Manchester United and AC Milan advance ( 2003-11-27 09:55) (Agencies)
Tim Howard had another
shutout, leading Manchester United into the second round of the European
Champions League with a 1-0 victory at Panathinaikos on Wednesday night.
Defending champion AC Milan, Chelsea, VfB Stuggart and Porto also clinched
spots in the 16-team second round.
Howard, an American goalkeeper acquired last summer by Manchester United
(4-1), got his fourth shutout in five Champions League games, his 11th overall
in 18 matches this season. Diego Forlan scored in the 85th minute at Athens,
eliminating Panathinaikos (0-4-1).
VfB Stuttgart (4-1) clinched the Group E berth, winning 1-0 over visiting
Glasgow Rangers (1-3-1) as Timo Wenzel scored in first-half injury time.
AC Milan (3-1-1) advanced from Group H, winning 1-0 at Ajax Amsterdam (2-3)
on a 51st-minute goal by Andriy Shevchenko.
Celta de Vigo (1-1-3) is tied with Ajax with six points following a 1-1 tie
against visiting Club Brugge (1-2-2), which has five points. Alexandr Mostovoi
scored for Celta in the 73rd, but Rune Lange tied it in second-half injury time.
Chelsea (3-1-1) advanced from Group G with a scoreless tie at home against
Sparta Prague (1-2-2). Besiktas (2-2-1) gained a 1-1 tie at Lazio of Rome
(1-1-2) and is second with seven points, two ahead of Sparta Prague and Lazio.
Daniel Pancu scored for Besiktas in first-half injury time, but Roberto Muzzi
tied the score with a spectacular bicycle kick in the 55th.
Porto (3-1-1) clinched the second spot in Group F, winning 2-0 against
visiting Partizan Belgrade (0-3-2) on two goals by Benni McCarthy.
David Beckham and Ronaldo scored as Real Madrid (4-0-1), already assured of
advancing, won 2-1 at Olympique Marseillie (1-4), which got a tying goal from
Ahmed Mido. Beckham's goal was the 600th for Real Madrid in Champions Cup play —
Alfredo Di Stefano got the 100th and Ferenc Puskas the 200th.
Juventus of Turin and AS Monaco also have clinched advancement. The final
first-round games are Dec. 9-10.
