Champions League, day six

A goal midway through the second half from substitute Guayre was enough to give Villarreal a 1-0 win over Lille, securing them top spot in their group. Meanwhile Manchester United's defeat at Benfica in the other group D match means the English side are out of Europe for the first time in nine years. Barcelona were already sure of first place in group C, but a depleted side won 0-2 at Udinese to make it ten wins out of ten for the Blaugrana. Both goals came in the last five minutes, with Ezquerro putting his side in front and then setting up Iniesta for the second. Barça, Villarreal and Real Madrid now have to wait nine days before finding out who their opponents will be in the knock-out stage. (07.12.05)

Villarreal 1 - Lille 0

Villarreal qualified for the knock-out stage as group D champions after a 1-0 win over Lille at the Madrigal stadium. All four teams in group D started the day with a chance of qualifying for the knock-out stages, although the Spaniards were the better placed and only needed a draw to go through. Their opponents got off to a lively start though with Dumont shooting just over the bar in the first minute, and only some solid defending from Gonzalo and Peña kept them out. However the Pellegrini's side stepped up the pace after the restart, and after a couple of good chances went begging, Guayre ran on to a through ball from fellow substitute Héctor Font to round Sylva and score. Viera had to save from Mirallas and Dumont hit the bar as the French side threw everything forward, but Villarreal held on for a historic win in their first ever season in the Champions League. (07.12.05)

Udinese 0 - Barcelona 2

Barcelona made it ten wins out of ten in all competitions after beating Udinese 0-2 in their last group game. The Catalans were already assured of top spot, and with Rijkaard in bed with fever, assistant coach gave a run out to some of the lesser used players. The first chance of the night fell to the Italians, but a few minutes later Giuly crashed a shot against the crossbar. Deco almost beat keeper De Sanctis with a clever back-heel, and Giuly hit the outside of the post again from a wide angle. With the Italians needing a point to go through to the next round, it looked as if a draw was on the cards. However with five minutes to go Ezquerro beat De Sanctis at the second attempt to open the scoring, and in the last minute the ex Bilbao forward slotted the ball through for Iniesta to score a second. (07.12.05)

With nothing at stake on the last day of the league stage, Real Madrid and Betis both put out weakened sides and lost their respective games. B team manager López Caro took over for the first time at a Real Madrid side who were already guaranteed second spot in their group, and although they went in front early on at Olympiakos, a late goal from Rivaldo won it 2-1 for the Greek team. And Betis bowed out of the competition with a 0-1 defeat at the hands of Anderlecht, who had lost their last 12 games in Europe before this one. The Andalusians will however be taking part in the later stages of the UEFA cup. (06.12.05)

Olympiakos 2 - Real Madrid 1

A late strike from Rivaldo spoilt the debut of Real Madrid's new manager Juan Ramón López Caro, the Spaniards falling to a 2-1 defeat in the last group game at Olympiakos. The B team coach took over from Luxemburgo and found himself together with several of his old charges, Madrid coming in to the last group game already assured of the second qualifying place in the table. And they started off well, Raúl Bravo sweeping in a free kick for Sergio Ramos to head into the net in only the seventh minute. Baptista fired another free kick against the crossbar soon afterwards, and Robinho and Soldado also had chances before the break. The locals drew level though with a spectacular volley from Bulut just five minutes after the restart, and with the game coming to an end Rivaldo picked up a pass from Touré to fire the winner past Diego López. (06.12.05)

Betis 0 - Anderlecht 1

Betis exited the Champions League with a 0-1 defeat at the hands of Anderlecht, and they will now be joining city neighbours Sevilla in the UEFA cup. Serra Ferrer gave a run out to B team youngster Juande amongst others, but the replacements fared no better than their peers, and the Belgians went close a couple of times in the opening minutes. Goor cleared a dangerous header from Rivas off the line following a Capi corner, but with the first half coming to a close Kompany ran on to a long ball to fire a shot under the legs of Doblas and put his side in to the lead. With Joaquín and Xisco on the field in the second half the Spaniards improved, but there was no way through, and an unhappy crowd surrounded the directors' box at the end of the match. (06.12.05)