Europa League: Spurs, Brumbies, Bhoys, Austria Vienna Eliminated; AZ, Udinese To Knockout Stage

Group-stage play in the Europa League concluded on Thursday with twelve games.


Group A:


At Thessaloniki, Greece:


PAOK and visiting Rubin Kazan battled to a 1-1 draw that saw both clubs advance to the knockout stage.  Vieirinha's penalty kick in the 16th minute put the Greek club ahead, but Nelson Valdez delivered the equalizer for the visiting Russian club at 48 minutes.


At Dublin, Ireland:


Steven Pienaar (29'), Andros Townsend (38'), Jermain Defoe (45') all scored in the first half as Tottenham Hotspur demolished pointless Shamrock Rovers 4-0 on the road.  The visiting English club, nevertheless, still found themselves eliminated from the tournament.


FINAL GROUP A STANDINGS:


1. PAOK FC (GP: 6; GD: +4; PTS: 12)
2. FC Rubin Kazan (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 11)
3. Tottenham Hotspur (GP: 6; GD: +5; PTS: 10)
4. Shamrock Rovers (GP: 6; GD: -15; PTS: 0)


PAOK FC and Rubin Kazan advanced to the knockout stage.


Group B:


At Hanover, Germany:


Konstantin Rausch (25'), Didier Konan Ya (33'), and Artur Sobiech (78') each tallied once as Hannover 96 downed visiting FC Vorskla Poltava 3-1.


At Copenhagen, Denmark:


Michy Batshuayi scored the only goal of the match in the 31st minute as Standard Liege blanked FC Copenhagen 1-0 on the road.

FINAL GROUP B STANDINGS:


1. Standard Liege (GP: 6; GD: +8; PTS: 14)
2. Hannover 96 (GP: 6; GD: +2; PTS: 11)
3. FC Copenhagen (GP: 6; GD: -4; PTS: 5)
4. FC Vorskla Poltava (GP: 6; GD: -6; PTS: 2)


Standard Liege and Hannover 96 advanced to the knockout stage.


Group C:


At Tel Aviv, Israel:


Salim Tuama (33') and Avihai Yadin (76') each scored once as Hapoel Tel Aviv knocked off visiting knockout-stage-bound Legia Warsaw 2-0.


At Eindhoven, Netherlands:


Stanislav Manolev (75') and Tim Matavz (79') each tallied once as PSV Eindhoven held off visiting Rapid Bucharest 2-1.


FINAL GROUP C STANDINGS:


1. PSV Eindhoven (GP: 6; GD: +8; PTS: 16)
2. Legia Warsaw (GP: 6; GD: -2; PTS: 9)
3. Hapoel Tel Aviv (GP: 6; GD: +1; PTS: 7)
4. Rapid Bucharest (GP: 6; GD: -7; PTS: 3)


PSV Eindhoven and Legia Warsaw advanced to the knockout stage.


Group G:


At Alkmaar, Netherlands:


AZ Alkmaar, with their 1-1 home draw with group-winning FC Metalist Kharkiv,  advanced to the knockout stage.  Adam Maher for the hosts and the Ukrainian club's Marko Devic each scored a goal in the 37th minute.


At Vienna, Austria:


Michael Liendl (62') and Nacer Barazite (80') each tallied once as Austria Vienna blanked visiting Malmo FF 2-0.  Despite the win, the club from the Austrian capital, due to AZ's home draw, were still eliminated from the tournament.


GROUP G STANDINGS:


1. FC Metalist Kharkiv (GP: 6; GD: +9; PTS: 14)
2. AZ Alkmaar (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 8)
3. Austria Vienna (GP: 6; GD: -1; PTS: 8)
4. Malmo FF (GP: 6; GD: -11; PTS: 1)


FC Metalist Kharkiv and AZ Alkmaar advanced to the knockout stage.


Group H:


At Bruges, Belgium:


Ewerton Jose Almeida Santos delivered the equalizer in the 65th minute as Sporting Braga gained a 1-1 road draw with Club Brugge.  Bjorn Vleminckx scored in the 50th minute for the hosts as both clubs advanced to the knockout stage.


At Birmingham, England:


Adam Rooney scored in the 24th minute as Birmingham City shut out visiting NK Maribor 1-0.  Still, with the win, the Brumbies were eliminated from European competition.


FINAL GROUP H STANDINGS:


1. Club Brugge (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 11)
2. Sporting Braga (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 11)
3. Birmingham City (GP: 6; GD: 0; PTS: 10)
4. NK Maribor (GP: 6; GD: -9; PTS: 1)


Club Brugge and Sporting Braga advanced to the knockout stage.


Group I:


At Udine, Italy:


Antonio Di Natale's equalizer (45'+1) proved decisive as Udinese gained a 1-1 home draw with Celtic, sending the hosts to the knockout stage and eliminated the Bhoys from the tournament.  Gary Hooper scored for the visiting Scottish club in the 29th minute.


At Madrid:


Radamel Falcao Garcia (PK-38'), Alvaro Dominguez (43'), and Arda Turan (79') each delivered a goal as Atletico Madrid, who already clinched a berth in the knockout stage, won the group with a 3-1 home win over Rennes.


FINAL GROUP I STANDINGS:


1. Atletico Madrid (GP: 6; GD: +7; PTS: 13)
2. Udinese (GP: 6; GD: -1; PTS: 9)
3. Celtic (GP: 6; GD: -1; PTS: 6)
4. Stade Rennes (GP: 6; GD: -5; PTS: 3)


Atletico Madrid and Udinese advanced to the knockout stage.


The top two teams in each of the eight groups are joined by the third place club from each of the eight UEFA Champions League groups in the first knockout round.