Champions League roundup: Atalanta v Villarreal snowed off; Juve top Group H

Atalanta’s decisive final Champions League group match against Villarreal was postponed on Wednesday due to heavy snow.

The winner of the Group F clash in northern Italy would be assured of a spot in the Champions League knockout stages, but the two sides will have to wait to find out their fate after English referee Anthony Taylor called off the match.

Groundstaff had done everything they could to get the Stadio Atleti Azzurri d’Italia pitch ready, painting the touchlines red to increase their visibility, and play was initially delayed as snow was cleared. Players were ready, pitchside, in their kits, but the snow kept falling, persuading the English officials to make their decision.

Atalanta said on social media that the game would now take place on Thursday, with Uefa yet to determine a kick-off time.

Meanwhile, Juventus progressed to the Champions League knockout stages as Group H winners after their comfortable 1-0 victory over Malmö on Wednesday, coupled with Chelsea’s 3-3 draw at Zenit St Petersburg.

A much-changed Juventus, already assured of their place in the knockout stages, raced into an 18th-minute lead when Moise Kean headed his first Champions League goal from an inch-perfect Federico Bernardeschi cross.

With Malmö guaranteed to finish bottom of the group, the Swedes had little incentive to push for a leveller and Juve closed out the win without ever being seriously troubled.

The Italian side’s fifth win from six group games looked to be in vain as England’s Chelsea led 3-2 in Russia in stoppage time, but a last-gasp Zenit equaliser meant Juve finished two points clear at the top of the group.

In Group A, Benfica beat already-eliminated Dynamo Kyiv 2-0, and got some vital help from already-qualified Bayern Munich, who defeated Barcelona 3-0. The combination of results saw Benfica finish second in Group E and advance for the first time since 2016-17.

Roman Yaremchuk and Gilberto scored first-half goals to give Benfica eight points, one more than Barcelona. “I’m really proud. It’s amazing what we’ve achieved,” Benfica’s João Mário said. “We knew how difficult it was going to be.”

Benfica did not make the group stage last season, and two years ago were eliminated before the knockout stages for a third consecutive time. Benfica, who began this campaign in the third qualifying round, had failed to reach the knockout stages in 10 of its last 15 group-stage appearances.

In Group G, Noah Okafor scored the only goal as RB Salzburg claimed a 1-0 victory over 10-man Sevilla to progress to the knockout stages for the first time.

Salzburg finished runners-up in Group G with 10 points from six matches, one behind the group winners Lille. Sevilla finished in third place and will enter the Europa League. The match was played behind closed doors without fans due to heightened Covid-19 restrictions in Austria.

“I will certainly never forget this game, it is unbelievable what we have achieved over 90 minutes today,” the Salzburg captain Andreas Ulmer said. “Everyone supported everyone, and the players who came on as substitutes were also very important. This is a very big moment for Austrian football.”

Lille defeated Wolfsburg 3-1 away from home to seal top spot in Group G: Jonathan David and the England Under-21 international Angel Gomes built on an early effort from Burak Yilmaz before Renato Steffen scored a late consolation for Wolfsburg.