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In the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, the group stage matches of the fourth round of competition were played. The "Lyon" and "Real" clubs secured their places in the tournament round of 16 by leading Group F, while "Milan" and "Chelsea" unexpectedly suffered defeats on the road to "PSV" and "Betis" respectively.
In a rematch of last season's semifinal showdown in Eindhoven, "PSV" hosted the "Milan" club and defeated them by a narrow margin. J.Farfanas scored the winning goal for the Dutch team by taking advantage of a mistake by the opponent's defender and beating the goalkeeper Didas with a shot into the near corner. The visitors later took the initiative and had chances to equalize the score, but failed to capitalize on them, and towards the end of the match, their situation was further complicated by a second yellow card for J.Stam.
For the second time this year, "PSV" defeated the Milan club at their home ground, but unlike the inconsequential victory in last season's semifinals, this time the Eindhoven team solidified their first-place position in the group. Meanwhile, "Milan" shares the second position with Schalke from Gelsenkirchen, who won at home against "Fenerbahce" team. The first goal for the winners was scored by the Brazilian-born German player K.Kuraniy, while the visitors added a second goal in the final minutes through E.Sandas after two players were sent off the field.
In Group F, the intrigue has almost disappeared - the winners are already clear. They are the "Lyon", who did not lose a single point, and "Real" from Madrid, who defeated the resistance of Trondheim's "Rosenborg" in Norway and thus secured at least the second position.
The hope of reaching the next stage was preserved by "Betis" from Seville, unexpectedly defeating the previously unbeaten "Chelsea" from London at home, avenging the crushing defeat in the away game and reducing the gap to one point. The winning goal for the Betis club was scored by Dani, who appeared on the field as a substitute. In other matches in Group G, the defending champions "Liverpool" won their third victory by defeating the Brussels "Anderlecht", who suffered their 11th consecutive defeat in the tournament. The Liverpool team scored two goals through Spanish players F.Morientes and L.Garcia, while the Frenchman D.Cisse added one more.
AC Milan took an important step towards the round of 16 by winning at home after a superb penalty kick by H.Almeida and defeating with two goals from J.Cruz in the second half. With 9 points, AC Milan now comfortably leads Group H, while the second position is shared equally by "Artmedia" from Bratislava and "Rangers" from Glasgow - the Scottish club advanced twice, but the league debutants managed to equalize and win an important point.
Tuesday's results:
Group E
1 - 0
12` [1 - 0] Jefferson Farfan
84` Jaap Stam ("Milan") sent off the field
2 - 0
32` [1 - 0] Kevin Kuranyi
90` [2 - 0] Ebbe Sand
40` Fabio Luciano, 55` Marco Aurelio (both - "Fenerbahce") sent off the field
Group F
1 - 4
3` [1 - 0] Haruna Babangida
41` [1 - 1] Juninho
44` [1 - 2] John Carew
55` [1 - 3] Mahamadou Diarra
57` [1 - 4] John Carew
0 - 2
26` [0 - 1] Mikael Dorsin (own goal)
41` [0 - 2] Jose Maria Guti
Group G
3 - 0
34` [1 - 0] Fernando Morientes
61` [2 - 0] Luis Garcia
89` [3 - 0] Djibrill Cisse
75` Nenad Jestrovic ("Anderlecht") sent off the field
1 - 0
28` [1 - 0] Dani
Group H
2 - 2
3` [0 - 1] Dado Prso
8` [1 - 1] Balasz Borbely
44` [1 - 2] Steven Thompson
59` [2 - 2] Jan Kozak
2 - 1
16` [0 - 1] Hugo Almeida
75` [1 - 1] Julio Ricardo Cruz (penalty)
82` [2 - 1] Julio Ricardo Cruz
