Champions League roundup: Borussia Dortmund face early exit

Borussia Dortmund’s hopes of reaching the knockout stages of the Champions League were virtually extinguished when they could only draw 1-1 at home against the Cypriot side Apoel Nicosia on Wednesday.
Needing a win to put pressure on Tottenham and Real Madrid in Group H, Dortmund, beaten finalists in 2013, took the lead through Raphaël Guerreiro in the 29th minute after he had been set up by Shinji Kagawa’s through ball.
However, Kagawa and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang missed a number of chances to make the game safe and Peter Bosz’s side were punished six minutes after half time when the Apoel striker Mickaël Poté turned beautifully in the box and fired in an equaliser.
Aubameyang hit the bar late on but Dortmund could not find a winner.
On a bad night for Bundesliga sides, Porto took a big stride into the last 16 with a 3-1 home win against RB Leipzig. Hector Herrera put the Porto ahead early on before Germany striker Timo Werner came off the bench to equalise for Leipzig just after half time.
Danilo restored the home side’s advantage with a close-range finish and Maxi Pereira sealed Porto’s victory in added time. Leipzig had beaten Porto 3-2 two weeks ago but the Portuguese side bounced back to move into second place in Group G.
“It was a strong game from us,” the Porto coach, Sérgio Conceição, said. “We worked well as a unit and didn’t suffer as we did in Germany in the first meeting. We nullified our opponent’s strengths for large parts.”
Also in the group, leaders Besiktas drew 1-1 against Monaco, who look set to be eliminated. Rony Lopes put the visitors ahead in first-half injury time with a strike from the edge of the penalty area. However Besiktas striker Cenk Tosun, who has been linked with a move to Crystal Palace in January, equalised from the penalty spot in the 54th minute.
In Liverpool’s group, Sevilla recovered from their 5-1 thrashing in Moscow two weeks ago to beat Spartak 2-1 and jump into second place. “This wasn’t about revenge, this was about the three points,” said Éver Banega, who scored Sevilla’s second goal. “We tried to control the game at all moments, but what was most impressive about our performance is that it demonstrated the personality of the squad. We never lost our cool and we reacted well.”
Clément Lenglet had put Sevilla ahead while Zé Luís gave Spartak hope with 12 minutes to go.
Finally, in Group F, Shakhtar Donetsk remained tucked in behind leaders Manchester City following a 3-1 home win over Feyenoord, thanks to two well-taken goals from Brazilian midfielder Marlos.

SOURCE : GUARDIAN SPORTS
posted by CAMPUS94