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Free-for-all Five spots open in Champions League second phase
LONDON (AP) -- The scramble for the final five places in the next stage of the European Champions League promises to be a free-for-all. Eleven clubs have already clinched berths. Ten more still have a chance to reach the second phase from matches across the continent on Tuesday and Wednesday. The field for the 16-team, second phase already has many of soccer's most powerful clubs. Defending champion Bayern Munich and eight-time champion Real Madrid are already through. So are AS Roma, Panathinaikos, Arsenal, Juventus, Manchester United, Deportivo, Barcelona, Leverkusen and Sparta Prague. Four teams will guarantee their places on Tuesday from play in Groups B and D. The final team will qualify Wednesday from Group E. In each of the eight groups, the top two clubs advance to the second stage. If teams are tied on points, the tie-breaking criteria are: head-to-head results between two tied clubs, away goals between tied clubs, overall goal difference, and overall goals scored. Here's a quick look at the groups. Group B England's Liverpool and Portugal's Boavista are the best bets. Liverpool (nine points) leads the group and needs a draw at home against Borussia Dortmund to reach the final 16. Liverpool should have England's top striker -- Michael Owen -- back after a monthlong hamstring injury. Owen scored in Liverpool's 2-0 victory Saturday over Charlton. Borussia (eight points) needs a victory to assure a place. "It would be a financial and sporting setback if we got knocked out of the Champions League. We have to score," said captain Stefan Reuter. Borussia could get through with a draw in the unlikely event of a Dynamo Kiev (one point) win in Ukraine over Boavista (eight points). Boavista (eight points) will guarantee itself a place with a victory and could also get through with a draw. If it ties on points with Borussia, it has the edge on the Germans in goal difference in matches between the two. Boavista was knocked out in the first stage two years ago, but this is a better side. "Then we didn't have the experience nor the players we have now," said goalkeeper Ricardo Pereira, who is also Portugal's national 'keeper. Group D This group is a toss-up. Lazio (six) needs a victory at group-leading Nantes (eight) to advance. The two other teams in that group still have chances -- PSV Eindhoven (seven) and Galatasaray (seven). Lazio, which lost its first three but has won its last two, is expected to start its strongest lineup, including Argentine strikers Hernan Crespo and Claudio Lopez, Italian internationals Angelo Peruzzi and Alessandro Nesta, and Dutch defender Jaap Stam. French champion Nantes scored its first league win of the season Saturday, 1-0 over newly promoted Souhaux with a second-half goal from Charles Devineau. Nantes, the only French team with a chance of making the second stage, needs only a draw to advance. "It's good to be playing for a place in the second round against a team [Lazio] that was supposed to have dominated the group head and shoulders," Nantes coach Raynald Denoueix said. Either Galatasaray or PSV would advance if they win. A draw could also be sufficent for PSV. PSV coach Erik Gerets is reported to have plans to follow the Nantes-Lazio match with text messages on his mobile phone. Group E Juventus has already won the group. Portugal's FC Porto can claim the second spot with a home victory over Rosenborg. If Porto stumbles, Celtic could reach the finals by beating Juventus. Porto won 1-0 Sunday at Alverca with coach Octavio Machado resting three players. Celtic, which lost 3-2 at Juventus in their first match, won 1-0 over the weekend against Kilmarnock. Juventus is winless in five consecutive league games including a 0-0 draw with Inter over the weekend. In all Champions League matches this week: On Tuesday: Lokomotiv Moscow vs. Real Madrid; Roma vs. Anderlecht; Dynamo Kiev vs. Boavista; Liverpool vs. Borussia Dortmund; Mallorca vs. Panathinaikos; Schalke vs. Arsenal; Galatasaray vs. PVS Eindhoven; Nantes vs. Lazio. On Wednesday: Celtic vs. Juventus; FC Porto vs. Rosenborg; Barcelona vs. Fenerbahce; Bayer Leverkusen vs. Lyon; Lille vs. Manchester United; Olympiakos vs. Deportivo; Feyenoord vs. Spartak Moscow; Sparta Prague vs. Bayern Munich.
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