Spurs and United top groups

Champions League review:Both Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur qualified top of their respective Champions League groups with draws this evening, but champions Inter Milan faltered again when losing 3-0 away to Werder Bremen.

Rafael Benitez’s depleted side had already qualified for the second round but their capitulation to Group A’s weakest side does not bode well for the under-pressure Spaniard.

Spurs needed a win to ensure topping the group but Inter’s defeat meant a point was sufficient. It came courtesy of six goals - some weird, some wonderful.

The Londoners, who scored 18 goals in their six group games, were gifted a fifth-minute lead with a Peter Wisgerhof own goal before Denny Landzaat equalised with a 22nd-minute penalty.

In an action-packed second half Jermain Defoe put the Londoners ahead two minutes after the restart, thanks to a cheeky reverse pass from Aaron Lennon. Roberto Rosales levelled with a towering header and Defoe put the visitors ahead for a third time, only for Nacer Chadli to curl in a brilliant free kick to make it 3-3 after 64 minutes.

"At the start of this I said this was a tough group — we've got a team near the top of the Dutch league, Werder Bremen, who are a good side with lots of good players, and we've got the holders, Inter Milan. I think it was the toughest group and to top it is brilliant," he told Sky Sports 4.

“We’ve gone for it every game. We’ve come in thinking we could win and that’s how we play. We got goals and we conceded them, that’s how it is. We tend to score plenty and seem to give them away too. You want to win all your games so we wanted to win here but it’s important to finish top of the group and we’ve done that so I’m proud of the boys.”

Defoe added: “We worked so hard to get here and you have to make the most of it. We’ve scored a lot of goals but it’s also important not to concede too many so it was frustrating tonight.

“We’ll take each game as it comes but we’re playing well and scoring goals and there are one of two injuries to come back in too. We’re looking good at the moment.”

Interfielded a largely makeshift team as Benitez spared several top players for the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi later this month. Sebastian Proedl headed Bremen, already eliminated after a disappointing European season, into the lead in the 38th minute and Austrian Marko Arnautovic, who played on loan for Inter last season, doubled the score four minutes after the restart.

Substitute Claudio Pizarro sealed their win with a shot two minutes from time after Werder twice rattled the woodwork in a one-sided game.

Like Spurs, Unitedwere just battling for top spot this evening, but they were hosting their main rivals. Alex Ferguson's side had the better of an entertaining contest but a succession of failures in front of goal looked set to cost them dear when Pablo Hernandez rifled the visitors in front after half an hour.

It was the first goal United had conceded in this season’s Champions League and might well have proved very costly had it pitched them into combat with one of Europe’s heavyweights in next Friday’s draw. But they found an unlikely hero in Anderson, who netted only his second goal for the Red Devils when he latched onto the rebound after Vicente Guaita had saved Park Ji-sung’s thunderbolt.

Wayne Rooney was effervescent throughout and Ferguson believes he is quickly approaching top form.

"Absolutely, he did very well again tonight," the United boss told Sky Sports 2. "His distribution, his leading of the line and his workrate were outstanding tonight. He's getting there, and he's getting there quickly.

“We’ve seen flashes of it," Ferguson said of Rooney’s partnership with Dimitar Berbatov. "Maybe not as much as against Blackburn, for instance, but Berba tonight could have scored another five. He’s been unlucky not to score tonight.”

Elsewhere in Group C, Kenny Miller scored his 19th goal of the season but Rangerscould only conclude their with a draw against Bursasporin the Bursa Ataturk stadium.

The Ibrox striker broke the deadlock in the 19th minute when he lashed a left-footed shot from 12 yards past Yavuz Ozkan after good work from Steven Naismith and Steven Whittaker down the left-hand side. However, the Scottish champions were forced to defend for most of the second half and in the 79th minute Sercan Yildirim stabbed the ball past Allan McGregor to give the Turkish club their first Champions League point although they finished bottom of Group C.

Rangers went into the match with no chance of qualifying for the last 16 of the competition but with a place in the Europa League already secured.

Schalke 04secured first place in Group B as goals by winger Jose Manuel Jurado and defender Benedikt Howedes gave them a 2-1 win over a tame Benficaside.

Benfica were disappointing throughout but a 2-2 draw between Lyon and Hapoel Tel Aviv in the night's other game meant the Portuguese champions finished third and grabbed a Europa League place.

The German team scored with their first real chance of the game when Ivan Rakitic's cross was chested down by Raul for his fellow Spaniard Jurado to fire in on 19 minutes, with a static Benfica defence caught ball-watching.

Schalke doubled their lead in the 81st minute when Howedes beat an offside trap after a corner to finish coolly from near the penalty spot before Luisao headed in a consolation goal for the hosts.

Lyongrabbed a late equaliser to earn a draw at home to Hapoel. Substitute Alexandre Lacazette saved Lyon, who had already qualified for the knockout stage, denying Hapoel a Europa League spot in a lively game at the Gerland stadium.

Lyon took the lead just past the hour through Lisandro Lopez but the visitors were level a minute later thanks to Ben Sahar and went ahead through Eran Zahavi's superb bicycle kick.

Lacazette's goal left the French side on 10 points in second place behind Schalke 04 on 13 after winning 2-1 at Benfica, who came third with six points ahead of Hapoel on five.

Rubin Kazanfailed in their bid to make the last 16 of the Champions League when they lost 2-0 to a second-string Barcelonaside in Group D.

Pep Guardiola fielded only two of his regular starting 11 at the Nou Camp and both of the home side's goals were scored by promoted players from the B team. Andreu Fontas struck in the 51st minute when his left-foot shot was deflected into the net off Vitaly Kaleshin and Victor Vazquez added a second with a fine curled effort.

FC Copenhagen's3-1 victory at home to Panathinaikosput the Danes through to the knockout stages behind Barca, who were already assured of top spot. Rubin, in third, will go into the Europa League.