IMAGES from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Tuesday
Suarez leads Sporting to victory over PSG
Holders Paris St Germain slipped to a 2-1 defeat at Portuguese side Sporting on Tuesday, jeopardising their bid to qualify directly for the Champions League last 16 after Luis Suarez struck twice, netting the winner in the final minute.
Sporting went ahead through Suarez against the run of play in the second half, despite sustained pressure from PSG.
The French champions hit back quickly as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia levelled with a superb strike, appearing to salvage a point.
Suarez, however, struck again in the dying moments to snatch victory for Sporting, leaving both teams on 13 points and inside the top eight, which assures direct qualification for the last 16, ahead of PSG’s home match against Newcastle United and Sporting’s trip to Athletic Bilbao.
Both teams lead ninth-placed Inter by a single point.
“We had too many chances and didn’t score - it happens to us too often. We lacked concentration and made two mistakes. We do what we can, but if we don’t convert our chances, we cannot afford to concede goals,” said PSG midfielder Vitinha.
Luis Enrique’s side dominated the opening stages in Lisbon, with Nuno Mendes forcing Rui Silva into a sharp save from a tight angle and Senny Mayulu heading tamely at the Sporting goalkeeper after good work down the left.
The visitors thought they had taken the lead on the half-hour when Warren Zaire-Emery headed in Fabian Ruiz’s cross, but the goal was ruled out after a VAR review judged Mayulu had fouled Geny Catamo in the build-up.
Nuno Mendes then had the ball in the net again late in the half, finishing from close range after a Zaire-Emery cross, only for the effort to be disallowed for an offside against Ousmane Dembele.
Sporting offered little in response before the break, but the teams went in level at 0–0 despite PSG’s clear superiority with 15 attempts and 69% possession.
Sporting offered more early in the second half, with a dangerous Trincao cross just evading Suarez in the 52nd minute.
The hosts then had their first shots on target and opened the scoring in the 74th minute when Suarez coolly slotted a low shot past Lucas Chevalier after Catamo’s attempt had been deflected into his path.
Five minutes later, Kvaratskhelia, who had come on for Mayulu, unleashed a superb shot into the far top corner from the edge of the box to equalise.
But PSG lacked their usual grit and were punished again in the 90th minute.
Trincao collected a low pass from the left just outside the box and struck first time with his left foot, forcing Chevalier to parry and Suarez nodded the rebound into the far corner to send the crowd into raptures.
Tottenham beat 10-man Dortmund to close in on last-16 spot
Tottenham Hotspur shrugged off their domestic gloom with a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund that took the heat off head coach Thomas Frank and put them within touching distance of the Champions League knockout stages on Tuesday.
First-half goals by captain Cristian Romero and Dominic Solanke gave Tottenham control against a desperately disappointing Dortmund side who played three-quarters of the match with 10 men after Daniel Svensson's red card.
Tottenham have won twice in 11 Premier League matches at home this season -- a run that has left Frank fighting for his job. But in the Champions League they have been impeccable in north London, winning four out of four without conceding.
The latest one lifted them into fourth place ahead of Wednesday's games, meaning a win at Eintracht Frankfurt next week would seal a top-eight spot and progression to the last 16.
Dortmund, who began the night level on 11 points with Tottenham, face Inter Milan in their last game and are now likely to have to take their chances in the playoffs.
"It will be very tough," Dortmund captain Emre Can said. "I hope it will be better than today."
TOXIC MOOD
When Tottenham suffered a last-gasp defeat by West Ham United at the weekend the mood turned toxic with home fans chanting 'sacked in the morning' at Frank.
Speculation was rife that the Dane would not even be in charge for the visit of Dortmund.
He came out fighting in his pre-match press conference though and despite having only 11 senior outfield players available, his team responded against the Bundesliga side.
Such was the ease with which Tottenham brushed aside Dortmund, Frank may well wish he could face European opposition every week, rather than the likes of Bournemouth, Fulham and West Ham who have caused him such pain.
"I think first half, you felt it could be a special European night, the fans were absolutely great and really behind the team so happy with that," Frank, whose only loss in the competition was a 5-3 defeat to holders Paris St Germain, said.
"Of course, it would be amazing to (finish in the top eight). First Burnley, then we can focus on Frankfurt."
Tottenham have now won all five of their Champions League matches against Dortmund, including both legs of the last-16 tie in 2019 when they reached the final.
A repeat is improbable, but then again Tottenham won the Europa League last season under previous manager Ange Postecoglou despite finishing 17th in the Premier League.
Frank's patched-up side, 14th in the Premier League, made a confident start on Tuesday and went ahead inside 15 minutes.
Wilson Odobert swung and missed a volley from a clearance but then sent a ball into the area that Romero met with a sharp close-range finish.
Dortmund's support was magnificent but their team were limp and when Svensson clumsily left his studs in Odobert's shin and referee Glenn Nyberg was advised to watch a VAR replay, the Swede predictably brandished the red card to his compatriot.
Solanke got his first start since May following an ankle operation and he marked his first Champions League appearance since 2017-18 with his first goal in the competition.
It was not a classic, but he did not care as he bundled in Odobert's low cross from point-blank range, the ball bouncing off both his legs before creeping in.
With a 20th win from their last 24 home games in UEFA competitions in the bag, Tottenham dropped off in the second half although home keeper Guglielmo Vicario made one save of note, tipping over a Nico Schlotterbeck header.
Olympiacos power past Leverkusen 2-0 to keep alive qualifying hopes
Olympiacos Piraeus stunned visitors Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday to improve their slim chances of making the playoff spots on next week's final matchday of the league phase.
The second straight win in the competition lifted Olympiacos to 22nd on eight points, one behind Leverkusen who are 19th. The top eight teams win automatic qualification for the round of 16 while the next 16 teams go into a playoff.
The Greeks, desperate for points to finish in the top 24, got off to a dream start when Rodinei whipped a corner into the box and Costinha powered his header in for a second-minute lead.
Leverkusen, missing several key players including keeper Mark Flekken, Edmond Tapsoba and Nathan Tella, gradually took control and created a string of chances late in the first half, with Olympiacos keeper Kostas Tzolakis repeatedly coming to the rescue.
Instead it was the hosts who scored again, hitting the Germans with a two-pass counter-attack and Iran international Mehdi Taremi drilling in from another Rodinei assist in first-half stoppage time.
Leverkusen tried to bounce back after the break but despite having possession were unable to beat Tzolakis, who made another fine save in the 80th in a one-on-one with substitute Patrik Schick.
Olympiacos travel to Ajax Amsterdam while Bayer Leverkusen host Villarreal in their last matches of the league phase.
Last gasp goal keeps alive Ajax’s Champions League hopes
Substitute Oliver Edvardsen scored in the last minute to give Ajax Amsterdam a dramatic 2-1 away victory over Villarreal that keeps alive their hopes of progress in the Champions League.
Edvardsen buried a cutback cross from flying fullback Anton Gaael in the 90th minute to see the Dutch giants, who had lost their first five group games, come from behind to win a second successive tie which means they still have a chance of finishing in the top 24 with a home game to come against Olympiacos of Greece next week.
Villarreal are eliminated, stuck second from bottom with a single point as poor form in Europe contrasts with their third place in LaLiga.
Tani Oluwaseyi had given the hosts a 49th-minute lead with a superb volley but Oscar Gloukh’s free kick saw Ajax equalise in the 61st minute before they snatched a much-needed three points.
Ten-man Copenhagen secure draw against Napoli with Larsson goal
Substitute Jordan Larsson's late equaliser gave 10-man FC Copenhagen a hard-earned 1–1 draw against Napoli in Tuesday's Champions League clash.
Napoli began strongly, dominating possession and creating early chances. Former Copenhagen striker Rasmus Hojlund came closest in the opening minutes, cutting in from the left and unleashing a shot that sailed just over the crossbar.
Despite their fluid play, the Serie A champions struggled to find clinical finishing but the breakthrough came in the 39th minute when Scott McTominay rose unmarked in the centre of the box to head in a corner.
It was a blow for the hosts, who had just lost a player after Thomas Delaney was sent off four minutes earlier for a reckless foul on Stanislav Lobotka.
Despite their numerical disadvantage, Copenhagen defended resolutely after the break, with the visitors nearly doubling their lead early on when Antonio Vergara's effort was brilliantly saved by Dominik Kotarski.
The turning point came when Napoli's Alessandro Buongiorno fouled Mohamed Elyounoussi in the penalty area in the 71st minute.
Midfielder Larsson, who came on for Elias Achouri, saw his penalty saved by keeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic but the Swede got to the rebound first and equalised a minute later.
Napoli sought a winner in the closing stages, with Noa Lang curling a cross into the box, but Lorenzo Lucca's effort went over the bar, squandering the opportunity to clinch victory.
"We had done the most difficult thing, which is take the lead, but unfortunately after the break we acted as if it was 5-0 and not 1-0," Napoli skipper Giovanni di Lorenzo told Sky Sport Italia.
"You cannot afford that in the Champions League as these teams have quality and pounce on the smallest mistake. We had the wrong attitude, and we couldn’t do that at this level,” he added.
With just two wins in their seven Champions League matches, Antonio Conte's side sit in 23rd place in the standings.
Copenhagen are just behind them with the same eight points, clinging on to the final unseeded play-off spot.
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