Mixed fortunes for European hopefuls

It was back to domestic duty on Saturday for 15 of the teams who were involved in UEFA Champions League action in midweek, with Chelsea FC, FC Bayern München, FC Barcelona and Olympique Lyonnais securing important wins, while there were unexpected defeats for Serie A leaders Juventus FC and Liverpool FC. uefa.com rounds up the news.

Group A
Liverpool FC suffered a first home defeat of the Premiership season, losing 1-0 against Birmingham City FC at Anfield. Rafael Benítez made two changes, Xabi Alonso replacing Igor Bišcan in midfield after recovering from a calf injury while Florent Sinama Pongolle took Milan Baroš's place up front as the Czech international has a hamstring strain which is expected to keep him out for another week. RC Deportivo La Coruña lost 2-1 at FC Barcelona despite taking the lead through captain Fran González after seven minutes. Javier Irureta was without Mauro Silva, who has been recovering from a thigh strain, César Martín due to a bruised toe and Aldo Duscher, who failed to recover from a pulled hamstring. Albert Luque started on the bench and only appeared midway through the second half. Meanwhile, AS Monaco FC have now gone six games without a win as a stoppage-time equaliser from Abdelnasser Ouadah denied Didier Deschamps's men victory at home to lowly AC Ajaccio.

Group B
Bayer 04 Leverkusen were without Juan for the 4-1 Bundesliga win against SC Freiburg as the Brazilian defender picked up a groin strain in the 1-1 draw against AS Roma. Long-term absentees Clemens Fritz, Daniel Bierofka and Jermaine Jones are also still out, with Jones and Fritz not expected to return until the new year.

Group C
Serie A leaders Juventus FC suffered a first league defeat of the season, going down 2-1 at Reggina Calcio on Saturday night. With David Trezeguet and Jonathan Zebina still absent and Stephen Appiah unavailable due to flu, the home side took advantage, Giuseppe Colucci and Marco Zamboni striking either side of Zlatan Ibrahimovic's equaliser to earn three unexpected points. FC Bayern München had to replace Willy Sagnol before their 3-0 win against Hannover 96 as the French international full-back is nursing a slight thigh injury. However, Roy Makaay ended his 600-minute Bundesliga goal drought and Paulo Guerrero claimed his first-ever goal in the German top flight.

Group D
Olympique Lyonnais had luck on their side as a Charles Itandje own goal gave them a 1-0 victory away to RC Lens that moved them four points clear at the top of Ligue 1. Despite a growing injury list, coach Paul Le Guen was still able to rest Brazilian playmaker Juninho Pernambucano and French international striker Sidney Govou. Meanwhile, champions Fenerbahçe SK moved three points clear in the Turkish Superleague, with Brazilian forward Márcio Nobre scoring the only goal of their game with BB Ankaraspor. The home side held on despite the 74th-minute dismissal of midfield player Selçuk Sahin. Fenerbahçe's Brazilian defender Fabio Luciano missed his first game this season due to illness.

Group E
Arsenal FC lost the leadership of the Premiership, dropping two points behind Chelsea FC after a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace FC despite Thierry Henry's opening goal. With Sol Campbell still injured, manager Arsène Wenger made just one change, replacing Dennis Bergkamp with José Antonio Reyes up front.

Group F
FC Barcelona continued their rampant start to the season, sweeping aside a convincing Deportivo to open up a ten-point lead in Spain and equal their best-ever start to a league season. Despite falling behind early on, Xavi Hernández quickly levelled and Samuel Eto'o – top scorer in the Primera División - secured the win with his ninth goal of the season. There was some concern for coach Frank Rikjaard, however, as Brazilian full-back Juliano Belletti was carried off shortly before full time having injured his left knee after losing his footing. He will be out for two weeks. Celtic FC manager Martin O'Neill named an unchanged side for the home game with Kilmarnock FC, with Dianbobo Balde again missing out with a shoulder problem although Henri Camara was fit to continue up front despite an ankle injury. Alan Thompson, who scored the only goal against FC Shakhtar Donetesk on Tuesday, was again on target, with Aiden McGeady getting the other in a 2-1 win.

Group G
Werder Bremen were without Pekka Lagerblom (compassionate leave) and Petri Pasanen (back injury) for their 1-1 draw at Hertha BSC Berlin. Tim Borowski was back in the starting lineup after recovering from a back problem, while Frank Fahrenhorst has returned to training. RSC Anderlecht goalkeeper Tristan Peersman missed his club's 2-1 victory against RAA Louviéroise with flu while Mbo Mpenza missed out with a slight tear to the muscle in his right calf and Christian Wilhelmsson's thigh injury ruled him out.

Group H
Chelsea FC moved to the top of the Premiership with a 1-0 win against Everton FC, with Arjen Robben getting the only goal for the second successive match. Paulo Ferreira replaced Glen Johnson at right-back, while Tiago came into midfield at the expense of Scott Parker.