Chelsea advance in Champions League despite loss
Arsenal and AC Milan win but have yet to confirm place in last 16
Chelsea qualified for the final 16 of the Champions League despite losing again to Basel while AC Milan and Arsenal won, but have still to advance.
Mohamed Salah’s late goal earned Basel a 1-0 win and a second straight group E victory over last year’s champions. But Chelsea is guaranteed a top-two finish after Schalke drew with Steaua Bucharest.
Milan cruised past Celtic 3-0, but needs a point against Ajax in its last match after the Dutch side upset already-qualified Barcelona 2-1 to keep its hopes alive. It was the first loss for Barca after a 25-game unbeaten streak dating back to last May’s loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals.
Arsenal requires another point after beating Marseille 2-0 in group F. Napoli lost 3-1 to Borussia Dortmund to leave both teams three points behind the English side.
I did not like anything from the first minute. A bad performance, a deserved defeat. But because of other results, we qualify
Chelsea sailed through its group with three straight victories since opening up with a 2-1 home loss to Basel. It knew a point would be enough to advance and that appeared to hold back manager Jose Mourinho’s team, which failed to have a shot on goal before Salah sprinted clear of Chelsea’s defence to clip a left-footed shot over advancing keeper Petr Cech in the 87th minute.