UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ROUND 2 UP:

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ROUND 2 RESULTS:

SPARTAK MOSKVA 2-3 CELTIC

Gary Hooper gave Neil Lennon's team the lead but two tap-ins from Emmanuel Emenike put the home side in front.The game changed, however, when Juan Insaurralde was sent off for a challenge on Hooper and Dmitri Kombarov sent the ball into his own net to level the score after James Forrest had been denied at the end of a sweeping attacking move.And Samaras rose to head home Emilio Izaguirre's in-swinging cross as Celtic sealed a long overdue away victory in the Champions League.The Bhoys have struggled away from home in Europe, winning last at the continent's top table away from Glasgow in 1986 and, ahead of the contest, Lennon would be drawn only as far to say that he hoped his team could make the game in Moscow "competitive", while acknowledging that the Russian top flight was in a stronger state than its Scottish counterpart.That assessment looked accurate in the early stages but Spartak's attacking approach left gaps for the visitors to exploit and they did that to great effect when Victor Wanyama initiated a move which ended in Hooper sweeping home Mikael Lustig's low cross to send Celtic a surprise lead.Spartak continued to control possession but when Celtic were able to win the ball cleanly, they counter-attacked into the acres of space left vacant in the opposition half. Wanyama was influential in that respect and Hooper found the target again after Izaguirre had released Samaras down the left, only to be denied by a flag for offside.The breaks kept coming for Celtic but, in the meantime, Spartak were cranking up the pressure themselves. Dani Pareja's free kick was well saved by Fraser Forster but the goalkeeper could do nothing to stop Emenike, who tapped home after Ari had sent Kallstrom's superb long pass behind Kelvin Wilson across goal. hortly after the halfway point the turnaround was complete. Again, Ambrose and Wilson were too slow to react when the ball got behind them, this time as a result of an Ari shot which was parried weakly by Forster. Demy de Zeeuw pounced and slid the ball across goal for Emenike to touch over the line.Hooper, though, continued to threaten and was brought down when through on goal by Insaurralde after racing on to Charlie Mulgrew's pass. After initially seeming to ignore the challenge, referee Tony Chapron finally produced a red card for the Argentine defender following the disbelieving protests of the Celtic players. Mulgrew, however, could only direct the subsequent free kick straight at goalkeeper Sergei Pesyakov.It was not long, however, before Lennon's team made the man advantage count. Mulgrew's low cross from the left was dummied by Samaras and passed on by Hooper for substitute Forrest to shoot. The winger's effort was saved by Pesyakov but rebounded into the net off of Kombarov for an own goal.Substitute Joe Ledley went close with a long-range effort as both teams searched for a decisive goal. Celtic, sensing a rare opportunity to pick up three points away from home, did most of the attacking but their hopes seemed to end with a Hooper effort from a difficult angle that was comfortably saved.They had time, however, to mount one last attempt and when Izaguirre lifted a left-footed cross into the centre of the penalty area, Samaras rose superbly to head across goal and seal a memorable victory.

CFR CLUJ 1-2 MAN UTD

Robin van Persie scored with an exquisite finish plus a more fortuitous attempt Tuesday as Manchester United came from behind to win 2-1 at CFR Cluj in the Champions League.Trailing 1-0 to Cluj’s 14th-minute opener, United leveled when Rooney’s cross struck Van Persie’s head then shoulder to loop over the goalkeeper and land in the net in the 29th.If the Netherlands striker’s first goal was lucky, his second was pure class and again Rooney was the provider. The England forward chipped the ball through a hesitant Cluj defense, and Van Persie slipped into space and clipped it into the corner with the outside of his boot in the 49th for his sixth goal for United.It was the first match the pair had both started since Van Persie moved in the offseason from Arsenal, and Rooney’s willingness to drop deeper to collect possession troubled Cluj’s defenders all match.“I think there are good combinations between all the players in attacking positions. The strength of this squad is in attacking positions,” United manager Alex Ferguson said. “If you look at the way they kept going to the end, they’re good crossers of the ball.“The best quality of both two men is that they can turn a game and this is an important feature of both of them. I think we’ve got a real good pair of players, top players who can finish and change a game.”United has a maximum six points in Group H, three ahead of Cluj and Braga. Galatasaray has zero. Braga won 2-0 at Galatasaray in the other game.Ferguson wasn’t entirely happy with this trip to Transylvania, his team falling behind for the sixth time in nine matches this season after a counterattack from the Romanian champions.Rafael Bastos swept a pass out wide to Modou Sougou, who exposed United left back Patrice Evra’s defensive frailties and then whipped in a low cross that Pantelis Kapetanos finished in fine style.“Losing that goal the way we did is a shocker. An absolute shocker,” Ferguson said.

GALATASARAY 0-2 BRAGA

Ruben Micael and Osorio Alan scored on Tuesday to give Sporting Braga a 2-0 win over Galatasaray in the Champions League for the Portuguese team’s first points of the group stage.Galatasaray dominated the match until Micael put the visitors ahead in the 27th minute after Antonio Eder penetrated the Turkish side’s defense and passed the ball to Ruben Amorim, whose shot was blocked by goalkeeper Nestor Fernando Muslera. The ball fell to Micael, who knocked a low shot into the empty net.“We were the dominant side until the 27th minute,” Galatasaray coach Fatih Terim said. “We were a team which controlled the ball but weren’t able to find the goal that would have enriched the game.”Braga grew in confidence after the goal but wasted a couple of good chances to increase its lead.“They put us under intense pressure from the first minutes,” Braga manager Jose Peseiro said. “Our defense was strong. We would have liked to have controlled the ball more. (But) I believe it was a deserved win.”Galatasaray fought back in the second half and Burak Yilmaz provided the biggest threat to the visitors with several long-range efforts at the Braga goal. But it was Aydin Yildiz who came closest in the 77th minute with a powerful shot that was tipped onto the crossbar by Braga goal keeper Antonio Beto.“We started the second half well. We were again the dominant side, but it wasn’t to be. Again we were unable to score,” Terim said.In the fourth and final minute of injury time, Alan secured the win on a counterattack after taking a pass from the left.“We played well. It wasn’t easy, the (Braga) defense was strong,” said Galatasaray’s Ivory Coast international, Emmanuel Eboue.Both teams had lost their previous matches in Group H, which also includes Manchester United and Romanian champion Cluj. United leads the group after beating Cluj 2-1 on Tuesday.The game was the first Champions League match at Galatasaray’s 50,000-capacity Turk Telekom Arena.

JUVENTUS 1-1 SHAKHTAR DONETSK

Juventus was held to a 1-1 draw by Shakhtar Donetsk in its first Champions League match at its new stadium on Tuesday, becoming the first side to draw eight successive European matches.Alex Teixeira gave Shakhtar a deserved lead in the 23rd minute and that seemed to shock Juventus awake as Leonardo Bonucci leveled for the Serie A champion just three minutes later.Shakhtar had several chances to restore its lead, mainly through the impressive Willian, who also hit the crossbar in stoppage time.“We knew they were a team that would put us in difficulty, even though others underestimated them,” Juventus stand-in coach Massimo Carrera said. “We started a bit scared maybe knowing how difficult they could be. It was an open game and could have been any result. They might have had a few more chances at the end but I think it was a fair result.“It’s obviously hard to play every three days, but we were good to come back after just three minutes. That shows that Juventus is in-form. But I repeat, Shakhtar are a great team that would challenge for things even in Italy.”Shakhtar coach Mircea Lucescu believes his side could have won the game and insists Willian was wrongfully denied a penalty.“I think it was a game that was very well played on our part,” the former Inter Milan coach said. “We put them in difficulty and played well against a very strong and aggressive team. I think the result could have been in our favor. We had more chances and there was also a penalty shout that everyone said was a penalty. I haven’t seen a replay but I spoke to about 10 people ... and they agreed with me ... and also the players said so too“But it is an important point against a great team, and shows we are also here in this competition fighting for qualification.”It is Juventus’ second draw in the competition this season after it held defending champion Chelsea 2-2 in London. Shakhtar kicked off its Champions League campaign with a 2-0 win over FC Nordsjaelland.hakhtar had won all 13 of its previous matches this season, both domestically and in Europe.While Shakhtar failed to maintain its perfect record, Juventus managed to continue its unbeaten start to the season, after extending its league record to 45 games unbeaten at the weekend.The Italian side was also hoping for a victory in its first European match at Juventus Stadium which was opened last season.Shakhtar got off to an impressive start and had several chances to take an early lead. The Ukrainian side could have gone in front as early as the sixth minute when Willian released Razvan Rat whose diagonal pass was blazed over by Henrik Mkhitaryan at the far post.That was a sign of things to come as Willian was at the crux of everything for Shakhtar. Moments later the Brazilian cut the ball back to Fernandinho who blasted a low, rasping shot just past the left upright.Shakhtar went even closer when Luiz Adriano sent in a great cross but Willian got in a tangle with Juventus defender Stephan Lichsteiner near the goal as he was closing in on the ball. Luiz Adriano screamed for a penalty but the referee waved away his appeals.Juventus had to wait until the 14th minute for its first sight on goal. Mirko Vucinic crossed in towards Alessandro Matri, who was a whisker away from connecting with the ball, right in front of goal, but Yaroslav Rakitskiy deflected it just past his outstretched boot.It went close again moments later as Andrea Pirlo sent a brilliant ball over the defense to Claudio Marchisio, who volleyed an angled effort just over the bar.Shakhtar took the lead when Willian bamboozled the Juve defense and cut a ball across the area to Teixeira who fired it under the crossbar.Juve almost leveled immediately but Matri’s effort was deflected out for a corner by Rakitskiy.However, it did equalize seconds later as Bonucci had plenty of time to lash Pirlo’s corner in from 16 yards.Juve improved as the half went on and could even have gone in at the break ahead, following another corner in stoppage time, but Shakhtar goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov did well to stop Bonucci’s downward header with his feet.Shakhtar should have restored its lead just before the hour mark following a rapid counterattack, but Willian’s fierce effort scraped the outside of the right post.Juventus went closer moments later as Sebastian Giovinco who had just come on for Vucinic put in a great cross which Matri lobbed over the bar with Pyatov grounded.Willian almost scored a late winner as he tried his luck from distance but his effort flew just past the right hand post.He went even closer in stoppage time when his snapshot crashed off the crossbar.

FC NORDSJAELLAND 0-4 CHELSEA

The scoreboard may have read 4-0 to Chelsea but that was not the full story and if the European champions knew little about Nordsjaelland before Tuesday night, they certainly do now.The Danes made life hugely uncomfortable for Chelsea on a night when the visitors were expected to win comfortably. In the end they did so, thanks to a flurry of late goals from David Luiz, Juan Mata and Ramires.But those strikes put gloss on  a less-than-emphatic Chelsea performance.You are not supposed to enjoy easy matches in the Champions League but this visit to Copenhagen certainly seemed to offer that possibility.This was only Nordsjaelland’s  second outing among Europe’s elite their first ending in a 2-0 defeat by Shakhtar Donetsk.Nordsjaelland, who were only founded in 1991, pay their players on average £150,000 a year enough for seven days of service from  Chelsea skipper John Terry.And Roberto Di Matteo saw fit to leave his captain out of his starting line-up as David Luiz and Gary Cahill began in the heart of defence, while Victor Moses was handed his Champions League debut in place of Eden Hazard.Di Matteo knew only victory at Parken Stadium would be good enough, particularly after the 2-2 home draw against Juventus on match-day one. But a record of one win in eight away Champions League clashes must have been a worrying distraction for the  Chelsea manager.The biggest night in Nordsjaelland’s history almost got off to the worst possible start as a sloppy throw-in from left back Patrick Mtilinga on three minutes handed the returning Frank Lampard space on the edge of the box to pick out Brazilian starlet Oscar.He exchanged passes with Moses, then conjured a shot that trickled narrowly wide of Jesper Hansen’s far post.Nordsjaelland were breathing another sigh of relief less than 60 seconds later as Moses somehow sent a header from three yards on to a post with the goal gaping after Oscar’s superb cross.But in fairness to Hjulmand’s side, they did not let Chelsea’s promising start effect their passing philosophy and the Danes popped the ball about attractively.Nevertheless, Chelsea continued to press for an opener in the face of a suspect-looking back four, with Lampard firing over from outside the box after Mata’s surging run down the right in the 10th minute.Despite three early scares, Nordsjaelland refused to throw the ball forward aimlessly. Their first chance arrived in the 15th minute, Joshua John who had been pinpointed as one of Nordsjaelland’s dangermen firing over from long range after some sloppy defending.Without creating any clear-cut opportunities, there was a sense of the home side’s confidence growing with every passing minute.And Nordsjaelland would have been celebrating their first Champions League goal in the 21st minute had it not been for Ashley Cole, who produced a goal-saving challenge on Kasper Lorentzen deep inside the Chelsea area after John’s accurate low cross.Paris St-Germain  manager Carlo Ancelotti has revealed his intention to sign Cole in January, branding him ‘the best left back  in the world’ and there was plenty of evidence to support the Italian’s assertion.Torres was denied by an excellent Hansen save in the 22nd minute as the visitors tried to regain their early dominance. But while Nordsjaelland’s play was defined by neat passing, Chelsea’s was quite the opposite as they struggled to find any rhythm.Di Matteo would have been hugely relieved, then, when a Nordjaelland mistake led to his side taking an undeserved lead in the 33rd minute.Torres robbed Enoch Adu deep inside the Danes’ half and he slipped the ball inside to Lampard, whose pass set up Mata to coolly slot past Hansen.Torres should have doubled the lead just before half-time after Oscar’s beautiful through pass But with just the keeper to beat the No 9 fired straight at the keeper from 12 yards.Chelsea had created enough clear-cut chances in the first half to be out of sight, while the hosts, who enjoyed 55 per cent of the ball in the opening period, would have felt they deserved more for their dominance in terms of possession.And the impressive John came close to an equaliser in the 53rd minute, his drive from the edge of the area arrowing just wide of Petr Cech’s near post.Mikkel Beckman went close just before the hour, sending a looping header on to the roof of Cech’s goal after Adu’s searching cross, before Stokholm saw his long-range piledriver parried by the keeper.Di Matteo sent on Hazard for the ineffective Moses in the 65th minute as he tried to inject some much-needed invention.But Nordsjaelland could have pulled level in the 73rd minute when Cech tipped John’s curling effort on to a post before Cole blocked Beckman’s rebound.Chelsea were rocking until Luiz struck a stunning free-kick inside Hansen’s near post on 79 minutes. Then Mata nudged home his second of the night after a dash into the box and Ramires tapped  in a minute from time as the floodgates finally opened.Whether Chelsea deserved their 4-0 win was another matter.

VALENCIA 2-0 LOSC

A goal in either half from Brazilian forward Jonas Oliveira reignited Valencia’s UEFA Champions League Group F hopes on Tuesday, cementing a 2-0 win over LOSC Lille Metropole of France.Valencia started off their campaign with a 2-1 loss at Bayern Munich, but the three points put them right back into the mix.Jonas bagged his first eight minutes from the break after taking a pass from Roberto Soldado.Lille, beaten at home by BATE Borisov in their opening fixture, did not wilt, though, and they were almost level three minutes later.Senegal international Idrissa Gueye fed Dimitri Payet, but his first-time effort just kissed the side netting with Vicente Guaita, who had earlier smothered a long-range drive from Franck Beria, beaten in the Valencia goal.Soldado should have made it 2-0 just after the hour mark, but he sent a free header over.However, the hosts made the pressure tell at the Estadio Mestalla when Algerian star Sofiane Feghouli found Jonas, who shrugged off Aurelien Chedjou before flicking a cross shot over veteran Lille goalkeeper Mickael Landreau 14 minutes from time.To compound the visitors’ misery they had fullback Mathieu Debuchy sent off for a second bookable offense in the closing stages as his frustration boiled over, having already received a first yellow just before the interval for fouling Aly Cissokho.In Moscow, a last-minute goal by Giorgos Samaras gave Celtic their first ever away win in 21 UEFA Champions League games as they defeated 10-man Spartak Moscow 3-2.The Greece international headed home to seal a famous win for the Scottish champions who ended a losing run of 11 successive away Champions League losses since drawing in Barcelona in 2004 and complete a great second-half comeback.That had been sparked when trailing 2-1 thanks to an Emmanuel Emmenike brace when French referee Tony Chapron sent off Spartak defender Juan Insaurralde just after the hour mark for bringing down Gary Hooper, who had given Celtic the lead early in the first half, and substitute James Forrest equalized 10 minutes later.“My players played exciting football tonight,” Hoops manager Neil Lennon said. “It’s fantastic that we managed to battle back and win in the second half, as we were playing against very strong opponents.”In Istanbul, Turkey, Ruben Micael and Osorio Alan scored to give SC Braga a 2-0 win over Galatasaray for the Portuguese team’s first points in Group H.Galatasaray dominated the match until Micael put the visitors ahead in the 27th minute after Antonio Eder penetrated the Turkish side’s defense and passed the ball to Ruben Amorim, whose shot was blocked by goalkeeper Nestor Fernando Muslera. The ball fell to Micael, who knocked a low shot into the empty net.“They put us under intense pressure from the first minutes,” Braga manager Jose Peseiro said. “Our defense was strong. We would have liked to have controlled the ball more, [but] I believe it was a deserved win.”Alan secured the win in the fourth minute of stoppage-time on a counterattack after taking a pass from the left.

BATE 3-1 BAYERN MUNICH

BATE Borisov stunned Bayern Munich 3-1 on Tuesday for its second win in two games in Group F of the Champions League.Aleksandr Pavlov scored in the 23rd minute and Vitali Rodionov netted the second in the 78th for the Belarus team to upset last season’s runner-up, which got a late goal from Franck Ribery. But Renan Bressan sealed the win in injury time.“We always believed that we could win this match,” said BATE’s Aleksandr Hleb. “We were confident even after we conceded the late goal.”Bayern had the possession and the chances in the first half but it was BATE that scored, against the run of play.Pavlov was presented the opportunity after a failed attempt by teammate Aleksandr Volodko. The ball fell to Pavlov, who shot it past Manuel Neuer.Rodionov completed the win after swapping passes with Edgar Olekhnovich.It was Bayern’s first loss of the season after starting the campaign with nine wins in all competitions, equaling the club record.Bayern goalkeeper Neuer was the first to be called into action when he stopped a low shot from Olekhnovich.But from then on, it was all Bayern.Mario Mandzukic, who has nine goals so far this season for Bayern, shot wide after a good pass from Ribery. Toni Kroos then robbed Dmitri Likhtarovich at the edge of the area and rounded goalkeeper Andrei Gorbunov, but hit the post with an empty net before him.Bayern was punished for missing its chances when Denis Polyakov controlled a long pass at the right, then slid the ball to Volodko. His failed attempt fell kindly for Pavlov, who shot past Neuer.Gorbunov dived to save a header from Mandzukic three minutes later, after stopping a header from Thomas Mueller.While BATE often had all the men behind the ball in the first half, the Belarus team displayed more ambition after the break.Neuer turned away a shot by Olekhnovich in the 56th, then Rodionov missed the target and Pavlov shot high with only Neuer to beat in the 60th.A simple 1-2 between Olekhnovich and Rodionov produced the second goal. Rodionov shook off two defenders and hit a left-foot shot into the top corner.Gorbunov had trouble mastering a shot by Ribery in the 82nd, dropping the ball before catching it on the line.One minute later, Gorbunov got his fingers onto a shot by Ribery and the ball hit the post.Ribery scored in the first minute of injury time, collecting a pass from Xherdan Shaqiri to chip the ball past Gorbunov.But Bressan secured the win in the fourth minute of injury time. Dmitri Mozolevski carried the ball into the penalty area and squared it for Bressan, who shot into the roof of the net past a helpless Neuer.

BENFICA 0-2 BARCELONA

Barcelona's Lionel Messi set up goals for Alexis Sanchez and Cesc Fabregas in their 2-0 Champions League Group G victory over Benfica on Tuesday but the success was marred when captain Carles Puyol suffered a dislocated elbow.Sanchez fired Barca ahead early on and Fabregas added a second 10 minutes into the second half but the damage to Puyol means he will miss the La Liga 'Clasico' against Real Madrid at the Nou Camp on Sunday.The Catalans had Sergio Busquets dismissed two minutes from time but will be more concerned about Puyol, who landed awkwardly after leaping for a ball and was carried off on a stretcher in obvious pain after 78 minutes.The Spain international was playing his first match since recovering from a knee problem."We are waiting for more information but he will certainly miss the 'Clasico'," Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova told reporters.Barca defender Dani Alves, who was visibly shaken by Puyol's injury during the match, said his team mates were concerned.We are really saddened by the (Puyol) situation," he said.Barca have six points from two games and although their confidence is high heading into 'El Clasico', they now have problems at the back with Puyol's defensive partner Gerard Pique also sidelined by injury.Messi was once again the architect of Barcelona's win in Lisbon.The Argentine sprinted down the left and crossed for Chilean Sanchez to tap home after six minutes.Benfica also looked dangerous going forward and Brazilian striker Lima could have levelled five minutes later but Victor Valdez saved at his feet when the striker was through on goal.With centre back Luisao suspended, the home side's defence looked wobbly with Artur denying Messi with a reflex save and then the lively Sanchez blasted over the bar with only the keeper to beat."There is only one ball and when they have the ball for three quarters of the match it is very hard," said Benfica playmaker Pablo Aimar, who Messi has said was his childhood idol.Barca doubled their lead after the break when Messi cut in from the right and with a trademark dash left several defenders trailing. He then slid a perfect ball through to Fabregas who coolly slotted in."They are, in my opinion, the best in the world, always get more than 70 percent of possession and boss around every opponent," said Benfica coach Jorge JesusCeltic beat Spartak Moscow 3-2 in the earlier kickoff in Russia and are second in Group G, with four points after two matches.