Group C is wide open after Real Madrid's surprise 3-2 defeat to a lively Werder Bremen side.

Markus Rosenberg put Bremen ahead after just 4 minutes, before Robinho equalised just nine minutes later. Sanogo and Hunt went on to make it 3-1, and although Van Nistelrooy struck on 70 minutes, the home side held out for a famous victory.

Real Madrid went into this game having won just once in twenty-one visits to Germany, and the electric atmosphere at the Weserstadion proved intimidating from the get-go. The Spanish champions knew that they could guarantee qualification with a victory tonight, but after just 4 minutes the dynamic Rosenberg put Bremen ahead with what was ostensibly the Germans" first attack. His shot was far from perfect, but it was enough to beat goalkeeper Iker Casillas and send the packed stadium into delirium.

The celebration didn't last long. The boisterous home fans went silent on the 15-minute mark when Robinho equalised with a superb, curling shot after an excellent pass down the left flank from fellow Brazilian Marcelo.

Real then went into the ascendancy, with the forward charge led by Marcelo and Van Nistelrooy. But whilst their attacking players' flair was never in question, defensive frailties began to show in the first half. Rosenberg in particular found success down the right flank, and Madrid were saved from complete embarrassment when Casillas pulled off a fine save from Naldo after half an hour. But the Spanish defence always looked like cracking, and crack it did on 40 minutes when Boubacar Sanogo got on the end of a pass from Rosenberg, who had zipped past Gago on the right wing.

Despite their nerves, Bremen carved out more goal scoring chances than Madrid in the second half, and it took a goal-line clearance by Sergio Ramos to prevent Sanogo scoring again after just five minutes of the restart. On 58 minutes Aaron Hunt made it 3-1 with a clinical finish, and the Bremen fans couldn't believe what they were seeing.

Van Nistelrooy pulled a goal back some twenty minutes before fulltime, but Bremen didn't give up on their flowing, attacking play, and they could easily have made it four when substitute Carlos Alberto struck on 88 minutes. Casillas, once again, saved Real from an embarrassing scoreline.

Lazio 1-2 Olimpiacos

Lazio squandered their lead to lose 1-2 at home to Olympiacos, with Luciano Galletti and Darko Kovacevic cancelling out Goran Pandev's goal for the home side. Both teams began the game very cautiously, but once Pandev struck on the half-hour mark the attacking football started – and it was Lazio's defence that was found wanting.

The opening half hour offered no moments of excitement, and the first real chance of the game turned into the opening goal. A deft header from Stefano Mauri, on the edge of the Olympiacos area, found Tomasso Rocchi who ran into the left of the box towards goalkeeper Antonios Nikopolidis. Replays show that Rocchi dribbled the ball out of play before crossing to the centre, where Pandev struck into the empty net. Olympiacos players were rightfully aggrieved but they responded in the best possible way.

Five minutes later, Galletti unleashed a belter from just inside the penalty area. There was nothing veteran Lazio keeper Marco Balletta could do to stop the powerful strike, which delighted the 8000 travelling Greek fans.

Lazio had a great chance to take the lead soon after the break, when Nikopolidis' uncertain handling let a corner slip out of his hands and into the path of Guglielmo Stendardo. The defender should have had any easy

tap-in but he couldn"t make contact with the ball, which was cleared to safety. Moments later, Pandev missed a superb opportunity to score a second when he found himself in space on the right of the Olympiacos area. With the keeper to beat, Pandev struck weakly and the ball bounced off Nikopolidis for a corner.

Quite against the run of play, Olympiacos took the lead on 64 minutes. The unmarked Predrag Djordjevic tore down the left wing and crossed into the centre, where substitute Kovacevic, on for the ineffective LuaLua, slotted the ball in.

From then on, the game was more evenly poised as Olympiacos refused to defend deeply. They continued pouring forward, and Lazio's resolve appeared to drain away. The Italians needed to find something special to penetrate the stout Olympiacos defence, but they produced no noteworthy efforts at all in the final fifteen minutes.

Lazio's Champions League fate is now out of their hands. Their final Group C game on 11th December is at Real Madrid, where they'll need an extraordinary victory to stay in with a chance of making it to the knockout stages. Olympiacos, on the other hand, will fancy their chances to progress with a home tie against Werder Bremen concluding their group fixtures.

Eddie de Oliveira / Eurosport