Watch Barcelona v Werder Bremen on Tuesday, 5 December and Manchester United v Benfica on Wednesday, 6 December live on www.rte.ie and RTÉ Two.
It was a rather bizarre night for fans of Chelsea who saw their team lose at Werder Bremen but they still went through to the last 16 with a match to spare.
The English champions should win the group with victory over Levski Sofia in their final game at Stamford Bridge in two weeks time. While Chelsea are through, the fate of the holders, Barcelona, is far from certain. Barca won in Bulgaria on the night but they now need to win when they host Bremen at the Nou Camp to advance. The Germans know, after victory against Chelsea, that they need only a draw in Spain to make the last 16 for the third year running.
It would be a sensation if Barcelona were not to make the next round but we will see what the champions are made of when they play Bremen.
Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho did not feel like celebrating their qualification after the match. His team were out of sorts for much of the first half but they did respond well when they fell behind after 27 minutes. Their defence gave Per Mertesacker a free header and the giant defender could not miss from a few yards out. Chelsea did improve after they conceded but they could not get back on terms before the break.
Bremen were again the superior team after the interval but they could not build on their lead and they were left to hang on to their advantage right until the end of the match.
Chelsea lost Michael Ballack and Didier Drogba during the second half to injury and, while Ballack will recover quickly, it is not clear just how badly Drogba was hurt. He must now be a major doubt for their trip to Manchester United on Sunday in the Premiership. Drogba had 'run-off' the earlier knock but he could not shake off the second one and sat just off the pitch for a couple of minutes before being led away to the dressing-room. Chelsea would miss him badly at Old Trafford if he is not fit but he could be available in time for the match.
The English champions were far from their best in Bremen and we ran into some of their supporters after the match who were not pleased with the way their team had played. They do not lose very many matches so when they do it is a big deal, even though they have qualified.
Chelsea certainly did not play to lose the match but the defeat has put a great deal of pressure on Barcelona and that will not displease Mourinho and his players when you take into account recent relations between the clubs.
Many of their top names were not at their best on Wednesday and the jury is still out on whether Joe Cole can force his way back into the side. Cole was injured on their pre-season tour of the United States and he has found it very hard to get a run in the team. Khalid Boulahrouz looked unsteady alongside John Terry but they will have Ricardo Carvalho back in place for Sunday. I was surprised Andriy Shevchenko was left on the bench at the start of the match. He came on with Arjen Robben midway through the second half but neither player made a big impact.
Bremen did well to hang on at the finish as Chelsea put them under huge pressure but players like Mertesacker, Frings, Naldo and goalkeeper Wiese played extremely well. They have given themselves a great chance of qualifying for the knock-out stages but if they go to Barcelona looking for a draw they will be in serious trouble. That will be a great match and a fantastic occasion and one I am looking forward to seeing.
This week, special mention has to be made of Celtic’s achievement of qualifying for the last 16 for the first time in history. The match itself was ordinary but fans of Celtic will not be bothered. I must admit I did not see Manchester United losing the match but the free-kick from Nakamura was outstanding. It may not have been a foul by Vidic in the first place but Gordon Strachan will feel his team are due some luck in this competition.
A Chelsea fan we met in Germany suggested that he would love to see his team drawn against Celtic in the next round as he wanted to go to a match in Glasgow. We told him to be careful what he wished for! Chelsea would certainly fancy their chances against the SPL leaders but so did Manchester United and look what happened to them the other night. Liverpool have also been up there in recent seasons and have found it tough going. In the UEFA Cup in 02/03, Celtic beat Liverpool on their way to the final.
We must also mention Liverpool who progress from their group as winners after a comfortable 2-0 victory over PSV Eindhoven at Anfield.
Arsenal still have some work to do, just like Manchester United, after they came from behind to beat a struggling Hamburg side 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium.
And finally, contender for result of the week has to be AEK Athens beating AC Milan in Greece.
