo Minsk (Belarus) 0

SK Rapid Wien (Austria) 2 Villarreal CF (Spain) 1

 

Wien 6; Plzeň 3; Villarreal 3; Minsk 0

 

Group F

Marseille 0 Liberec 1; Sp. Braga 1 Groningen 0

 

Matchday 1

FC Groningen (Netherlands) 0 Olympique de Marseille (France) 3

FC Slovan Liberec (Slovakia) 0 SC Braga (Portugal) 1

 

Braga 6; Liberec 3; Marseille 3; Groningen 0

 

Group G

Rosenborg 0 Dnipro 1; Lazio 3 St-Étienne 2

  

Matchday 1

FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (Ukraine) 1 SS Lazio (Italy) 1

AS Saint-Étienne (France) 2 Rosenborg BK (Norway) 2

 

Dnipro 4; Lazio 4; Rosenborg 1; St-Etienne 1

 

Group H

Beşiktaş 1 Sporting CP 1; L. Moskva 2 Skënderbeu 0

  

Matchday 1

Sporting Clube de Portugal (Portugal) 1 FC Lokomotiv Moskva (Russia) 3

KF Skënderbeu (Albania) 0 Beşiktaş JK (Turkey) 1

 

Lokomotiv 6; Beşiktaş 4; Sporting 1; Skënderbeu 0

 

Group I

Belenenses 0 Fiorentina 4; Basel 2 Lech P 0

  

Matchday 1

ACF Fiorentina (Italy) 1 FC Basel 1893 (Switzerland) 2

KKS Lech Poznań (Poland) 0 Os Belenenses (Portugal) 0

 

Basel 6; Fiorentina 3; Lech P. 1; Belenenses 1

 

Group J

Qarabağ 1 Anderlecht 0; Monaco 1 Tottenham 1

  

Matchday 1

RSC Anderlecht (Belgium) 1 AS Monaco FC (France) 1

Tottenham Hotspur FC (England) 3 Qarabağ FK (Azerbaijan) 1

 

 Tottenham 4; Qarabağ 3; Monaco 2; Anderlecht 1

 

Group K

Sp. Praha 2 APOEL 0; Schalke 4 Asteras 0

  

Matchday 1

Asteras Tripolis FC (Greece) 1 AC Sparta Praha (Czech Republic) 1

APOEL FC (Cyprus) 0 FC Schalke 04 (Germany) 3

 

Schalke 6; Sparta Praha 4; Asteras 1; APOEL 0

 

Group L

Augsburg 1 Partizan 3; AZ 2 Athletic 1

 

Matchday 1

Athletic Club (Spain) 3 FC Augsburg (Germany) 1

FK Partizan (Serbia) 3 AZ Alkmaar (Netherlands) 2

 

Partizan Beograd 6; AZ Alkmaar 3; Athletic 3; Augsburg 0

 

 

Europa League Matchday 1

 

 

Lokomotiv brings three points back from Lisbon

Sporting Club de Portugal 1 Lokomotiv Moskva 3 in Group H was the best result of the day for the three Russian teams in the Europa League; in Group B, FC Rubin Kazan lost at FC Sion in Switzerland by 2-1, the same result as FC Krasnodar (Group C) at Borussia Dortmund.

 

Group B: FC Sion 2 FC Rubin Kazan 1. Konaté scored for Sion on 11' and after the break Kanunnikov equalized after 65'. However, on 82', Konaté got his second and the winner. Rubin had slightly more ball possession but Sion was far more aggressive, launching 15 shots, seven on goal, against the visitors' seven shots, three on target. At the end of the evening nobody could deny that Ryzhikov had far more work than Vanins in goal.

 

Group C: Dortmund 2 FC Krasnodar 1. Mamaev shot the visiting team ahead after just 12 minutes but the celebrations ended on the stroke of half time, when Ginter equalized on 45+1. The second half proceeded with more pressure from Dortmund but Krasnodar had various attacks and chances, however the save of the night was from Andriy Dykan, the Russian side's goalkeeper. Park scored the winner on 93+3.

 

Group H: Sporting Club de Portugal 1 FC Lokomotiv Moskva 3. Samedov stunned the Lisbon crowd on 12', set up by Niasse, and until half time, both sides had chances, although as the game went on it became clear that Baye Oumar Niasse was the man of the match and the playmaker. After the break, Montero equalized for Sporting but six minutes later Samedov got his second, again set up by Niasse. On 65', Lokomotiv scored the third, a goal from...Niasse.

  

Matchday 1 games

 

Group A

AFC Ajax (Netherlands) 2 Celtic FC (Scotland) 2

Fenerbahçe SK (Turkey) 1 Molde FK (Norway) 3

 

Group B

FC Girondins de Bordeaux (France) 1 Liverpool FC (England) 1

FC Sion (Switzerland) 2 FC Rubin Kazan (Russia) 1

 

Group C

Borussia Dortmund (Germany) 2 FC Krasnodar (Russia) 1

Qäbälä FK (Azerbaijan) 0 PAOK FC (Greece) 0

 

Group D

FC Midtjylland (Denmark) 1 Legia Warszawa (Poland) 0

SCC Napoli (Italy) 5 Club Brugge KV (Belgium) 0

 

Group E

FC Viktoria Plzeň (Czech Republic) 2 FC Dinamo Minsk (Belarus) 0

SK Rapid Wien (Austria) 2 Villarreal CF (Spain) 1

 

Group F

FC Groningen (Netherlands) 0 Olympique de Marseille (France) 3

FC Slovan Liberec (Slovakia) 0 SC Braga (Portugal) 1

 

Group G

FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (Ukraine) 1 SS Lazio (Italy) 1

AS Saint-Étienne (France) 2 Rosenborg BK (Norway) 2

 

 

Group H

Sporting Clube de Portugal (Portugal) 1 FC Lokomotiv Moskva (Russia) 3

KF Skënderbeu (Albania) 0 Beşiktaş JK (Turkey) 1

 

 

Group I

ACF Fiorentina (Italy) 1 FC Basel 1893 (Switzerland) 2

KKS Lech Poznań (Poland) 0 Os Belenenses (Portugal) 0

 

Group J

RSC Anderlecht (Belgium) 1 AS Monaco FC (France) 1

Tottenham Hotspur FC (England) 3 Qarabağ FK (Azerbaijan) 1

 

 

Group K

Asteras Tripolis FC (Greece) 1 AC Sparta Praha (Czech Republic) 1

APOEL FC (Cyprus) 0 FC Schalke 04 (Germany) 3

 

 

Group L

Athletic Club (Spain) 3 FC Augsburg (Germany) 1

FK Partizan (Serbia) 3 AZ Alkmaar (Netherlands) 2

 

Matchday 3 October 22

Matchday 4 November 5

Matchday 5 November 26

Matchday 6 December 10

 

 

The groups

Group A

AFC Ajax (Netherlands) Celtic FC (Scotland) Fenerbahçe SK (Turkey) Molde FK (Norway)

 

Group B

FC Girondins de Bordeaux (France) FC Rubin Kazan (Russia) FC Sion (Switzerland) Liverpool FC (England)

 

Group C

Borussia Dortmund (Germany) FC Krasnodar (Russia) PAOK FC (Greece) Qäbälä FK (Azerbaijan)

 

Group D

Club Brugge KV (Belgium) FC Midtjylland (Denmark) Legia Warszawa (Poland) SCC Napoli (Italy)

 

Group E

FC Dinamo Minsk (Belarus) FC Viktoria Plzeň (Czech Republic) SK Rapid Wien (Austria) Villarreal CF (Spain)

  

Group F

FC Groningen (Netherlands) FC Slovan Liberec (Slovakia) Olympique de Marseille (France) SC Braga (Portugal)

 

Group G

AS Saint-Étienne (France) FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (Ukraine) Rosenborg BK (Norway) SS Lazio (Italy)

 

Group H

Beşiktaş JK (Turkey) FC Lokomotiv Moskva (Russia) KF Skënderbeu (Albania) Sporting Clube de Portugal (Portugal)

 

Group I

ACF Fiorentina (Italy) FC Basel 1893 (Switzerland) KKS Lech Poznań

 (Poland) Os Belenenses (Portugal)

 

Group J

AS Monaco FC (France) Qarabağ FK (Azerbaijan) RSC Anderlecht (Belgium) Tottenham Hotspur FC (England)

 

Group K

AC Sparta Praha (Czech Republic) APOEL FC (Cyprus) Asteras Tripolis FC (Greece) FC Schalke 04 (Germany)

 

Group L

Athletic Club (Spain) AZ Alkmaar (Netherlands) FC Augsburg (Germany) FK Partizan (Serbia)

 

 

 

 

Champions League: Matchday 2

 

Groups ABCD played tonight in the Champions League, another great night for Russia after Zenit's six points from two games; CSKA Moskva got off the mark with all three points in the home win over PSV by three goals to two. Musa and Seydou Doumbia put the game out of the Dutch side's reach before half time.

 

CSKA Moskva used the same tactic as Zenit, soaking up the pressure, giving away ball possession (39 to 61%) and launching lethal attacks. While both teams had 16 shots and PSV had eight on target against the home side's five, CSKA was three up by half-time, with an early goal by Ahmed Musa (7'), after a corner was not cleared by the visiting defence. This was followed by a brace from Seydou Doumbia (21', a header and 36', penalty).

 

Maxime Lestienne scored on the hour and just before the end on 88'.

 

Group A Shakhtar Donetsk 0 Paris Saint-Germain 3; Malmö 0 Real Madrid 2

 

Matchday 1

Real Madrid CF (Spain) 4 FC Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) 0

Paris Saint-Germain (France) 2 Malmö FF (Sweden) 0

 

Real Madrid 6 points, PSG 6, Malmö 0 Shakhtar Donetsk 0

 

Group B Man. United 2 Wolfsburg 1; CSKA Moskva 3 PSV 2

Matchday 1

VfL Wolfsburg (Germany) 1 PFC CSKA Moskva (Russia) 0

PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) 2 Manchester United FC (England) 1

  

CSKA 3, Man. United 3, Wolfsburg 3, PSV 3

  

Group C Astana 2 Galatasaray 2; Atlético 1 Benfica 2

  

Matchday 1

Galatasaray AŞ (Turkey) 0 Club Atlético de Madrid (Spain) 2

SL Benfica (Portugal) 2 FC Astana (Kazakhstan) 0

  

Benfica 6 Atlético 3, Galatasaray 1 Astana 1

  

Group D B. Monchengladbach 1 Man. City 2; Juventus 2 Sevilla 0

 

Matchday 1

Manchester City FC (England) 1 Juventus (Italy) 2

Sevilla FC (Spain) 3 VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach (Germany) 0

 

Juventus 6, Man. City 3, Sevilla 3, Mönchengladbach 0

Champions League: Zenit matches on!

 

Matchday 2: Groups EFGH played tonight, another nightmare for the Premier League sides Chelsea (2-1 down at FC Porto) and Arsenal (2-3 losers at home to Olympiacos), while Russia's representative Zenit won at home against Gent by 2-1. All is well for André Villas-Boas' team.

 

Dzyuba opened the scoring on 35', enough to give the home team the lead at the break. Matton equalized for the Belgian visitors on 56' and Shatov closed the scoresheet on 67'. Zenit gave away ball possession (41 to 59%) but was far more efficient with 11 shots against Gent's 6 (4 on target against the visitors' single attempt on target, which resulted in a goal).

 

Group E Barcelona 2 Bayer Leverkusen 1; BATE 3 Roma 2

 

Matchday 1

Bayer 04 Leverkusen (Germany) 4 FC BATE Borisov (Belarus) 1

AS Roma (Italy) 1 FC Barcelona (Spain) 1

 

Barcelona 4 points; Leverkusen 3; BATE 3, Roma 1

 

Group F Bayern 5 D. Zagreb 0; Arsenal 2 Olympiacos 3

 

Matchday 1

GNK Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) 2 Arsenal FC (England) 1

Olympiacos FC (Greece) 0 FC Bayern München (Germany) 3

 

Bayern 6; D. Zagreb 3, Olympiacos 3; Arsenal 0

 

Group G M. Tel-Aviv 0 D. Kyiv 2; FC Porto 2 Chelsea FC 1

  

Matchday 1

FC Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine) 2 FC Porto (Portugal) 2

Chelsea FC (England) 4 Maccabi Tel-Aviv (Israel) 0

 

FC Porto 4; D.Kyiv 3;Chelsea FC 3; M. Tel-Aviv 0

 

Group H Lyon 0 Valencia 1; Zenit 2 Gent 1

 

Matchday 1

KAA Gent (Belgium) 1 Olympique Lyonnais (France) 1

Valencia CF (Spain) 2 FC Zenit (Russia) 3

 

Zenit 6; Valencia 3; Valencia 3; Lyon 1

  

  

Champions League Matchday 1

 

Group B: CSKA go down by minimum margin

A goal by Draxler after 40 minutes was enough to give Wolfsburg the three points against an organized CSKA side...but the statistics speak for themselves. Ball possession was 59% to 41% in favor of the German side, which had 18 shots against CSKA's 7 (7 on target against 3, 6 off target against 2, 5 blocked against 2).The home side also had 5 corners, while CSKA had just one. However, CSKA soaked up the pressure and came through with few wounds. In Moscow things can be different. In the other game in Group B, PSV Eindhoven beat Manchester United 2-1

 

In the other games, Group A: Benzema got one and Cristiano Ronaldo a hat-trick in Real Madrid's comprehensive dismantling of FC Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), 4-0. Di Maria and Cavani scored for PSG against Malmö. Group B: Depay scored for United before home side PSV equalized through Moreno (45+2) and Narsingh (57'). Group C:

Griezmann scored a brace for Atlético in the first half in Turkey against Galatasaray, a team which attacked more but inefficiently; in the other game Benfica won in Lisbon against Kazakhstan's first ever presence in the Champions League (Astana) with goals from Gaitán and Mitroglou in the second half. Group D: A bad night for the Premier League with both Manchester teams going down. Manchester City rule the roost at home with five wins from five games but in the Champions, the first game ended in a home defeat to Juve. The first goal came from City but was an own goal by Chiellini on 57', after which the visitors scored through Mandzukic and Morata. Sevilla wrapped up a great night for Spanish teams (three games, three wins, 9 goals scored, zero conceded) with a comprehensive trouncing of Borussia Mönchengladbach with two penalties (Gameiro, 47 and Banega, 66) and the third from Konoplyanka on 84'.

  

Group A

Real Madrid CF (Spain) 4 FC Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) 0

Paris Saint-Germain (France) 2 Malmö FF (Sweden) 0

 

Group B

VfL Wolfsburg (Germany) 1 PFC CSKA Moskva (Russia) 0

PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) 2 Manchester United FC (England) 1

 

Group C

Galatasaray AŞ (Turkey) 0 Club Atlético de Madrid (Spain) 2

SL Benfica (Portugal) 2 FC Astana (Kazakhstan) 0

 

Group D

Manchester City FC (England) 1 Juventus (Italy) 2

Sevilla FC (Spain) 3 VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach (Germany) 0

 

 

Group H: Brilliant Zenit

Zenit came away from Valencia in Spain with a useful 3-2 win. Hulk had fired the Portuguese André Villas-Boas' side ahead by two goals at the break, on 9' and 44', before the home side came out of the tunnel inspired by Nuno Espírito Santo, the home team's Portuguese coach. João Cancelo and André Gomes pulled two goals back (55' and 73'). Three minutes, Witsel scored the winner.

 

Zenit played like a fox, taking advantage of the counter-attack with lethal efficiency. The team to watch?

  

Group E

Bayer 04 Leverkusen (Germany) 4 FC BATE Borisov (Belarus) 1

AS Roma (Italy) 1 FC Barcelona (Spain) 1

 

Group F

GNK Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) 2 Arsenal FC (England) 1

Olympiacos FC (Greece) 0 FC Bayern München (Germany) 3

 

Group G

FC Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine) 2 FC Porto (Portugal) 2

Chelsea FC (England) 4 Maccabi Tel-Aviv (Israel) 0

 

Group H

KAA Gent (Belgium) 1 Olympique Lyonnais (France) 1

Valencia CF (Spain) 2 FC Zenit (Russia) 3

 

Matchday 3 October 20/21

Matchday 4 November 3/4

Matchday 5 November 24/25

Matchday 6 December 8/9

 

Qualifying round

  

First Leg

Sporting CP (Portugal) 2 CSKA Moskva (Russia) 1

Astana 1 (Kazakhstan) APOEL 0 (Cyprus)

Manchester United (England) 3 Club Brugge (Belgium) 1

Lazio (Italy) 1 Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) 0

BATE Borisov (Belarus) 1 Partizan Belgrade (Serbia) 0

Basel (Switzerland) 2 Maccabi Tel-Aviv (Israel) 2

Valencia (Spain) 3 AS Monaco (France) 1

Celtic (Scotland)  3 Malmö (Sweden) 2

Rapid Wien (Austria) 0 Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) 1

Skënderbeu (Albania) 1 Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) 2

 

 

Second leg (Clubs qualified in bold, losers go to Europa League)

Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) 4 Skënderbeu (Albania) 1 Aggregate 6-2

Malmö (Sweden) 2 Celtic (Scotland)  0 Agg: 4-3

Maccabi Tel-Aviv (Israel) 1 Basel (Switzerland) 1 Agg. 3-3 Maccabi pass, away goals

Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) 2 Rapid Wien (Austria) 2 Agg: 3-2

AS Monaco (France) 2 Valencia (Spain) 1 Agg: 3-4

APOEL 1 (Cyprus) Astana 1 (Kazakhstan) Agg:1-2

Partizan Belgrade (Serbia) 2 BATE Borisov (Belarus) 1 Agg: 2-2 BATE pass (away g.)

Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) 3 Lazio (Italy) 0 Agg: 3-1

CSKA Moskva 3 Sporting CP 1 Agg: 4-3

Club Brugge (Belgium) 0 Manchester United (England) 4 Agg: 1-7

 

  

The draw

  

Group A

FC Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) Malmö FF (Sweden) Paris Saint-Germain (France) Real Madrid CF (Spain)

 

Group B

Manchester United FC (England) PFC CSKA Moskva (Russia) PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) VfL Wolfsburg (Germany)

 

Group C

Club Atlético de Madrid (Spain) FC Astana (Kazakhstan) Galatasaray AŞ (Turkey) SL Benfica (Portugal)

 

Group D

Juventus (Italy) Manchester City FC (England) Sevilla FC (Spain) VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach (Germany)

 

Group E

AS Roma (Italy) Bayer 04 Leverkusen (Germany) FC Barcelona (Spain) FC BATE Borisov (Belarus)

 

Group F

Arsenal FC (England) FC Bayern München (Germany) GNK Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) Olympiacos FC (Greece)

  

Group G

Chelsea FC (England) FC Dynamo Kiev (Ukraine) FC Porto (Portugal) Maccabi Tel-Aviv (Israel)

 

Group H

FC Zenit (Russia) KAA Gent (Belgium) Olympique Lyonnais (France) Valencia CF (Spain)

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

National Championships

  

Primera Liga - Spain - 3 games

It's three wins out of three for FC Barcelona, followed by four teams on seven points: Real Madrid CF, RC Celta de Vigo, Villarreal CF and SD Eibar.

 

Premier League - England - 5 games

Manchester City continues its great start to the season with 15 points from five games. Leicester City FC follows on 11 points, continuing a winning streak shown at the end of last season which kept the club in the Premiership. Manchester United, much improved, shares third place with Arsene Wenger's young and exciting Arsenal side on 10 points and fellow London clubs West Ham United FC and Crystal Palace FC have nine

 

  

Bundesliga - Germany - 4 games

Borussia Dortmund and FC Bayern München share top spot with the maximum 12 points from the opening four games, followed by CSKA's rival VfL Wolfsburg, four points behind.

 

Serie A - Italy - 3 games

Amazingly, only one totalist, FC Internazionale Milano, followed by a pack of six clubs on seven points: AC Chievo Verona, UC Sampdoria, Torino FC, AS Roma, US Sassuolo Calcio and US Città di Palermo.

 

Primeira Liga - Portugal - 4 games

In Portugal, two teams from the north and two from Lisbon occupy the four top places, FC Porto in top spot with Sporting Clube de Portugal, both on ten points, having won three and drawn one game; third is Sporting CP's arch rival in Lisbon, Sport Lisboa e Benfica one point behind and fourth is FC Paços de Ferreira, on eight.

 

Ligue 1 - France - 5 games

No totalists in France, with Paris Saint-Germain top on 13 points, followed by Stade Rennais FC one point behind and Stade de Reims and AS Saint-Étienne on ten points sharing third place.

 

Prem'yer Liga - Russia - 8 games

It's PFC CSKA Moskva clear by five points on 22 points, followed by FC Lokomotiv Moskva on 17 and third place goes to FC Zenit and FC Spartak Moskva (16)

  

Liga 1 - Romania - 10 games

FC Astra Giurgiu has 20 points, followed by FC Viitorul Constanța on 19; third place is ASA 2013 Târgu Mureș, on 17, sharing with FC Dinamo București, also on 17.

 

Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey

Pravda.Ru