Eto’o treble puts brilliant Barca on brink of last 16
Barca tore the Greek side apart as they raced into a 4-0 lead in a whirlwind first half, Dutchman Mark van Bommel opening the scoring inside the first minute.
Eto’o made it 2-0 with a fine header before a quarter of an hour was up and Argentine prodigy Lionel Messi scored an opportunist third 11 minutes before the break.
Eto’o then weighed in with the best goal of the first half when he put the finishing touch to a passing move involving Messi and Ronaldinho and the Cameroon striker completed his hat-trick with a delightful lob early in the second half.
In the other game in group C, Werder Bremen squandered a three-goal lead but recovered to clinch a thrilling 4-3 victory over Udinese.
Bremen were cruising 3-0 by the 51st minute with goals from Miroslav Klose, Frank Baumann and Johan Micoud before Udinese pulled level in a devastating six-minute spell.
Substitute Antonio Di Natale gave Udinese hope with a low shot from the edge of the box in the 54th minute and added a second three minutes later. Di Natale then created the equaliser, as Christian Schultz bundled his left-wing cross into his own net. Micoud swept in Bremen’s winner following a corner in the 67th minute.
Bremen’s win puts them level on four points with the Italians and Panathinaikos with two games to play.
Club Bruges secured at least a UEFA Cup spot after coming from behind to beat Rapid Vienna 3-2.
Goals from Javier Portillo, Bosko Balaban and captain Gert Verheyen clinched the victory after Marek Kincl’s early strike for Vienna and eliminated the Austrians from Europe.
The Jan Breydel Stadium was stunned after just 26 seconds when Vienna grabbed the lead through Kincl who latched onto a cross from the left from Matthias Dollinger.
But the home side were level after 10 minutes when Sven Vermant’s shot was spilled by Vienna goalkeeper Raimand Heidl only for Portillo to fire home his third goal in five days.
The home team’s second goal came in the 25th minute when Balaban rifled home a 20-metre free kick.
The Croat set up the third in the 63rd minute when he released captain Gert Verheyen to coolly finish.
Rapid’s Steffen Hofmann then headed home with 10 minutes left to set up a nervous finish.
However, the group looks like being between Juventus and Bayern Munich, who both have 9 points.
In Man United’s Group D, Brazilian midfielder Marcos Senna thumped in a long-range winner eight minutes from time to hand Villarreal a 1-0 win at Benfica.
The victory lifted the Spanish side top of the group on six points, well-placed to reach the last 16 in their first season in the competition.
Senna let fly from 30 yards and scored despite Benfica keeper Rui Nereu’s best efforts, the inexperienced teenager getting his fingertips to his powerful shot. Injuries had ruled out first choice keeper Jose Moreira and his deputy Quim Silva.
Benfica are bottom on four points, with United and Lille on five.
Former European champions Ajax look like joining Arsenal in the last 16 after a 4-2 injury-time win over competition newcomers FC Thun.
The unfancied Swiss side seemed set for an impressive 2-2 draw in the Group B clash only for Ajax to grab all three points with 91st and 93rd minute goals from Nigel de Jong and Nourdin Boukhari.
Ajax took the lead twice with goals from Wesley Sneijder and Yannis Anastasiou but Thun levelled through Switzerland’s Mauro Lustrinelli and Brazilian substitute Adriano and had chances to go in front themselves before the visitors took control.
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