Tottenham recorded one of the biggest wins in its history tonight, the gutsy upstarts ripping reigning champions Inter Milan 3-1 behind a dominant performance from Welsh winger Gareth Bale.
Benfica leapt out to a 4-0 lead over Lyon, but nearly choked, seeing Lyon score three goals in 15 minutes to give the Ports a big scare, and a narrow 4-3 win. Rangers were blown out in Spain by Valencia 3-0, but the Spanish powerhouses Barcelona were held to a surprising 1-1 draw in Denmark by a fearless Copenhagen. Rubin Kazan and Panathinaikos played out a grim scoreless draw in the early game, echoed by an unwatchable scoreless draw later between Hapoel Tel Aviv and Schalke. And Werder Bremen collapsed after Torsten Frings was sent off late, seeing Twente snatch two late goals and a big 2-0 win.
It was a good week for Spurs, all told. Yes, they lost to Manchester United 2-0 on the weekend, but Redknapp was not sanctioned by the FA for his withering appraisal of referee Mark Clattenburg. This may prove that if the most voluble quotemeisters in the English game threaten to stop talking to the media, they can say whatever they wish about the officials without fear of penalty.
In good humor, Spurs came out flying from the start tonight, stunning the champs with speed and desire, and proving at least for one night, that the Premiership’s frenetic pace can be a big advantage against slower, more technical teams.
It would be a mistake to count Inter out, of course. But surely fans will be wondering about the performance of some of their players, many of whom, bluntly, were torched. Exhibit A is Maicon, considered the best attacking right back in the world. Tonight, he was under attack, as Bale blasted past him and the rest of the Inter defense at will, twice finding his forwards alone with only Luca Castellazi to beat.
Spurs got things started when Luka Modric set Spurs’ other big asset, Rafael van der Vaart, through in the 18th minute for a clinical finish to the near post. Inter seemed dazed by the sight of little men in white shirts running past them, and even the yeoman work of Samuel Eto’o -- who would be finally rewarded with a consolation goal in the 80th -- couldn’t turn the tide. Bale found Peter Crouch for the second just past the hour mark and Roman Pavlyuchenko got the capper a minute before time.
Fans are sure to blame Inter manager Rafael Benitez for some of their woes. He failed to come with any plan to contain Bale, and mysteriously left Coutinho and Diego Milito on the bench until far too late. But that would be unfair to Tottenham, for this was a complete performance by a team that wasn’t supposed to be able to hang with the big boys. Tonight, London’s “third team” showed they deserve to be here every bit as much as Arsenal and Chelsea, much to the chagrin of the Italian stars.
In Group A’s other match, Werder Bremen sunk to the bottom of a group most folks once thought they would get out of -- not any more. They have been revealed as sub-par in both league play and Europe, and tonight FC Twente was merely the latest side to drub them. Frings’ ejection in the 75th minute for felling Bryan Ruiz, then complaining about it to the ref, not only extinguished the Germans’ night, but is most likely to mean they are out of the European chase. Nacer Chadli gave Twente the win when his strike caromed off Sebastian Prodl, then a wide open Luuk De Jong headed home a cross from Ruiz to seal the deal. Werder are dead last; Twente still have a shot at the knockout stage and it could go to the final night when they face Tottenham.
In Turkey it was not simple for Manchester United against a Bursaspor side that started and ended the night pointless. Although United had plenty of possession they battered away without truly causing the hosts problems in the first 45 minutes and Bursaspor did just enough on their own raids to make it more than a night at the library for Edwin Van der Sar.
Things changed quickly after the break, with Darren Fletcher putting the Red Devils ahead in the 48th. Fletcher was all alone on the top right side of the box to receive a pass from Michael Carrick and had no trouble placing his shot well beyond the reach of keeper Dimitar Ivankov.
Gabriel Obertan finished the match as contest with a good strike from the top of the box in the 72nd minute by which time United was well and truly in control with a place in the knockout stage beckoning. Bebe's goal came after veteran Paul Scholes swept up a Turkish give-away and quickly spotted the young Portuguese star free at the top of the box. Using his body to protect the ball, Bebe swept it, and the game, home.
For the second time in two weeks FC Copenhagen showed the rest of Europe that you don't have to stand there and watch Barcelona play. Yes, the Danes often had to react quickly to contain the slick-passing Spanish champions, but their fearless approach to the match demonstrated immediately that they were looking for three points, not willing to concede anything to their more famous visitors. Getting one point in the end kept them just one behind Barcelona and very much on track to play next spring.
Danish resolve was shown in the opening half when they immediately replied to a Lionel Messi goal that confirmed a period of Barcelona pressure. David Villa had been denied twice just before he set up the little Argentine star for the go-ahead goal in the 31st minute. Just 60 seconds later Copenhagen was level when Claudemir was quick to hit the far corner after Victor Valdes could only parry a Jesper Gronkjaer cross into the scorer's path.
Gronkjaer, the experienced Copenhagen campaigner with both the national team and the Premiership on his career resume, caused Barcelona problems and the Danes' willingness to trade attacks with the Spaniards made for an open, balanced evening. There was room for Andres Iniesta and the ever-dangerous Messi to create for Barcelona, but as at the Camp Nou this was never a night of one-way traffic. That Barcelona might have won it at the death when Pedro ripped a 20-yard drive off the far post merely confirmed the quality of the night and preserved a well-deserved result for Kobenhavn.
There were no goals and nothing to savor in the lifeless match in Kazan where homestanding Rubin never showed enough initiative to take the points off a visiting Panathinaikos side that played without any semblance of will. The best chance of the match fell to Alkeksandr Ryazantsev, but his header was punched away by the Aleksandroz Tzorvas late in the opening half.
The Greeks stayed deep in defense much of the night and Rubin neither showed the inclination nor the speed necessary to open things up. Obafemi Martins came on too late to make a real impact and the midfield never played with enough pace. As a result of the draw, neither the Russians nor the Greeks look like catching Barcelona or Copenhagen in the Group D table.
Benfica simply took Lyon apart in the first hour in Lisbon. Alan Kardec opened the scoring when he rose among defenders to head a free kick down to the left-hand corner of Hugo Lloris goal in the 20th minute to put the Reds on top and there was never any intention to sit on the advantage.
The Portuguese made it 2-0 12 minutes later when Fabio Coentrao scored one of the goals of the night and it became 3-0 in the 43rd minute when Javi Garcia beat Lloris to an inswinging corner and powered home a header. Coentrao's second for 4-0 was a sublime piece of beauty, a stretched left-foot flick over the advancing Lloris from a Carlos Martins cross in the 67th minute. Martins, the architect all night, laid the ball on perfectly, but the finish was special.
The win rejuvenates Benfica's qualifying chances as they finish against unimpressive Schalke and Hapoel Tel Aviv. On this form they certainly will believe they can advance alongside Lyon, which still needs just one more result to put this poor first 75 minutes in the rear view mirror.
Speaking of, Schalke's visit to Israel was further proof that little is right about Felix Magath's Bundesliga strugglers. There were far too many long balls that were hopeful rather than pointed toward a receiver and far too little cohesion between the Germans' midfield and attack. Hapoel, in its first Champions League appearance, deserved their point but lack the real quality needed to succeed at this level.
The choppy first half, pock-marked with cards and contact, gave way to a second half of attrition, Schalke unable to string things together effectively and Hapoel firing away, too often from long range. If effort had been enough, the Israelis surely would have gotten more than that first point in Europe. Schalke will now be left to get something against Lyon or Benfica if they wish to progress to next spring's stage. American Jermaine Jones missed the match with an ankle injury.
Last but not least, luck finally ran out for a Glasgow Rangers side that had gone undefeated in 15 games. On the weekend, their perfect run in the Scottish Premiership was broken by a 1-1 draw with minnows Inverness Caledonian Thistle, and tonight they were just run through the woodchipper by Valencia. Roberto Soldano scored twice for the Spaniards, with Tino Costa adding a very late capstone on a grim night for the Scots.
'Keeper Allan McGregor did everything he could to keep the ball out of his net, but the Glaswegians played such farcical defense in front of him, it’s a wonder the match didn’t finish in double digits. The result puts Valencia in the driver’s seat, dropping Rangers to third on five points, and probably means the Scots are going to a Europa League berth. Adding to their pain: Rangers must play United next while Valencia get to beat up on Bursaspor.
Jamie Trecker is a senior writer for FoxSoccer.com covering the UEFA Champions League.
