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Who will top the group?

Matchday 6 - Two Big Games

Perhaps unusually for the Champions League entering match day 6, the vast majority of the teams who will make up the last 16 have already booked their spot in the knock-out round.

Most of the action left on the road to Rome is coming down to the final three spots up for grabs. One of these spots should be taken by Chelsea who are at home to FC Cluj in their final game and even if Chelsea were to lose, the result in the other Group A game could see them through regardless so in all reality, the key focus in the final round of Champions League games comes down to two spots.

And in a fantastic twist of fate, especially for the TV viewers but perhaps not for the fans, officials and players of the clubs involved, both of these spots will be contested by teams facing off against each other. Both of the key games take place on Tuesday night with Groups A and B being the groups that matter if you want to see the genuine spectacle of teams battling for the right to continue in this seasons Champions League campaign.

Roma Final in May

With this season’s Champions League final being held in Rome, Roma will be especially keen to try and make it to the final and they are currently in pole position in Group A with 9 points from their five matches.

The Italian club have recovered well from a horrific start when they were defeated at home by FC Cluj and go into their final game knowing that avoiding defeat will be enough for them. Even if Roma were to lose, they would be offered a second chance at qualification if Chelsea fail to win their last match.

Roma’s qualification hopes lie squarely in their own hands but they are facing Bordeaux, who will also be aware that victory will be enough to put them into the final sixteen. The French club currently lie third in Group A on 7 points, two behind Roma and one behind Chelsea and an away victory for the French team will see them leapfrog their opponents, capping a remarkable turnaround in their fortunes.

Roma Rebound in Bordeaux
These two teams previously met on match day two of this season’s campaign when Roma travelled to France on the back of their humiliating home defeat to FC CLuj. Bordeaux were also struggling after being on the wrong end of a 4-0 score line at Stamford Bridge and it is fair to say that this match was vital for both teams to turn their campaign around.

It was the home team who took the lead on 18 minutes when Gourcuff swept Bordeaux into the lead and the score remained the same until the hour mark. At this point, Roma were facing disaster as their next match was an away trip to Chelsea but the Italians were handed a lifeline when Vucinic hauled them level on 64 minutes.

Revitalised by this goal, Roma heaped pressure on Bordeaux and their persistence was rewarded when Julio Baptiste struck twice, on 71 and 83 minutes, to give the Italians a 3-1 lead and Bordeaux were firmly rooted to the bottom of the group with zero points from two games.

Bordeaux Rally After Poor Start
The French side have rebounded strongly by defeating FC Cluj home and away and drawing with Chelsea at home which has hauled themselves right back into contention with a genuine prospect of qualifying for the last 16.

Considering at the end of their 4-1 defeat they were four points behind Chelsea and FC Cluj, securing a Uefa Cup slot was beyond the hopes of many of the Bordeaux fans so to still be in with a hope of securing Champions League football in the final game will be a bonus.

The other head to head game which will decide the final Champions League knock-out entrant comes in Group B and will be played in Greece as Panathinaikos welcome Anorthosis Famagusta to the Olympic Stadium in a match where the winner takes all.

Anorthosis Famagusta Exceed Expectations
Anorthosis Famagusta are taking part in the Champions League group stages for the first time and they have performed exceedingly well but entering the final day, they can still finish in any of the four positions in the group.

The very least their efforts deserve would be a passage to the Uefa Cup in the New Year but football doesn’t always give teams what they deserve so the Cypriot representative will need to hit top form to ensure they have European football after the turn of the year.

These two teams faced each other at the start of October when the Cypriots ran out 3-1 winners. Famagusta quickly raced into a two goal lead in just over a quarter of an hour but a Salpigidis penalty drew Panathianikos back into the match before the half hour mark and it was a 2-1 score line at half time.

With the game evenly poised, the home side pressed for a killer third and it duly arrived in the 78th minute when Mulla Mohammed struck to send the home crowd and allowed them to dream that they would be on their way to the last 16 of the Champions League.

Heartache on Matchday 5 for Cypriots
At the end of Matchday 2, Anorthosis Famagusta were sharing top spot in the group with Inter Milan after both teams had won one and drawn one of their opening two games. The Cypriots have failed to win since match day but they have picked up another two draws which sees them sitting on six points.

A thrilling 3-3 home draw with Inter Milan was followed with the heartache of throwing away a two goal lead at home to Werder Bremen as the German club roared back to steal a point in a 2-2 draw. At the same time, Panathinakois were causing a major upset by winning away to Inter Milan and it is this result that has given the Greek team the advantage going into the final fixture.

A draw will be enough to see Panthinaikos through at the expense of Anorthosis Famagusta and even though the Cypriots would have a better head to head record than their opponents, they would be a point behind in the final standings.

A draw could even see the Cypriot team finish bottom if Werder Bremen can shock Inter Milan in the final game and pull off a victory. Any Champions League neutral may be rooting for the Cypriot team to pull off a coup by winning in Greece but the odds are definitely in favour of Panathinaikos making it through to the knock out round of this seasons Champions League.

by Andrew Reilly

for The Silver Circle at www.footballtip.co.uk

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