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Lionel Messi preserved Barcelonas unbeaten start to the Champions League by equalizing in a 1-1 draw at AC Milan while Arsenals 100 per cent record disappeared with a 2-1 home defeat to Borussia Dortmund in Tuesdays other marquee match. Kelvin Benjamin Jersey . Atletico Madrid made it three wins from three thanks to a double from in-form striker Diego Costa in a 3-0 victory at Austria Vienna, leaving the Spanish side on the brink of the last 16 already to continue its brilliant start to the season. Chelsea claimed the performance of the night by crushing Schalke 3-0, with striker Fernando Torres also scoring twice to put the 2012 champions top of Group E. Back from a thigh injury, Messi scored from close range to cancel out Robinhos opener for Milan and keep Barca in charge of Group H on seven points, two ahead of the Italians. Robert Lewandowski grabbed an 82nd-minute winner for Dortmund, last seasons beaten finalist, at Arsenal in Group F to bring the English team down to earth after a flying start to the Premier League and in Europe. They are joined in a three-way tie on six points by Napoli, which won 2-1 at Marseille to condemn the French side to a third straight loss. There were also first wins of the group stage for Celtic and Zenit St. Petersburg while Basel drew 1-1 at Steaua Bucharest. Milan and Barca were meeting in Europes top competition for the seventh time in three seasons, so it was perhaps no surprise to see the teams cancel each other out. There was no shortage of stars on show at the San Siro and two of them combined for Milans opener, Robinho exchanging passes with Kaka before slotting past Victor Valdes. However, Milan has never been able to handle Messi -- the Argentina forward has now scored six times against the Italians -- and he equalized after collecting Andres Iniestas pass, evading Kevin Constant and shooting into the bottom corner. The teams meet again in two weeks time, with Barcelona knowing a victory would put them on 10 points and close to the knockout stage. Celtic is two points behind Milan after beating Ajax 2-1 thanks to goals by James Forrest and Beram Kayal in a 10-minute spell either side of halftime. Ajax grabbed a consolation goal through Lasse Schone in second-half stoppage time, by which time Celtic had been reduced to 10 men after Nir Biton was red-carded in the 87th minute. Arsenals first loss since mid-August, on the night of manager Arsene Wengers 64th birthday too, was sealed by Lewandowsis unforgiving finish eight minutes from time at Emirates Stadium. Back in London for the first time since losing last seasons final to Bayern Munich in May, Dortmund went ahead through Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the 16th minute only for Olivier Giroud to equalize just before the break. Jose Callejon and substitute Duvan Zapata were the scorers for Napoli at the Stade Velodrome, with Andre Ayew netting for Marseille four minutes from time. Atletico, level on points with Barca at the top of the Spanish league, is the only team in the four groups who played on Tuesday to have three straight wins after Costa added to the opener scored by Raul Garcia in the Austrian capital. Diego Simeones side is five points clear of Zenit, which beat FC Porto 1-0 thanks to Aleksandr Kerzhakovs goal five minutes from time. Porto had done well to nearly hold out for a draw after seeing Hector Herrera sent off for two yellow cards after just six minutes. In Group E, Torres marked his 100th start for Chelsea by scoring in the fifth and 69th minutes, with Eden Hazard completing an unexpectedly easy win against a Schalke team that led the group at kickoff. "If you do garbage, then you have to clean it up and we cleaned it up," said Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, referring to his teams home defeat to Basel on the opening matchday. "Weve got two matches at home so now we are in good condition to qualify and well try to finish top." Chelsea is ahead of Schalke on goal difference, with Basel two points back after conceding a late goal by Leandro Tatu to draw at Steaua, which claimed a first point in group play. Carolina Panthers T-Shirts . 10 shirt. The Japan forward was presented on Wednesday as an AC Milan player after signing a 3 1/2-year contract on a free transfer from CSKA Moscow. Antoine Cason Jersey . Stamkos suffered a broken leg 10 weeks ago and continues to rehab in hopes of returning to the Tampa Bay Lightning lineup before the Olympic break. As a result of the positive feedback from the X-ray, Stamkos will continue to ramp up both on- and off-ice workouts.If the Columbus Blue Jackets are intent on signing Marian Gaborik to a contract extension, theyll want to see a bit more from the veteran winger on the ice first. General manager Jarmo Kekalainen told Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch on Friday that he wants to see Gaboriks contributions go beyond the scoresheet before considering a long-term deal for the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent. "I think hes done a lot of good things," Kekalainen told The Dispatch. "And I think he could do more. He could be the driving force of the team. Id like to see him taking charge, driving the team with his example - not only with the points but with everything else he does. "Hes at the point in his career where he could take the next step in that area. Hes proven he can score points, score goals. I want to believe that even a 30-year-old or a 35-year-old player can get better, and thats one area that I want to see more from him." The Dispatch adds that there have been no talks abbout a contract extension between both sides and theres no urgency from either camp to start just yet. Carolina Panthers Iphone Case. "We havent approached his agent (Ron Salcer), he hasnt approached us," Kekalainen told the paper. "Were both kind of in the lets-see-how-this-works-out place. I think its fair. "Im not mad at his agent. Im just hoping hes going to be a great player for us." Gaborik is making $7.5 million this season - the final one of a five-year, $37.5 million deal he signed with the Rangers prior to the 2009-10 campaign. Originally selected third overall by the Minnesota Wild in 2000, Gaborik has scored 341 goals and 343 assists in 779 career games with the Jackets, Rangers and Wild. "I always say to players: leave a legacy behind you as a great teammate, a great leader, a great example," Kekalainen added. "Those are the areas he can do a lot more in, and I think he wants to, too. But if you want to be a leader, you have to do it every day." cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
