Chelsea became the second Premier League side to guarantee their place in the last 16 of this season’s Champions League, joining Manchester City in the knockout stage, despite losing 1-0 to Swiss champions Basel.
Arsenal secured a comfortable 2-0 win over Group F cannon fodder Marseille, but were relying on the result of Borussia Dortmund’s meeting with Napoli to learn their fate.
And with last season’s finalists winning 3-1 it meant the Gunners only need to avoid a three-goal defeat in the final group game against the Italians to book their place in the knockout stages.
In a confusing twist, Chelsea sealed their spot in the last 16 despite being outplayed in Switzerland, with Group E rivals Schalke only managing a goalless stalemate with Steaua Bucharest.
Jose Mourinho, who left Juan Mata on the bench yet again, was furious with his side’s uninspiring performance, and despite the introductions of substitutes Fernando Torres, Eden Hazardand Kevin De Bruyne they failed to fire a shot on target.
The London outfit’s need to sign a striker in January has never been more evident, and matters were made worse when Samuel Eto'o was stretchered off late in the first-half.
A horrendous evening was capped off when highly-rated winger Mohamed Salah’s 86th minute goal earned a 1-0 victory for the home team, meaning the Swiss side are still in with a chance of qualifying for the next round.
Meanwhile, Arsenal know they can lose 2-0 in their next match against Napoli and still progress to the last 16 after beating Marseille 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to Jack Wilshere’s brace.
The England midfielder opened the scoring within 32 seconds, cutting inside from the right and curling a neat shot into the top corner.
Wilshere then completed the first double of his career after the break to cap off a dominant Gunners performance.
The 21-year-old netted with an easy finish after Mesut Ozil – who had missed a penalty earlier – fired a pass across the face of the goal.
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