Late goals from Luuk de Jong and Davy Propper seal PSV Eindhoven a place in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
PSV clinched a place in the
knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time since the
2006/07 season after coming from a goal down to defeat CSKA Moscow 2-1
at the Philips Stadion on Tuesday.
Goals from Luuk
de Jong and Davy Propper cancelled out a Sergei Ignashevich's penalty
in dramatic finish, meaning Phillip Cocu's side secured second place in
Group B.
Having looked like they were going out of
Europe altogether when they trailed in the second half, PSV staged a
rousing comeback to score twice in the space of seven minutes to turn
the game on its head.
The result means the Dutch
side finish behind Wolfsburg, whose 3-2 win over Manchester United
forced the Premier League giants to settle for a place in the Europa
League.
The result also saw CSKA finish bottom of
their Champions League group for a third season running, while their
winless run stretches to seven matches in all competitions.
With their fans creating a superb atmosphere prior to kick-off, the home side started brightly.
Jurgen Locadia was a serious threat down the left, and CSKA's high defensive line gave the winger hope of getting in behind.
However,
for all their bluster, PSV had only one serious chance in the first
half. De Jong wasted it, heading Hector Moreno's cross from the left
straight at goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev.
CSKA looked just as likely to score at the other end, although they had less possession in the first 45 minutes.
Ahmed
Musa had a shot from a tight angle that hit the side netting in the
10th minute, while PSV goalkeeper Jeroen Zoet acrobatically turned away a
free-kick from the left foot of Zoran Tosic.
Jeffrey
Bruma curled a free-kick over the bar for PSV after the break, but the
match failed to carry the same intensity in the second half.
That
was until a needless challenge from Andres Guardado gave away a
penalty. Tosic invited the tackle before falling theatrically, allowing
Ignashevich to break the deadlock from the spot.
PSV
were in danger of finishing at the foot of the table at that stage, but
captain De Jong's goal - neatly taken after a header into the area had
found him onside - suddenly shook up the standings again, and meant
Akinfeev has failed to keep a clean sheet for the 37th match in
succession.
Any late nerves for the home side were released when Propper rammed home the winner.
His
shot from outside the box flew past Akinfeev and avenged a 3-2 defeat
to CSKA in the reverse fixture. More importantly, it also clinched PSV's
progress to the last 16.
Tags
SOCCER