Arsenal progress despite Sporting stalemate, Chelsea ease through

Arsenal booked a place in the Europa League knockout stage and extended their unbeaten run to 15 matches despite a 00 draw with Sporting Lisbon while Olivier Girouds first goal of the season sent Chelsea throughBut Arsenal striker Danny Welbeck given a rare start just hours after being named in Gareth Southgates England squad had to be stretchered down the tunnel with what looked a nasty ankle injury in the first half on ThursdayArsenal midfielders Matteo Guendouzi and Aaron Ramsey were both visibly upset after Welbeck who is out of contract at the end of the campaign went down after jumping to win a headerIt is mentally challenging playing after a teammate is injured but sometimes it comes with the game and Danny has had a lot of injuries winger Alex Iwobi told BT SportWe wish him the best and will keep on encouraging and motivating him to get back Unai Emerys Gunners were the better side for long periods at the Emirates against a team who have already had three different managers this term but were forced to settle for a point despite Sporting being reduced to 10 men late on when former Barcelona centreback Jeremy Mathieu was sent offBut Arsenal did secure a last32 spot regardless as Vorskla Poltava lost 10 at home to Azeri outfit Qarabag in the other Group E game Giroud ends drought Chelsea made it four wins from four matches in Group L by edging out a spirited BATE Borisov 10 in BelarusGiroud ended his 11game goal drought this season by giving Chelsea a 53rdminute lead and the Premier League giants held on despite BATE striking the woodwork three times in the matchI was hoping to score soon because I came back late from the World Cup and I was lacking maybe a bit of efficiency and luck but you always need to keep working hard and keep the faith and thats what happened tonight France striker Giroud told BT SportThe Londoners moved six points clear of Hungarians Vidi at the top of the group and have not tasted defeat in 17 matches since losing the Community Shield to Manchester City in August Gerrard finally beaten in Europe Steven Gerrards Rangers saw their 11game unbeaten run in this years Europa League come to a dramatic end as they threw away the lead three times in a 43 defeat at Spartak MoscowBoth sides were the beneficiaries of comical own goals in a crazy first half which ended with Glenn Middleton putting the Scots 32 ahead but Luiz Adriano and Sofiane Hanni both scored in the space of 71 seconds to snatch Spartak victoryRangers are now level on points with Spartak in an incredibly tight Group G one point behind leaders Villarreal after the Spaniards goalless draw with Rapid Vienna in AustriaFor me football is about levels and if you dont defend properly and you dont do the basics well enough highlevel players and highlevel teams normally punish you and that was the case tonight Gerrard told the Rangers websiteReigning Scottish champions Celtic gave themselves a lifeline in Group B as Odsonne Edouards 79thminute strike saw them beat RB Leipzig 21 in their mustwin clash at ParkheadSalzburg semifinalists last season qualified for the next round with a 52 thrashing of Rosenborg in the groups other match as Japanese forward Takumi Minamino scored a hattrickElsewhere Eintracht Frankfurt reached the last 32 with their fourth win from as many group games by beating Apollon Limassol 32 in Cyprus while Lazio joined them in progressing from Group H as goals from Marco Parolo and Joaquin Correa secured a 21 win over Marseille to eliminate last seasons runnersupAC Milan stayed just a point adrift of Group F leaders Real Betis after Susos secondhalf equaliser grabbed a 11 draw in SpainRecord fivetime winners Sevilla needed a late penalty from Ever Banega to claim a 32 victory at Akhisar Belediyespor after having a man sent off losing a twogoal lead and seeing the Turks miss a spotkick of their own