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Benfica grateful for Garay winner
SL Benfica kept alive their hopes of reaching the UEFA Champions League knockout stage after edging out Celtic FC on a night of intense rain and noise in Lisbon.
The Scottish champions looked set for a long night when Ola John gave the hosts an early lead, but Giorgos Samaras headed them level before half-time. A draw would have been enough for Celtic to reach the last 16 as Group G runners-up but they were under pressure from the outset in the second half and cracked with 19 minutes remaining, Ezequiel Garay volleying a sumptuous clincher. Benfica must now equal Celtic's matchday six result to hold onto second place; the Portuguese side visit section winners FC Barcelona while Celtic welcome FC Spartak Moskva.
Match in 5
- First competition goals for John and Garay seal Benfica win
- Samaras cancels out early John opener
- Garay's 71st-minute volley moves sides level on points
- Both sides still in contention to qualify from Group G
- Scottish side without a win in last six visits to Portugal
Reaction
Celtic are still in a good position. Our aim was to stay in the competition. We go to Barcelona to chase qualification. We will not change our style as we have a game plan we have worked on for years.
Jorge Jesus, Benfica coach
We know what we have to do: beat Spartak and we still have a good chance of qualifying. Hopefully we'll have a few players back for the Spartak game and the squad will be a bit stronger.
Neil Lennon, Celtic manager
Lineups
 | Benfica |  | Celtic |
| 1 | Artur (GK) | 1 | Forster (GK) |
| 4 | Luisão (C) | 2 | Matthews |
| 7 | Óscar Cardozo | 4 | Ambrose |
| 11 | Lima 75 | 6 | Wilson |
| 15 | John 7 | 8 | Brown (C)64 |
| 18 | Salvio90+2 | 9 | Samaras32 38 |
| 21 | Matić78 | 16 | Ledley4880 |
| 24 | Garay71 | 21 | Mulgrew46 |
| 25 | Melgarejo77 | 23 | Lustig |
| 34 | André Almeida90+1 | 67 | Wanyama85 |
| 35 | Peréz | 88 | Hooper |
Substitutes | |||
| 13 | Paulo Lopes (GK) | 24 | Załuska (GK) |
| 8 | Bruno César | 7 | Miku |
| 9 | Nolito | 11 | Nouioui |
| 14 | Maxi Pereira78 | 15 | Commons64 |
| 19 | Rodrigo | 20 | McCourt |
| 20 | Gaitán75 | 32 | Watt80 |
| 33 | Jardel90+2 | 33 | Kayal46 |
Coaches | |||
| Jorge Jesus (POR) | Neil Lennon (NIR) | ||
Referee | |||
| Viktor Kassai (HUN) | |||
Standings
Group G
| P | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Barcelona | 5 | 12 |
| 2 |  Benfica | 5 | 7 |
| 3 |  Celtic | 5 | 7 |
| 4 |  Spartak Moskva | 5 | 3 |
Legend:
- P: Played
- Pts: Points
Match statistics
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Minute By Minute
- 90+2Jardel (in) - Salvio (out) (Benfica)
- 90+1André Almeida (Benfica) is shown a yellow card.
- 85Wanyama (Celtic) is shown a yellow card.
Victor Wanyama's yellow card means he will not be eligible to play against FC Spartak Moskva in the final group game. - 80Watt (in) - Ledley (out) (Celtic)
Benfica have kept their qualification hopes alive with a well-earned win over Celtic here tonight. Goals from Ola John and Ezequiel Garay have drawn the two sides level on seven points in the group.