Arsenal go down to Napoli
BARCELONA: Neymar finally showed the goalscoring touch he has been threatening with a hat-trick as Barcelona shrugged off their recent dip in form with a 6-1 win over Celtic here on Wednesday to seal top spot in Champions League Group H.
Gerard Pique stabbed home with seven minutes on the clock and, with Celtic stretched at the back, Pedro and Neymar both finished clinically before half time.
Neymar had never scored before in Europe but got two more after the break, with Adam Matthews unable to stop the Brazilian’s third from going over the line. Cristian Tello completed Barca’s scoring with another deflected shot.
Celtic grabbed a consolation goal through Giorgios Samaras two minutes from time.
Barcelona finish top of the section with 13 points, four ahead of second-placed Milan and five ahead of Ajax, who drew 0-0 at the San Siro.
Barca’s 20-match unbeaten start to the season was ended at Ajax in their previous European match, and it was followed by defeat in La Liga by Athletic Bilbao. But Gerardo Martino’s side, still without the injured Lionel Messi, responded with a fine attacking display against the Scottish champions.
For Celtic it is the end of a poor run in Europe. They have lost all their away games, and at home, where they are normally strong, they managed only one win, over Ajax.
“It was our most complete performance, I would say, in the four months that I have been here,” Martino told a news conference.
“We managed the ball well and had a good game. We were strong in winning the ball back and pressured especially in attack, while we didn’t give the opposition chances.
“Neymar improved as the game went on. He has been playing wide for us and then to be moved to the centre meant he needed time to adapt, but the goals came and his confidence grew.
“All through his career you can see the quality he has, but what has surprised me here is how hard he works for the team and battles hard.”
Youngster Sergi Roberto was the surprise face in the Barcelona lineup with Andres Iniesta, carrying a knock, left on the bench.
Pique was getting forward well and he was on hand to get the opening goal as he knocked the ball in from close range after a deflected shot from Alexis Sanchez was saved by the keeper.
Barcelona continued to threaten but further goals didn’t come until the run-up to half time, when Neymar set up Pedro to steer the ball home and then scored himself from a pass by full-back Martin Montoya.
In the second half Neymar combined well with Xavi before firing home and showed real quality to complete his hat-trick as he nutmegged Efe Ambrose. Substitute Tello completed Celtic’s misery with a deflected strike off Virgil van Dijk.
Meanwhile, AC Milan scraped through to the last 16 thanks to their goalless draw with Ajax, also in Group H, but it was a bad day for Italian football with both Juventus and Napoli eliminated.
Group B’s Juventus only needed a point at Galatasaray but were dumped out in Istanbul, when former Inter Milan midfielder Wesley Sneijder struck in the 85th minute after the match was suspended on Tuesday due to intense snowfall in the Turkish capital.
Both teams struggled on a muddy pitch which made passing a major challenge, forcing them to hit long balls.
Napoli, in Group F, were unlucky not to make it through after collecting 12 points in a group that contained last year’s finalists Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal, who are five points clear at the top of the Premier League.
“We’ve beaten the Premier League leaders, I can’t believe we’re not in the last 16,” said a distraught Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain, who left the field in tears.
Gunners manager Arsene Wenger was not pleased with the result.
“Of course to finish second makes the potential draw more difficult, in the last four or five years we have had very difficult draws, so maybe this time we will be more lucky,” Wenger was quoted as saying on the club website.
Napoli finished on the same points as those two sides after beating Arsenal 2-0 on Wednesday, but were eliminated after Kevin Grosskreutz’s weak shot slipped through Marseille goalkeeper Steve Mandanda’s fingers three minutes from the end of Dortmund’s 2-1 win in the south of France.
In other matches, Chelsea secured top spot in Group E as Demba Ba scored the only goal in a straightforward win over Steaua Bucharest at Stamford Bridge.
Schalke 04 sealed second spot with a 2-0 home win over Basel.
In Group G, Atletico Madrid 2-0 win over Porto meant the Portuguese side remained third in the group, with Zenit St Petersburg qualifying for the last 16 despite a 4-1 thrashing away to FK Austria Vienna. (Reuters)