For sceptics of the UEFA Champions League group stages, said scepticism is quite valid. The Champions League can feel unnecessary, tired and overbearing, and little more than a cash grab with capitalist institutionalised cheating. Perhaps the competition would be better if the stage was done away with, and it was the jeopardy of knockout football throughout instead.
But amidst the criticism, it can still deliver some thrills. Particularly with Matchday Six, in which there are still some places up for grabs. This season may have just five places left up for grabs, but the stakes are still high; Atletico Madrid are on the cusp of elimination; Atalanta and Villarreal have a straight shoot-out to navigate; Barcelona may end their night in a Europa League spot; and it’s all very Reservoir Dogs climax in Group G.
There have been times when the sixth game of the Champions League group stage held massive stakes. Here are half a dozen times fates were on the line in the final match day of the group phase of Europe’s top club competition:
Liverpool 3-1 Olympiakos (2004/05)
Is this the most memorable Matchday Six game of all time? Liverpool went into this game against Olympiakos three points behind their second-placed Greek opponents, needing a win to go through. A 1-0 win would be enough to finish behind Monaco in Group A, but conceding a goal meant they’d need to score three. So, Rafa Benitez’s side duly fell behind to a Rivaldo free-kick midway through the first half, and went into halftime with a mountain to climb.
But two minutes into the second half, Florent Sinama-Pongolle equalised for the Reds on the night, before Neil Mellor put them 2-1 up with nine minutes left. Liverpool needed one more and time was running out. Cue a cross into the box, a cushioned header down, and a volley of seismic proportions from Steven Gerrard. Liverpool had done the seemingly impossible, and it wasn’t the last time they would pull off a miracle in the Champions League that season.
Benfica 2-1 Manchester United (2005/06)
‘Group D Day’ as commentator Rob Hawthorne had called it on the night. This was a group so tight and goal-starved that going into the final games, second-placed Lille had scored just one goal in the group, which was on Matchday 4. Benfica and Manchester United were outside the qualification spots going into this game; a win would be enough for either side, a draw would definitely send Benfica out, while a stalemate could be good for United.
United looked on course for the next round when Paul Scholes scrambled the ball just over the line from four yards inside just six minutes. But Benfica hit back ten minutes through a header from Geovanni, and with halftime approaching, a deflected shot from Beto put the Portuguese hosts in front. United sought an equaliser – which would be enough to go through, with Lille losing at Villarreal. But there would be no reprieve, and United didn’t just fail to go past the group stage for the first time, they also finished bottom of the group. And for the Red Devils, there’d be more group stage mishaps to come.
Rangers 0-3 Lyon
If after the first two games, you’d offered Lyon the chance to go through by winning on Matchday Six, they’d take it. That’s because Les Gones had begun with successive 3-0 losses, at Barcelona and at home to Rangers. But Lyon rallied with two wins and a draw from their next three games, including a 2-2 stalemate against Barca.
Lyon came into Matchday Six level on points with Rangers, but would going out on head-to-head if they didn’t win at Ibrox. They took the lead Sidney Govou after 16 minutes, and held on till the final five minutes, where a Karim Benzema double sealed a 3-0 win and a place in the Last 16.
Panathinaikos 1-0 Anorthosis Famagusta (2008/09)
Going into this Matchday Six game of Group B in 2008/09, Anorthosis Famagusta had the chance to be the first Cypriot side to go through to the knockout round of the Champions League. Managed by Nikos Nicolaou, Anorthosis began the group campaign with a goalless draw against Werder Bremen, and a win over Panathinaikos.
Then came a double header with Inter, which was a 1-0 defeat at the San Siro and thrilling 3-3 draw in Nicosia. Matchday Five was another goal-fest, a 2-2 draw against Bremen, but they still had their fate in their hands, and would go through with a win in Athens. Panathinaikos, however, had qualification hopes of their own, and with 20 minutes left, in front of almost 60,000 fans, a combination of defender and goalkeeping error allowed Giorgos Karagounis to score a winner for the Greek side. As Anorthosis faltered to bottom of the group, it was Panathinaikos who’d top it.
Juventus 1-4 Bayern Munich (2009/10)
The biggest heavyweight Matchday Six in the Champions League? When Group A was drawn for the 2009/10 Champions League, Bayern Munich and Juventus looked like the frontrunners to go through. But French champions Bordeaux didn’t read the script, and going into Matchday Six, had taken ten points from the two top dogs, including a double over Bayern. Incredibly, before Matchday Six, Laurent Blanc’s side had already won the group.
That meant one of Juventus and Bayern Munich would go out, in what had been a rather unpleasant for both sides under new management. For Juventus, the appointment of former defender Ciro Ferrara wasn’t working; for Bayern, Louis van Gaal was on the cusp of being sacked already. A draw in the game would do for the Italians;Bayer Munich, however had to win. But things didn’t get off well for them when David Trezeguet gave Juve the lead after 19 minutes. But goalkeeper Hans Jorg-Butt levelled for Bayern from the spot on the half-hour mark (his third goal against Juve, with three different clubs). Second half strikes from Ivica Olic, Mario Gomez and Anatoliy Tymoshchuk would see Juventus suffer their biggest home defeat in the Champions League, and elimination for the two-time champions.
Borussia Dortmund 2-3 Marseille (2011/12)
Going into Matchday Six of Group F in 2011/12, things were dicey. Arsenal had already won the group with 11 points, but the other three sides read Marseille: 7; Olympiakos: 6; Dortmund: 4. Dortmund had an outside chance, but had to beat Marseille by four goals and hoped Olympiakos failed to beat Arsenal. Olympiakos needed a win and a Marseille draw or defeat, while Marseille had their fate in their hands.
But Dortmund raced into a two-goal lead, Jakub Blaszczykowski heading Die Schwarzgelben in front after 23 minutes, and a Mats Hummels penalty doubling it nine minutes, before Marseille pulled one back on the cusp of halftime via Loic Remy. Marseille would find their equaliser in the 85th minute through Andre Ayew, but with Olympiakos beating Arsenal, would still be heading out with Dortmund. Two minutes, later, a moment of magic from Mathieu Valbuena would do the trick for Didier Deschamps’ side, and Marseille had pulled off a comeback at the Signal Iduna Park to go through to the next round.
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