RB Leipzig survived a late fightback from Manchester United to clinch a 3-2 win on Tuesday (Wednesday NZT) that sent the German side through to the Champions League knockout stage and eliminated the English Premier League giants.
Leipzig dominated the early stages and were 2-0 up inside the first 13 minutes, thanks to goals from Angelino and Amadou Haidara.
A third goal in the 69th minute from Justin Kluivert – son of Dutch legend Patrick – appeared to condemn United to the Europa League.
But a Bruno Fernandez penalty in the 80th minute and a Paul Pogba header two minutes later gave the visitors hope of a remarkable comeback, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side only needing a point to progress.
However, Leipzig held on to book their spot in the last 16 and dump United out of Europe’s premier club competition.
The Red Devils drop into the Europa League, a competition they won in 2017. Leipzig reached the last four of the Champions League last season.
They will have to wait to see whether they advance as group winners after the match between Paris Saint-Germain and Istanbul Basaksehir was suspended after a match official was accused of using a racial slur towards one of the Turkish side’s backroom staff.
Blues share spoils
A second-string Chelsea side were held 1-1 at home by Krasnodar, in a match where there was little at stake.
Jorginho converted a penalty four minutes after Remy Cabella had put Krasnodar in front. Chelsea had already qualified for the knockout stage as Group E champions, while Krasnodar knew they would finish third and play in the Europa League.
It was still a surprise at Stamford Bridge when Cabella gave Krasnodar the lead with a tidy finish in the 24th minute. Chelsea were punished for standing off the visiting attackers in the area, with centre backs Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen far too tentative.
Chelsea hit back almost immediately, however, with Jorginho burying a penalty in his trademark fashion to level at 1-1.
The Italy midfielder slotted home after Tammy Abraham was fouled by Krasnodar defender Kaio. It was Jorginho’s first penalty since missing in the 4-0 win in Krasnodar, a failure that cost him Chelsea’s main spot-kick duties.
The match was also notable as 19-year-old forward Tino Anjorin made his first start for Chelsea.
He was one of 10 changes made by Chelsea coach Frank Lampard from Saturday’s (Sunday NZT) 3-1 Premier League win over Leeds.
Lampard threw on a raft of replacements in the second half in an unsuccessful bid to force a winner.
Dortmund, Lazio march on
Axel Witsel scored on his return to Russia to ensure Borussia Dortmund topped their Champions League group with a 2-1 win over Zenit St Petersburg on Tuesday (Wednesday NZT).
The Belgian midfielder, who played five seasons with Zenit, scored Dortmund’s winner in the 78th minute to keep the German team atop Group F, three points clear of Lazio, who held on for a 2-2 draw at home against 10-man Club Brugge.
Dortmund’s Youssoufa Moukoko – just 16 years and 18 days old – became the youngest player ever to play in the Champions League when he came on in the 58th minute.
Dortmund were already assured of their place in the last 16 but needed a win to be sure of finishing ahead of Lazio, who advanced by avoiding defeat.
Brugge had to settle for a Europa League place, while Zenit already knew they would finish fourth and only had pride to play for against Dortmund.
However, Sebastian Driussi opened the scoring for Zenit in the 16th minute. Aleksei Sutormin played a one-two with Malcom and pulled the ball back for his Argentine team-mate to score with a deflected shot inside the right post.
The home team made it difficult for Dortmund to break through. Lucien Favre’s side looked short of ideas and prone to mistakes in buildup play. But Jude Bellingham headed over before the break before Marco Reus struck the right post.
