Basel 2 - Fulham 3 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) A brilliant right wing cross from Bjorn Helge Riise on the Fulham flank picked out Bobby Zamora at the back post, and the striker continue his fine recent goalscoring form by sliding the Londoners ahead in Basel. Zamora closed out the half by claiming his fourth goal in three games by heading home another Riise cross at the back post. Basel clawed themselves back in the match just after the hour as the official, after initially signalling a corner when the ball hit Smalling on the arm, changed his mind to awarding a penalty that Alexander Frei swept home. But the Cottagers refused to have their qualification put in jeopardy, and 13 minutes from time an incisive move involving Dempsey and Kelly ended with Zoltan Gera bagging Fulham’s third. The was a sting in the tale as Marco Streller headed in a second for Basel three minutes from time, but Fulham held on to qualify.

Sparta Prague 0 - Copenhagen 3 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) Copenhagen produced a manful display to bustle their way by Sparta Prague and into the last 32 of the Europa League. Dame N’Doye was to be the visiting side’s hero, striking a brace of first half goals to turn the screw on the Czech outfit. When Jesper Gronkjaer converted a penalty just nine minutes into the second half, it was lights out for Sparta, whose frustration was summed up by the red card awarded to Manuel Pamic on the hour mark.

Club Brugge 1 - Toulouse 0 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) Ivan Perisic’s added-time winner took Brugge into the last 32 at the expense of Toulouse.

Athletic Bilbao 0 - Werder Bremen 3 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) A Claudio Pizarro header from Rosenberg’s left-sided cross and a Naldo header from a set-play handed Werder a 2-goal lead in Bilbao. Markus Rosenberg capped a dominate first half for the Germans with a third in the 35th minute.

Nacional 5 - Austria Vienna 1 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) In a ding-dong first half in Portugal, Austria Vienna took a 21st minute lead through Thiago Schumacher before Nacional hit back with strikes from Ruben Micael and Mateus. After the break Nacional tore into their Austrian visitors as Ruben Micael, Zarko Tomasevic and Felipe Lopes crashed home three goals in nine minutes.

CSKA Sofia 0 - Roma 3 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) A lovely forward pass from De Rossi was controlled by Alessio Cerci on the right hand side and, after cutting in on his left peg, the wing rifled home his first Roma goal to open in Sofia. An error in the Bulgarian defence early in the second half allowed Cerci to race through on goal and net his second of the night. A fine evening for the Romans was capped when 17-year-old debutant Filippo Scardina (previously linked to Manchester United) netted his first goal for his club after coming off the bench.

Sturm Graz 1 - Galatasaray 0 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) Galatasaray fell behind in Graz when Daniel Beichler scored a scrappy rebound after the Turks fell asleep at the back.

Panathinaikos 3 - Dinamo Bucharest 0 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) Pana’s Ante Rukavina fired the hosts into the lead ten minutes into the second half against Dinamo Bucharest when visiting keeper Dolha dropped a clanger trying to claim a catch. A late Djibril Cisse double (first and second) sealed the win for Pana.

Hertha Berlin 1 - Sporting Lisbon 0 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) Defender Gojko Kacar came up from the back for a 70th minute corner and bundled home a right wing cross to put the Germans in front.

Heerenveen 5 - Ventspils 0 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) Second half goals from Mika Vayrynen, Viktor Elm, a brace from substitute Gerald Sibon, and Darryl Janmaat were not enough for Heerenveen to avoid elimination.

CFR Cluj 0 - PSV 2 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) A Danko Lazovic penalty and a second from substitute Nordin Amrabat was good enough to seal the three points for PSV, who were already assured of top spot in the group.

Partizan Belgrade 1 - Shakhtar Donetsk 0 (Europa League, December 16, 2009) An early strike from Lamine Diarra, capitalising on a slip from goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov, proved sufficient for the hosts to register their first points of the section and halt a losing run of UEFA club competition group-stage games which stood at 12 matches.

Liverpool 1 - Fiorentina 2 (Champions League, December 9, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Liverpool broke the deadlock in their dead-rubber match with Fiorentina in the 43rd minute as Yossi Benayoun steered home a Gerrard free-kick with a glancing header. The Viola levelled with a pacey attack in the 63rd minute, Gilardino picked up possession on the edge of the box and fed Martin Jorgensen out wide on the left, giving the Dane time and space to size up a shot and slap one past Cavalieri and into the bottom corner from 16 yards. Liverpool’s disastrous Champions League campaign ended on a sour note as young Reds defender Stephen Darby was caught in possession by Juan Vargas who crossed for Alberto Gilardino to seal victory for the Italians.

Olympiakos 1 - Arsenal 0 (Champions League, December 9, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) After a goalless first half in Greece, Olympiakos struck minutes into the second half as Leonardo collected the ball just beyond the halfway line before setting off goalwards and, after no challenge materialised, slotted a shot past Fabianski.

Dynamo Kiev 1 - Barcelona 2 (Champions League, December 9, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Dynamo Kiev put the cat amongst the pigeons early doors in Group F when a howler from Barca keeper Victor Valdes allowed Artem Milevskiy to send the Ukrainians to the top of the group. The Catalans hit back on the half hour when Xavi turned home Eric Abidal’s left wing cross from two yards. Barca laboured to find a second crucial goal to confirm their progression but five minutes from time Lionel Messi (who else!) curled a sweetly struck free-kick over the wall and just under the bar.

Inter Milan 2 - Rubin Kazan 0 (Champions League, December 9, 2009) Jose Mourinho breathed a sigh of relief as Inter Milan took the lead at home to Rubin Kazan thanks to Samuel Eto’o’s 31st minute opener. The Italians secured their passage to the group phase just after the hour mark when Mario Balotelli lit up the San Siro with a blistering, swerving free-kick that powered into the net.

Stuttgart 3 - Unirea Urziceni 1 (Champions League, December 9, 2009) Stuttgart destroyed Unirea Urziceni inside 11 minutes, scoring three goals to seemingly kill off the match. Ciprian Marica opened after five minutes, Christian Trasch doubled the lead three minutes later before Pavel Pogrebnyak made it three after 11 minutes. The Romanians got a foothold in the game a minute after the restart as Antonio Semedo punished an error from Boka at the back to pull back a goal.

Sevilla 1 - Rangers 0 (Champions League, December 9, 2009) Rangers fell behind early doors at Sevilla when Freddie Kanoute slipped home an early doors.

Lyon 4 - Debrecen 0 (Champions League, December 9, 2009) Bafetimbi Gomis fired Lyon ahead against Debrecen after 25 minutes and Michel Bastos doubled OL’s advantage on the stroke of halftime. The Frenchman raced out of sight at the start of the second half as Miralem Pjanic added a third for the hosts while Lyon cemented their position in the next round 15 minutes from time when Aly Cissokho cracked in the fourth.

Standard Liege 1 - AZ Alkmaar 1 (Champions League, December 9, 2009) AZ took the lead at Standard Liege when Jeremain Lens turned home a left wing cross from three yards. The match had an incredible twist at the death as Liege keeper Sinan Bolat came up from the back for a final free-kick and headed home an equaliser to put Standard into the Europa League.

Wolfsburg 1 - Manchester United 3 (Champions League, December 8, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) After spending much of the half defending, Michael Owen was at his predatory best to head home a Nani cross just before the break. Eleven minutes into the second half that man Edin Dzeko headed home Wolfsburg’s equaliser. With seven minutes remaining substitute Gabriel Obertan produced some excellent trickery down the left to set up Michael Owen to give United the lead again. Owen capped a memorable individual performance with the best goal of the night courtesy of another Obertan pass, as he raced clear before clipping a brilliant finish beyond Wolfsburg’s crestfallen goalkeeper.

Chelsea 2 - APOEL Nicosia 2 (Champions League, December 8, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Marcin Zewlakow stunned Stamford Bridge with the opener for APOEL Nicosia on six minutes. The Blues restored order within twenty minutes, Michael Essien fired home the equaliser and Didier Drogba finished off a flowing move. John Terry had a goal disallowed late in the second half and his frustration was increased three minutes from time when John Obi Mikel’s sloppy pass presented Nenad Mirosavjevic with the most unlikely of levellers.

Marseille 1 - Real Madrid 3 (Champions League, December 8, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Cristiano Ronaldo put Real Madrid into the lead at Marseille with a cracking dipping swerving trademark free-kick. Parity was restored by Lucho Gonzalez just nine minutes later. Madrid defender Raul Albiol scored in the 60th and Ronaldo rounded off the scoring 10 minutes before the end following a mistake by Marseille goalkeeper Steve Mandanda.

Juventus 1 - Bayern Munich 4 (Champions League, December 8, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Veteran French striker David Trezeguet improvised to give Juve the lead at home to Bayern Munich. The Bavarian giants kept their hopes of qualification alive when goalkeeper Hans-Jorg Butt stepped up and beat Buffon from the spot after Olic had been brought down by Cacares. Bayern took the lead early in the second half through Ivica Olic who reacted quickest after Buffon had parried a van Buyten header. Mario Gomez and substitute Anatoliy Tymoshchuk scored in the last seven minutes.

Atletico Madrid 0 - FC Porto 3 (Champions League, December 8, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Bruno Alves rose incredibly high to power home a header to give Porto a lead at Atletico Madrid after just two minutes. Radamel Falcao doubled Porto’s lead on 14 minutes. With 15 minutes remaining Hulk etched his name on the scoresheet with a well deserved third for Porto.

Besiktas 1 - CSKA Moscow 2 (Champions League, December 8, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Milos Krasic (”the new Pavel Nedved”?) finished from a tight angle to give CSKA Moscow the lead at Besiktas. Besitkas hit back at the death when Deivson Bobo found a leveller in the 86th minute. The Russians secured progression in style in the final minute when Yevgeny Aldonin drove home a late, late winner.

Maccabi Haifa 0 - Bordeaux 1 (Champions League, December 8, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Slack defending allowed Jussie to volley Bordeaux ahead against Maccabi Haifa. The Israeli side finished the group camaign having failed to score a goal or pick up a point.

Zurich 1 - AC Milan 1 (Champions League, December 8, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) A well hit free-kick from Milan Gajic gave FC Zurich the belief they could beat AC Milan for the second time in the group stages. Milan was in real danger of missing out on the next round but Zurich defender Alain Rochat was sent off for a foul on Marco Borriello and Ronaldinho scored the resulting penalty.

AEK Athens 0 - Everton 1 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) Everton got off to the perfect start in Athens when a long put upfield was carried further with a flick on to Jo, before the striker played in Diniyar Bilyaletdinov who fired the ball high into the near post.

Celtic 2 - Hapoel Tel Aviv 0 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) A close-range header from Georgios Samaras from Aiden McGeady’s cross gave Celtic the lead against Hapoel Tel-Aviv. Barry Robson’s second half free-kick sealed the win for the Bhoys.

Valencia 3 - Lille 1 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) Valencia breached the Lille backline after three minutes with Joaquin tapping the ball over the line after Los Che had broken down the left hand side. Joaquin bagged his second just after the half hour, collecting a long ball through the middle and rifling off a low left-footed strike. A fine solo goal fro Juan Mata in the 52nd minute, the forward taking on two defenders and then beating the keeper, wrapped up the points for Valencia against their Ligue 1 opponents. Aurelien Chedjou netted a late consolation for Lille.

FC Timisoara 1 - Ajax 2 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) Timisoara moved in front of Ajax inside 120 seconds when Dorin Goga slotted home after 12-yards but the Amsterdammers soon levelled through serial-goalscorer Luis Suarez. Marco Pantelic continued his fine goalscoring form netting Ajax’s second a minute into the second half before the hosts had both Bonfim and Pantilimon sent off in two separate offences leading to penalties, which Luis Suarez amazingly twice (first & second) missed.

Hamburg 2 - Rapid Vienna 0 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Second half goals from Hamburg’s Marcell Jansen and Marcus Berg put the Bundesliga outfit 2-up against their Austrian neighbours, Rapid Vienna.

Anderlecht 0 - Dinamo Zagreb 1 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) Miroslav Slepicka’s header from a brilliant outside-of-the-boot cross from the Zagreb right wing put the Croatians in a 57th minute lead at Anderlecht.

Levski Sofia 0 - Villarreal 2 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Villarreal broke the deadlock at Levski Sofia with a training ground routine from a set play on the edge of the box, the ball finding Giuseppe Rossi pealed off down the line with the striker controlling and firing into the far post. The Spaniards wrapped up the victory seven minutes from time when Marcos Senna sidefooted in the second from 15-yards.

BATE Borisov 1 - Benfica 2 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) Benfica’s Javier Saviola fired the Portuguese ahead at BATE Borisov minutes into the second half after connecting with Angel di Maria’s cutback. A wonderful left-footed strike from Fabio Coentrao doubled Benfica’s lead just after the hour, while David Luiz brought the hosts back into the game heading a corner into his own net in comical fashion.

RB Salzburg 2 - Lazio 1 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) (Longer highlights here.) Salzburg’s Rabiu Afolabi met a left-sided free-kick to head the Austrians into the lead against Lazio. The lead didn’t last long as Mauro Zarate picked up the ball for the Romans, drove into the box before seeing his parried shot turned over the line by Pasquale Foggia. But Salzburg retook the lead for a second and decisive time 12 minutes from time as Somen Tchoyi scored a fine solo goal to claim the points.

FC Twente 0 - Fenerbahce 1 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) Fener defender Diego Lugano headed the Turks into the lead at Steve McClaren’s FC Twente 20 minutes from time.

FC Sheriff 1 - Steaua Bucharest 1 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) All the action arrived in the final ten minutes. A howler from the Steaua keeper allowed Amath Diedhiou’s tame shot to trickle under his body, but the Romanians soon equalised as an equally poor come-and-miss effort from the home goalie allowed Juan Toja to tuck in the leveller.

Slavia Prague 0 - Genoa 0 (Europa League, December 2, 2009) The Czechs appeared to be hard-done-by midway through the first half when Stanislav Vlcek was flagged offside as he slotted the ball into the net.

Manchester United 0 - Besiktas 1 (Champions League, November 25, 2009) Besiktas silenced Old Trafford when Rodrigo Tello let fly from 25-yards out, his shot taking a crucial deflection off Rafael, and a sprawling Ben Foster could only watch the ball sneak past his hand into the far corner.

Porto 0 - Chelsea 1 (Champions League, November 25, 2009) After 69 goalless minutes in Porto, Chelsea struck as Zhirkov fed Malouda down the left and his inviting cross was headed in by a diving Nicolas Anelka from four yards out.

Real Madrid 1 - FC Zurich 0 (Champions League, November 25, 2009) Real went ahead against FC Zurich after 20 minutes as Kaka twisted free and slipped a pass through to Gonzalo Higuain, who stroked a shot it past Johnny Leoni.

AC Milan 1 - Marseille 1 (Champions League, November 25, 2009) Rejuvenated AC Milan scored after 10 minutes against Marseille as Marco Borriello weaved his way past the French defence before coolly slotting home the opener. The Rossoneri weren’t in front for long, Niang broke down the left and, after Dida could only parry the cross, Lucho Gonzalez was on hand to level for OM.

Bayern Munich 1 - Maccabi Haifa 0 (Champions League, November 25, 2009) Bayern broke a spirited Maccabi Haifa team just after the hour mark as Mario Gomez collected the ball outside the Israeli’s box, spun, and saw his shot palmed into Ivica Olic’s path to score.

Bordeaux 2 - Juventus 0 (Champions League, November 25, 2009) Already-qualified Bordeaux took the lead at home to Juventus through Fernando Menegazzo’s header from a free-kick ten minutes into the second half. Maroune Chamakh’s 90th minute goal ensured that the Old Lady will need to win or draw against Bayern in their final match to assure qualification.

APOEL Nicosia 1 - Atletico Madrid 1 (Champions League, November 25, 2009) Sorry Atletico Madrid fell behind at APOEL after five minutes, Nenad Mirosavljevic turning home a left wing cross. The Rojiblancos tied the match just aftrer the hour mark as Simao turned home after Kun Aguero’s initial shot was saved.

CSKA Moscow 2 - Wolfsburg 1 (Champions League, November 25, 2009) Wolfsburg struck after 20 minutes in Moscow as Obefami Martins collected the ball just outside the box, the Nigerian striker played a perfectly time through-ball into Edin Dzeko, and the serial-goalscorer expertly finished past Akinfeev into the far post. CSKA has moments in the first half, but their only real effort on target arrived in the 38th minute when Alexei Berezutski saw his close-range shot turn aside by Diego Benaglio. CSKA’s problems in the first half carried over in the second as Milos Krasic could only watch as his CSKA teammates failed to get on the end of his dangerous cross. But just before the hour mark the Russians equalised as Czech forward Tomas Necid headed home Aldonin’s right-footed cross. With their tails up CSKA took the lead in the 66th minute as the excellent Milos Krasic thumped home a stunner from 25-yards to revive the Russians hope of qualification.