Group A is on a knife-edge as the two teams who lost on matchday one came out on top on matchday two, with Atletico Madrid defeating Juventus and Malmo overcoming Olympiakos.
In Group B, Basel recovered from their opening day trouncing at Real Madrid to earn three points at the expense of Liverpool while the champions made it two wins from two in Ludogorets.
Zenit and Monaco shared the spoils in Group C to maintain a point gap on Bayer Leverkusen but the Germans hinted at their potential with a convincing win over Benfica.
Danny Welbeck helped Arsenal to their first win in Group D with a hat-trick against Galatasaray while Borussia Dortmund kept up their 100 per cent start with a win in Anderlecht.
On Tuesday, Bayern Munich laboured to a 1-0 win over CSKA Moscow to move to six points but Manchester City could not overcome Roma, who earned a draw to take control of second place in Group E.
Paris St-Germain coach Laurent Blanc earned a reprieve when his side surprisingly defeated Barcelona, 3-2, in Group F while Ajax could only draw with APOEL in Cyprus.
Goals were at a premium in Group G with Schalke drawing 1-1 with Maribor and Chelsea edging out Sporting Lisbon by a single Nemanja Matic strike.
Jackson Martinez struck a dramatic late double in Lviv against Shakhtar Donetsk to earn a point for Porto in Group H while Athletic Bilbao slumped to defeat at BATE.
Here is the story of matchday two. They are both sons of Ghanaian immigrants to Europe. They were rivals at Manchester City and Manchester United. They have both moved on for fees of around €20 million and are playing for clubs of a similar stature. That is where comparisons end these days for Mario Balotelli and Danny Welbeck.
While Balotelli toils in the Liverpool attack, Welbeck has shone brilliantly for Arsenal. Balotelli was poor yet again on Wednesday as Liverpool slumped to another defeat - this time to Swiss champions Basel while Welbeck, meanwhile, was tucking away a hat-trick against Galatasaray.
"Danny is a great player and he has shown it for many years at Manchester United," team-mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain told reporters. "I knew when he came to this club, the way we like to play football and try and find through balls, with his pace and his intelligent runs we'll find a lot of him."
There is no question that as teenagers Balotelli looked the better prospect. He is no better now, however, than he was when he was 17. He has been shunted around Inter, Manchester City and AC Milan with little or no regular productivity to show for it.
Welbeck has been diligent but before his move to Arsenal he divided opinion - a hard worker, but not a good enough finisher. Sir Alex Ferguson and Louis van Gaal never truly gave Welbeck the chance to excel in the central position that his instincts suggested he could.
Arsene Wenger has picked up an established international performer with Champions League and Premier League experience and could make another goalscoring supremo like Thierry Henry out of him. "What is good for me is that his work rate is good, his link play is also very good and his attitude is always very positive," Wenger said. "He is not only a finisher, he is a team player."
Brendan Rodgers meanwhile is left with a player who has not integrated into the Liverpool team and whose presence has served only to underline the importance of Daniel Sturridge to the Reds. AC Milan cut their losses on him for a reason. There may not be a question about which of them earned the bigger reputation but while Balotelli's goes through the floor, Welbeck's goes through the roof. Ernesto Valverde's reward for taking Athletic Bilbao to the Champions League this season is misery. The Basque side, who finished fourth in la Liga last term, are languishing in 16th place in the league with four points from 18 and were soundly defeated by BATE Borisov in Belarus on Tuesday night.
“We were a team that was unrecognisable. BATE had much more intensity and were superior,” Valverde told reporters. “Today we had nothing. It’s a long time since I’ve seen us play so badly."
It was all a very different story only a few weeks ago. Athletic were riding high and eliminating Napoli from the Champions League play-offs and Valverde looked set for a positive season.
They have won only one game since knocking Napoli out, however, and that was a 3-0 home win against Levante. Since then it's been three defeats and a goalless draw for Athletic in la Liga while their Champions League form has also been ordinary. They drew with Shakhtar Donetsk on the opening matchday before suffering defeat to BATE, who lost 6-0 to Porto on the first matchday.
It is not difficult to grasp what Athletic's chief problems are and for observers of the English game they might be described as similar to Liverpool's. Last season they surpassed their league rivals and qualified for the Champions League during a campaign when they did not have to balance a domestic programme with European football. Then they sold their best player - in Athletic's case it was Ander Herrera to Manchester United.
Now they are attempting to prepare for midweek matches in Europe and weekend games in the league. It is too much and decreased tempo is the result. “Our team is only able to play at 100 per cent and it has cost us for so many games in a row," the coach said. And, unlike Liverpool, Athletic are not entitled to splash their transfer kitty in the market. By relying only on Basque players, their options are strictly limited.
It means that the group is lacking any sort of meaningful experience of Champions League football as well as depth. Valverde's team are struggling in Group H with two matches against Porto to come. Up next in the league? Real Madrid.
It never rains but it pours.
In Group B, Basel recovered from their opening day trouncing at Real Madrid to earn three points at the expense of Liverpool while the champions made it two wins from two in Ludogorets.
Zenit and Monaco shared the spoils in Group C to maintain a point gap on Bayer Leverkusen but the Germans hinted at their potential with a convincing win over Benfica.
Danny Welbeck helped Arsenal to their first win in Group D with a hat-trick against Galatasaray while Borussia Dortmund kept up their 100 per cent start with a win in Anderlecht.
On Tuesday, Bayern Munich laboured to a 1-0 win over CSKA Moscow to move to six points but Manchester City could not overcome Roma, who earned a draw to take control of second place in Group E.
Paris St-Germain coach Laurent Blanc earned a reprieve when his side surprisingly defeated Barcelona, 3-2, in Group F while Ajax could only draw with APOEL in Cyprus.
Goals were at a premium in Group G with Schalke drawing 1-1 with Maribor and Chelsea edging out Sporting Lisbon by a single Nemanja Matic strike.
Jackson Martinez struck a dramatic late double in Lviv against Shakhtar Donetsk to earn a point for Porto in Group H while Athletic Bilbao slumped to defeat at BATE.
Here is the story of matchday two. They are both sons of Ghanaian immigrants to Europe. They were rivals at Manchester City and Manchester United. They have both moved on for fees of around €20 million and are playing for clubs of a similar stature. That is where comparisons end these days for Mario Balotelli and Danny Welbeck.
While Balotelli toils in the Liverpool attack, Welbeck has shone brilliantly for Arsenal. Balotelli was poor yet again on Wednesday as Liverpool slumped to another defeat - this time to Swiss champions Basel while Welbeck, meanwhile, was tucking away a hat-trick against Galatasaray.
"Danny is a great player and he has shown it for many years at Manchester United," team-mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain told reporters. "I knew when he came to this club, the way we like to play football and try and find through balls, with his pace and his intelligent runs we'll find a lot of him."
There is no question that as teenagers Balotelli looked the better prospect. He is no better now, however, than he was when he was 17. He has been shunted around Inter, Manchester City and AC Milan with little or no regular productivity to show for it.
Welbeck has been diligent but before his move to Arsenal he divided opinion - a hard worker, but not a good enough finisher. Sir Alex Ferguson and Louis van Gaal never truly gave Welbeck the chance to excel in the central position that his instincts suggested he could.
Arsene Wenger has picked up an established international performer with Champions League and Premier League experience and could make another goalscoring supremo like Thierry Henry out of him. "What is good for me is that his work rate is good, his link play is also very good and his attitude is always very positive," Wenger said. "He is not only a finisher, he is a team player."
Brendan Rodgers meanwhile is left with a player who has not integrated into the Liverpool team and whose presence has served only to underline the importance of Daniel Sturridge to the Reds. AC Milan cut their losses on him for a reason. There may not be a question about which of them earned the bigger reputation but while Balotelli's goes through the floor, Welbeck's goes through the roof. Ernesto Valverde's reward for taking Athletic Bilbao to the Champions League this season is misery. The Basque side, who finished fourth in la Liga last term, are languishing in 16th place in the league with four points from 18 and were soundly defeated by BATE Borisov in Belarus on Tuesday night.
“We were a team that was unrecognisable. BATE had much more intensity and were superior,” Valverde told reporters. “Today we had nothing. It’s a long time since I’ve seen us play so badly."
It was all a very different story only a few weeks ago. Athletic were riding high and eliminating Napoli from the Champions League play-offs and Valverde looked set for a positive season.
They have won only one game since knocking Napoli out, however, and that was a 3-0 home win against Levante. Since then it's been three defeats and a goalless draw for Athletic in la Liga while their Champions League form has also been ordinary. They drew with Shakhtar Donetsk on the opening matchday before suffering defeat to BATE, who lost 6-0 to Porto on the first matchday.
It is not difficult to grasp what Athletic's chief problems are and for observers of the English game they might be described as similar to Liverpool's. Last season they surpassed their league rivals and qualified for the Champions League during a campaign when they did not have to balance a domestic programme with European football. Then they sold their best player - in Athletic's case it was Ander Herrera to Manchester United.
Now they are attempting to prepare for midweek matches in Europe and weekend games in the league. It is too much and decreased tempo is the result. “Our team is only able to play at 100 per cent and it has cost us for so many games in a row," the coach said. And, unlike Liverpool, Athletic are not entitled to splash their transfer kitty in the market. By relying only on Basque players, their options are strictly limited.
It means that the group is lacking any sort of meaningful experience of Champions League football as well as depth. Valverde's team are struggling in Group H with two matches against Porto to come. Up next in the league? Real Madrid.
It never rains but it pours.
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