Two former British European Cup winners Liverpool and Celtic suffered another blow to staying in the competition after both lost in the latest round of Champions League matches.Liverpool have just a point after three matches having gone down 2-1 to Besiktas in Istanbul, while Celtic have three points following a 1-0 reverse away to Benfica yesterday.Other former winners enjoyed better fortunes as AC Milan showed some return to form in beating Shakthar Donetsk 4-1 to go top of their group while Real Madrid also scored four in downing Greek side Olympiakos. Chelsea’s search for a first ever European Cup title also stayed in healthy condition after a 2-0 win at home to German outfit Schalke 04.Schalke’s German rivals Werder Bremen stayed in the hunt with a 2-1 home win over Italian side Lazio while Marseille and Porto stayed ahead of Liverpool with a 1-1 draw in France.Liverpool may have gone down to Besiktas but there was still an upbeat feeling in the team camp from both manager Rafael Benitez and captain Steven Gerrard. “We can still make it with 10 points,” said Benitez. Gerrard too was optimistic. “It was frustrating but sometimes that happens. However, I am still confident we can turn it around.”Bernd Schuster saw his club not only take a big step towards the second round but also that the faith he had shown in Brazilian star Robinho repaid as the striker — who had returned late from last week’s World Cup qualifier after some apparent over zealous celebrations—scored twice.“He’s (Robinho) a player who knows how to win games,” said Schuster. “He started hesitantly but after he got his first goal, he was outstanding,” praised Schuster.
