Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney (right) is challenged by CFR Cluj’s Matias Aguirregaray during their Champions League Group H match in Cluj, yesterday.
LISBON: Barcelona continued their imperious form this season as they retained top spot in Champions League Group G with a 2-0 victory away to Benfica.
Alexis Sanchez struck after six minutes and Cesc Fabregas added a second following the break to leave Barca with a 100 per cent record from their opening two games while Celtic are on four points following their earlier win away to Spartak Moscow.
Sergio Busquets was sent off with two minutes to go after a clash with Maxi Pereira.
Tito Vilanova arrived at the Camp Nou over the summer looking to win back the Champions League, which they have lifted twice out of the last four years, and the domestic league title.
And despite the pressure of replacing Pep Guardiola he could hardly have made a better start with also six wins from six in la liga.
Now Vilanova’s men turn their attention to the small matter of the El Clasico on Sunday against Real Madrid - but they will be without Carles Puyol, who fell heavily on his arm and was stretchered off with 15 minutes remaining.
In Cluj, Robin van Persie put the bite on Romanian minnows CFR Cluj in Transylvania as the Manchester United striker’s double clinched a 2-1 win in Group H yesterday.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s side suffered an early fright in the region best known for providing the supposedly vampire-filled setting for Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
But Pantelis Kapetanos’s early goal for Cluj didn’t suck the life out of United, who maintained their 100 percent start to this season’s competition thanks to van Persie’s brace.
United were rarely at their best at the Dr Constantin Radulescu Stadium. Ferguson’s star strikers were starting together for the first time, with Javier Hernandez also included in an attacking line-up, as United looked to bounce back after Saturday’s surprise 3-2 home defeat against Tottenham.
In Minsk, Belarus, BATE Borisov stunned Bayern Munich 3-1 in a famous win for the Belarus champions who continued their surprise start to Champions League Group F with a second victory in two games.
BATE, who beat Lille by the same score in their opener, scored with a 23rd minute strike from Aleksandr Pavlov and late goals by Vitali Rodionov and Renan Bressan to snap Bayern’s nine-game winning streak in all competitions.
Last season’s Champions League finalists had dominated the first half and hit the post through Toni Kroos but were left to scramble forward in the second period, fearful of the Belarussian side’s potent counter attacks.
The result leaves the group wide open with BATE top on six points and Bayern on three with Valencia who beat Lille 2-0.
In Copenhagen, Juan Mata scored twice as Chelsea belied an off-key performance to win 4-0 at competition debutants FC Nordsjaelland and record the first victory of their Champions League title defence.
Having been held 2-2 by Juventus in their Group E opener, Chelsea’s campaign is now up and running.
Making their home debuts in the tournament -- albeit away from their Farum Park home -- Nordsjaelland took the game to the visitors after Mata’s 33rd-minute opener and threatened to equalise several times before David Luiz made the game safe 11 minutes from time. Mata and Ramires added late goals to rubber-stamp Chelsea’s first away win in the competition’s group phase since a 2-0 success at Spartak Moscow in October 2010.
Agencies
