Liverpool's first UEFA Champions League victory of the campaign finally arrived on Tuesday and it could not have been any more spectacular. Desperate to keep their chances alive in Group A, they pulled off the largest win in the competition's history by destroying Turkish visitors Besiktas 8-0.

Porto and Marseille still occupy the top two places, however, with the Portuguese champions out in front now after finally getting the better of their French opponents 2-1. For all the goals scored at Anfield, perhaps the most surprising result of the day came in Valencia, where supposed minnows Rosenborg completed a stylish 2-0 triumph over their hosts.

Overall, no team was able to book themselves a place in the last 16, with Chelsea failing to take advantage of Rosenborg's exploits by only drawing with Schalke. But Tuesday certainly produced fireworks, with 20 goals, one hat-trick and five braces.

The match
Liverpool 8-0 Besiktas
Goals: Peter Crouch (19' and 88'), Yossi Benayoun (32', 53' and 56'), Steven Gerrard (67'), Ryan Babel (78' and 81')

The Reds took this game by the scruff of the neck from the very first minute, depriving Besiktas of the ball, pressing them high up the pitch and generally imposing a very quick tempo. With Benayoun seizing on the opportunities that presented themselves and involved in almost all his side's good work, Liverpool left the visitors no chance. Unable to keep up with the pace, Besiktas looked constantly harried and eventually cracked under the pressure towards the end, leaving Rafa Benitez's charges free to pile on the agony.

The upset
Valencia 0-2 Rosenborg
Goals: Steffen Iversen (31' and 58')

Bright, organised and no doubt fresher than their strangely subdued hosts, Rosenborg made it two wins out of two against Valencia this season and took a serious step towards qualifying for the knockout stage. Leading by example, captain Steffen Iversen was both pragmatic and clinical as he struck the goals that gave Rosenborg a deserved victory.


The goal
Porto 2-1 Marseille
Sektioui 27', Porto 1-0 Marseille

Moroccan midfielder Tarik Sektioui collected the ball in midfield, danced through the entire Marseille defence with a flurry of step-overs, breezed past goalkeeper Steve Mandanda and stroked the ball into an empty net.

The situation
Porto leapt to the Group A summit by consigning previous pacesetters Marseille to their first defeat. Everything remains possible in the section, especially with Liverpool storming back into contention. Chelsea made do with a goalless draw away to Schalke 04 in Group B, meanwhile, at the same time as Rosenborg were giving their impressive attacking display in Valencia.

In Group C, Lazio finally completed their first UEFA Champions League win since 16 September 2003 as Tommaso Rocchi struck twice to see off a disappointing Werder Bremen side. The Rome outfit next entertain Olympiacos for what is shaping up to be a decisive contest in terms of who finishes second behind Real Madrid. For their part, Real settled for a 0-0 stalemate in Greece.

Lastly, AC Milan and striker Filippo Inzaghi were at their best in Ukraine and gave their qualification hopes a major boost by overcoming Shakhtar Donetsk 3-0. Also in Group D, Celtic won a match they could not afford to lose by getting the better of Benfica 1-0 in Glasgow, a result that keeps them in the race for second spot.

The figure
62 - the number of goals scored by Filippo Inzaghi in the UEFA Champions League. The veteran striker added another two to his tally in Donetsk on Tuesday, with the first coming three minutes after he was sent on as a replacement for Alberto Gilardino. Six minutes later, Superpippo dragged two defenders with him and slipped the ball through to Kaka to score, and he registered the third goal of the game himself in added time.

The history
England is clearly not Besiktas' favourite destination. Their last visit at this level took them to Leeds United in 2000/01, where they suffered a thumping 6-0 reverse. That, too, was a competition record at the time.


Summary after Matchday 4;

Group A
FC Porto 1-2 Marseille
Liverpool 8-0 Besiktas

Standings:
1 - Porto 8 points
2 - Marseille 7
3 - Liverpool 4
3 - Besiktas 3

Next games: 28 November
Besiktas-Marseille
Liverpool-Porto

Group B
Schalke 04 0-0 Chelsea
Valencia 0-2 Rosenborg

Standings:
1 - Chelsea 8 points
2 - Rosenborg 7
3 - Schalke 04 4
4 - Valencia 3

Next games: 28 November
Valencia-Schalke 04
Rosenborg-Chelsea

Group C
Lazio 2-1 Werder Bremen
Olympiakos 0-0 Real Madrid

Standings:
1 - Real Madrid 8 points
2 - Olympiakos and Lazio 5
3 - Werder Bremen 3

Next games: 28 November
Werder Bremen-Real Madrid
Lazio-Olympiakos

Group D
Celtic 1-0 Benfica
Shakhtar Donetsk 0-3 AC Milan

Standings:
1 - AC Milan 9 points
2 - Shakhtar Donetsk and Celtic 6
3 - Benfica 3

Next games: 28 November
Benfica-AC Milan
Celtic-Shakhtar Donetsk