I won’t die if I don’t win Ballon d’Or: Neymar
Neymar was a Ballon d'Or finalist for the first time in 2015, eventually missing out to teammate Lionel Messi.
Arsenal impressively routed Basel 4-1 away to ensure they progressed from Group A on top, while Barcelona routed Borussia Moenchengladbach 4-0 on a goal-laden Wednesday night in the Champions League.
Neck-to-neck with French Champions PSG on 11 points after five games played, the Gunners knew they needed to win if they wanted to get an ‘easy’ knockout fixture.
And Lucas Perez was the unlikely hero in Switzerland, nabbing a hat-trick while youngster Alex Iwobi completed the scoring, giving the Gunners a well-deserved win. The Spanish striker has found playing time limited at the London club and made his mark on his second start in the Champions League.
With PSG just about managing a 2-2 draw with Ludogorets, which left Arsenal on top with 14 points and the Parisiens second with 11.
Barcelona’s resounding win had a similarity to Arsenal’s, as midfielder Arda Turan grabbed a hat-trick, ensuring the Catalans finished their group-stage campaign on a high. The Turk isn't know for his prolific scoring, but put in a sterling performance at the Nou Camp.
The Blaugrana were already assured of top-spot, but were relentless from the kick-off, routing the German side despite a much-changed lineup. Lionel Messi opened the scoring, but after getting his 10th Champions League goal of the season, couldn't find the net again.
In the other match of Group C, Manchester City drew 1-1 at home with Celtic, Kelechi Iheanacho cancelling out Patrick Roberts opener.
The English side thus progressed to the knockouts in second place with nine points from six games, with Barcelona in pole position with 15.
Atletico Madrid were the only side in the completion with a 100 percent record, but Bayern Munich spoilt that, beating the Spanish side 1-0 in Germany.
Robert Lewandowski scored a peach of a free-kick to edge a close match after Manuel Neuer had made a couple of smart saves from the visiting side.
Atletico were already assured of top spot and the the group-stages with 15 points with Bayern in second with 12.
The most amount of drama was in Group B, where three teams stood a chance of qualifying for the knockouts.
Benfica faced hosted Napoli, with both sides level on eight points while Besiktas traveled to Dynamo Kyiv, the Turkish side in third place with seven points.
Napoli triumphed 2-1 in Lisbon, but the real shocker came in Russia where Dynamo bulldozed Besiktas 6-0.
As a result, Napoli topped the group and Benfica finished second.
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