UEFA Champions League Playoff Round, Second Legs: Lyon, Plzen, Benfica And BATE Advance

Between Arsenal defeating Udinese, Lyon defeating Rubin earlier today, and Trabzonspor being named Fenerbahce’s replacement, the entire group stage for the UEFA Champions League is now filled out and the draw will take place tomorrow. Besides Arsenal, three more teams advanced out of the late afternoon games.

Benfica 3-1 Twente (Benfica advance 5-3 on aggregate)

Rubin Kazan didn’t step on the gas until there was just under 30 minutes remaining in their UEFA Champions League tie against Olympique Lyonnais, and that eventually came back to bite them. Bebars Natcho scored for the home side in the 77th minute, bringing the score back to a 3-2 Lyon aggregate lead, but Sidy Kone put the nail in the coffin with a goal in the 85th minute, securing passage into the group stage of the UEFA Champions League.

Unfortunately for Rubin, they’re not one of the teams likely to be in the running to replace Fenerbahce in the group stages, and their Champions League journey ended today. They will drop down into the group stages of the UEFA Europa League.

Based on the way Rubin Kazan have played in the early going against Olympique Lyonnais, it appears that they don’t have the slightest clue that they’re trailing 3-1 in the series. That’s not to say that Rubin have been bad; they’re doing a decent job of defending and of passing the ball. However, their style of play has been a tad bit negative for anyone and extremely negative for a team that need two goals. At halftime, the score is tied at 0-0, leaving Rubin trailing on aggregate by two goals.

Rubin’s variation on 3-6-1 has left Vladimir Dyadyun isolated up top as they have packed the midfield and struggled to get men forward. Igor Lebedenko should be supporting him, in theory, but has played very deep for a team who - and this bears repeating - needs to score two goals.

Thanks to a 3-1 home win last week in Lyon, Olympique Lyonnais are favorites to advance to the group stages of the UEFA Champions League. However, an away goal has Rubin very much still in this series. Travelling to Russia is always a tough task for teams in Europe, and Rubin will feel like favorites to win on Wednesday. They will need to win by two goals, though, while avoiding giving up two away goals in the process. Here are the lineups.

Rubin Kazan lineup: Ryzhikov, Kisliak, Kaleshin, Kverkvelia, Sharonov, Nemov, Karadeniz, Noboa, Natkho, Lebedenko, Dyadyun

And now, the big day. Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League action was a little light on both big teams and major drama, but Wednesday’s set of fixtures should have a little bit more of both. Arsenal vs. Udinese is the biggest game, and has its own dedicated space here at SB Nation. This is your home for the other four matches, including Rubin Kazan vs. Olympique Lyonnais and Benfica vs. FC Twente.

Rubin take on Lyon at 12 pm ET, while all other games start at 2:45 pm ET. All games can be seen on FoxSoccer.tv or DirecTV Soccer in the USA.