Tuesday's Champions League roundup: Tottenham, Liverpool advance to the knockout stages
An 85th-minute goal by Lucas Moura was enough to salvage a point for Tottenham Hotspur at Barcelona and, combined with Inter Milan’s 1-1 draw against already-eliminated PSV Eindhoven, help Spurs advance to the knockout stages of the Champions League.
Barcelona, which had already won Group B, rested a number of usual staters, including Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, although Messi came on with about a half-hour to play and hit the post before Moura’s crucial equalizer:
LUCAS MOURA 🤯 Has he put Tottenham through to the Round of 16?
Watch the finish on #BRLive: https://t.co/uhnLHD90RS pic.twitter.com/m98kJZ4ze0
— Bleacher Report Live (@brlive) December 11, 2018
The point was no less than the visitors deserved. Tottenham was the better team at the Camp Nou, firing 17 shots at Jasper Cillessen’s net and forcing Barca’s backup goalkeeper to make six saves, several of them spectacular. Yet the hosts took the lead just seven minutes into the contest when Ousmane Dembele won the ball at midfield and slalomed through Spurs’ defense to score a beautiful individual goal:
OUSMANE DEMBELE BY HIMSELF 😨
Watch Barca vs. Tottenham on #BRLive: https://t.co/uhnLHD90RS pic.twitter.com/i21vZd4YIZ
— Bleacher Report Live (@brlive) December 11, 2018
The score stayed the same for the next 78 minutes. But just when it looked like it might not be the visitors’ day, Moura got the payoff his team needed. Mauricio Pochettino’s team will now play in the Round of 16 for the second consecutive season.
Salah’s goal leads Liverpool past Napoli
Tuesday’s other marquee match was at Anfield, where Liverpool beat Italian side Napoli 1-0 on a first-half goal by — who else? — Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah:
Who else but MO SALAH?! 🙌🏻 Liverpool strikes first against Napoli
Watch NOW on #BRLive: https://t.co/ASO9E7oxnB pic.twitter.com/sOObdAHnpn
— Bleacher Report Live (@brlive) December 11, 2018
The Reds then put on a defensive masterclass, denying Napoli the goal that would’ve changed everything in Group C. Even a 2-1 win would’ve seen Liverpool finish third and exit the competition for the Europa League instead.
Cavani, Neymar score in Paris Saint-Germain’s rout of Red Star
In Belgrade, PSG made short work of the hosts in a 4-1 victory that ensured they’d finish atop Group C. Edinson Cavani foreshadowed what was to come when he found the net in the ninth minute. Brazilian superstar Neymar then doubled the guests’ advantage five minutes before halftime with this cheeky strike:
Neymar just cruising by 😎
Watch NOW on #BRLive: https://t.co/htCtIGHUzK pic.twitter.com/1pLrtZLMpH
— Bleacher Report Live (@brlive) December 11, 2018
Red Star managed to pull one back through Marko Gobeljic before the hour mark to make things interesting, but Marquinhos restored the cushion for the Parisians before World Cup-winner Kylian Mbappe added insult to injury with PSG’s fourth in stoppage time.
Dortmund beats Monaco, tops Group A
Finally, Portuguese striker Raphael Guerreiro found the net on both sides of the half in Borussia Dortmund’s 2-0 win. His second strike in the 88th minute sealed the deal:
Dortmund ices it 💪 The German side are minutes away from winning Group A pic.twitter.com/kR33TDHqoa
— Bleacher Report Live (@brlive) December 11, 2018
Other Champions League scores
Schalke 1-0 Lokomotiv Moscow
Galatasaray 0-1 Porto
Club Brugge 0-0 Atletico Madrid
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