Missed chances

German champions Borussia Dortmund lacked the finishing touches in their Champions League group stage clash with Marseille on Wednesday, leading to a 3-0 thrashing by the French side. Leverkusen, meanwhile, took home a hard-fought 2-0 win over Belgian champions Racing Genk.

Ghana forward Andre Ayew opened the scoring after 20 minutes twice for Marseille, his teammate Loic Remy followed in the 62nd minute, when a header by Dortmund's Mats Hummels handily landed in his path and gave Marseille a comfortable 2-0 lead. Ayew sealed the match with a converted penalty.

"We dominated for much of the game but simply made too many mistakes," Dortmund coach Jürgen Klopp said after the game. "The defeat was unnecessary, but if you lose 3-0, you can't find any excuses."

"Dortmund was the better team, but they just couldn't convert their chances," German football veteran Franz Beckenbauer said on German television in the post-match analysis.

Marseille finished the match on a sour note, as they went down to ten men in stoppage time, after substitute Jordan Ayew was sent off, picking up a second yellow card for diving. But the win puts them at the top of Group F with six points. Dortmund now have to win their next two matches to make it to the knockout stages of Europe's top soccer competition.

Labored win

Bayer Leverkusen took home a 2-0 win over Racing Genk, putting them second in Group E. Although both teams had chances to score and Leverkusen's attack was decent, its defense was confused at times and prone to weakness.

Midfielder Lars Bender scored the opener in the first half, and Michael Ballack came off the bench to score the second goal in injury time.

However, Germany midfielders Simon Rolfes and Andre Schürrle both squandered chances in front of the goal in the first 15 minutes. Racing Genk's Marvin Ogunjimi nearly equalized two minutes before half-time. The Belgians had several chances in the second half, when Leverkusen's defenders were caught napping.

"We didn't have the finishing we needed," said Leverkusen coach Robin Dutt. "That obviously has something to do with self-confidence. But we played with a lot of determination and I saw we had the right attitude."

Leverkusen are now in second place in Group E with three points. On Tuesday, league table leaders Bayern Munich defeated Manchester City 2-0, putting the Bavarians at the top of Group A.

Author: Nicole Goebel (dpa, AFP, AP, SID)
Editor: Sarah Harman