Barcelona made sure of first place in their group for the 13th season in a row after they beat Borussia Dortmund 3-1 on Wednesday. A defeat could have seen them drop to third, but Messi set up Luis Suárez and then scored himself before the break, and Griezmann completed the scoring before Sancho got a late consolation for the Germans. Valencia are not through yet, but a 2-2 draw against Chelsea means their fate is in their own hands. Carlos Soler’s opener was overturned by strikes from Kovacic and Pulisic either side of the break, but Daniel Wass saved a point with a shot from a wide angle with ten minutes to go. The Ches now need to win at Ajax in two weeks’ time, otherwise they may have to make do with a place in the Europa League. (27.11.19)
Real Madrid didn’t have to play a single minute on Tuesday to qualify for the knock out stage, the 1-1 draw between Galatasaray and Club Brugge earlier in the evening ensuring them a top two spot in their group. They had to settle for second place though after drawing 2-2 with Paris Saint Germain. A goal in each half by Benzema appeared to have given them the three points, but late strikes by Mbappé and Sarabia tied up first place for the French team. Atlético Madrid will have to wait a bit longer though after they lost 1-0 to Juventus, and they now have to beat Lokomotiv Moscow in the last match to be sure of a place in the last 16. Dybala got the only goal for the Italians from a wide free kick on the stroke of half time. (26.11.19)