Another busy night of action in the UEFA Europa League saw 13 more sides book their places in the round of 32.
Many big sides have show their intent to go all the way to Amsterdam this season and the likes of Atletico Madrid, Lazio, Fenerbahce and Newcastle United secured their passage into the next round on Thursday night.
However there have been some major casualties, with Liverpool’s fate hanging by a thread and certain elimination for Marseille, FC Twente, PSV Eindhoven and last season’s finalists Athletic Bilbao.
Atletico beginning to dream again
It has been a memorable season already for Atletico Madrid. Winners of the European Super Cup and sitting in a comfortable second in La Liga, they sealed their passage into the knockout rounds in Group B.
It wasn’t pretty at the Vicente Calderon but Raul Garcia’s strike (players celebrating pictured) was enough to see them overcome Hapoel Tel-Aviv 1-0.
A point is still required from their final game to secure top spot but Diego Simeone and his starring team can begin to dream again of going all the way.
Two penalties were the order of the night in Portugal as Academica and Viktoria Plzen drew 1-1, meaning the Czech side progress.
Pavel Horvath put the visitors ahead from the penalty spot and they held on to secure qualification, despite Edinho’s late spot-kick of his own for the home side.
Lazio are also through to the next stage after playing out a dour scoreless draw with Tottenham Hotspur in Rome.
Vitolo’s second half penalty kept Panathinaikos alive in Group J, as they beat Maribor 1-0 in Greece.
If they win at White Hart Lane on matchday six, Andre Villas-Boas’s side will face a humbling elimination.
Fenerbahce take care of Marseille
There have been some special overhead kicks in the world of football in the past couple of weeks and there was another one in France.
Bekir Irtegun’s inspiration in the 39th minute was the difference between Marseille and Fenerbahce.
The Turks secured top spot in Group C with the 1-0 win and the defeat means that the 2004 UEFA Cup finalists are now out of the competition.
That is because Borussia Monchengladbach have a better results record than their French opponents and they advanced courtesy of a 2-0 success at home to AEL Limassol.
Substitute Igor De Camargo was the hero for the hosts, coming off the bench to strike twice in the last 10 minutes.
Marseille might be out but Bordeaux have qualified out of Group D after an excellent 2-1 away triumph in Belgium over Club Brugge.
Jussie opened the scoring for the French side after three minutes and he doubled their advantage just before half-time.
Despite a late consolation from Maxime Lestienne, the Belgians are out. Newcastle’s edgy 1-1 home draw with Maritimo means the outcome of this group is sorted as the English side also went through.
Stuttgart hand Steaua a battering
In Group E, Steaua Bucharest only needed one point to ensure their passage through but they were made to wait in style by VFB Stuttgart.
Stuttgart might be struggling at home in the Bundesliga but they showed no signs of this in Romania, racing into a 4-0 lead inside half an hour.
The group leaders looked stunned and were outclassed 5-1. Steaua’s destiny remains in their own hands but this heavy loss will be a rude awakening.
FC Copenhagen stayed in the hunt following a 2-1 away victory against Molde FK, ending Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first campaign in Europe as a manager.
Europa League debutants Levante ensured their progression at the expense of Steve McClaren and Dutch title challengers FC Twente.
Goals from Angel, Papa Diop and Vicente Iborra saw the Spanish side take a commanding 3-1 away victory in Sweden against Helsingborgs.
Twente’s fate was sealed in Group L by a 0-0 draw with already qualified Hannover 96.
Despite drawing four of their five matches in this group, the lack of wins has cost McClaren’s talented side dearly.
Awesome Anzhi look good
In freezing Russian temperatures, another Europa League debutant confirmed their qualification in the form of Anzhi.
They dominated their encounter with Udinese and the 2-0 victory means the Italians are another strong side to be eliminated.
The goals for Guus Hiddink’s side arrived in the last 20 minutes, courtesy of ex-Blackburn defender Christopher Samba and Samuel Eto’o.
Anzhi have shown their worth in Group A and could be one to watch in the knockout rounds, especially with masterful manager Hiddink at the helm.
Liverpool threw away a lead twice to draw 2-2 with Young Boys at Anfield, meaning they have to win in Italy in a fortnight to be certain of joining Anzhi in progression.
There will be no final this season for Athletic Bilbao as they were eliminated without even playing.
Their Group I match in Israel against Hapoel Kiryat-Shmona was postponed due to security reasons after the recent violence in the region which has taken most of the UK TV headlines.
Sparta Prague didn’t show any mercy and their 1-1 home draw with Lyon not only ended the French side’s 100 per cent record but meant the Czechs go through in second position.
UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE MATCHDAY FIVE RESULTS
Group A: Liverpool 2-2 Young Boys
Group A: Anzhi 2-0 Udinese
Group B: Atletico Madrid 1-0 Hapoel Tel-Aviv
Group B: Academica 1-1 Viktoria Plzen
Group C: Marseille 0-1 Fenerbahce
Group C: Borussia Monchengladbach 2-0 AEL Limassol
Group D: Club Brugge 1-2 Bordeaux
Group D: Newcastle United 1-1 Maritimo
Group E: Steaua Bucharest 1-5 VFB Stuttgart
Group E: Molde FK 1-2 FC Copenhagen
Group F: PSV Eindhoven 1-2 Dnipro
Group F: AIK Solna 1-2 Napoli
Group G: FC Basle 3-0 Sporting Lisbon
Group G: Videoton 0-1 KRC Genk
Group H: Rubin Kazan 3-0 Inter Milan
Group H: Nefcti 1-1 Partizan Belgrade
Group I: Sparta Prague 1-1 Lyon
Group I: Hapoel Kiryat-Shmona P-P Athletic Bilbao (Match postponed on security grounds)
Group J: Lazio 0-0 Tottenham Hotspur
Group J: Panathinaikos 1-0 Maribor
Group K: Metalist Kharkiv 2-0 Bayer Leverkusen
Group K: Rosenborg 3-2 Rapid Vienna
Group L: Hannover 96 0-0 FC Twente
Group L: Helsingborgs 1-3 Levante
By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88
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