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Arsenal's Eduardo - Source: Reuters -
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Arsenal eased into the group stages of the Champions League on
Thursday, outclassing Celtic 3-1 to enter Friday's draw where they
will be joined by Fiorentina, VfB Stuttgart, Olympiakos and APOEL
Nicosia.
A harshly-awarded penalty converted by Eduardo after 28 minutes
allowed Arsenal to build on their 2-0 victory in Glasgow in the
first leg of their final playoff round tie last week.
Emmanuel Eboue and Andrei Arshavin both scored after the break
while Massimo Donati salvaged a little pride for the Scottish side
with a stoppage-time volley.
The 5-1 aggregate victory for Arsenal by no means flattered the
north London club who have started the season in impressive style,
winning all their four games and scoring 15 goals in the
process.
Serie A side Fiorentina squeezed through on away goals against
Portugal's Sporting after a 1-1 home draw left the tie level at
3-3. Steven Jovetic equalised for Fiorentina on the night after
Sporting had gone ahead on aggregate through Joao Moutinho.
Stuttgart were held 0-0 at home by Timisoara of Romania but
progressed courtesy of their 2-0 away win last week. APOEL beat FC
Copenhagen 3-1 for a 3-2 aggregate win while Greek side Olympiakos
ended the dreams of Moldovans Sheriff Tirsaspol, completing a 3-0
aggregate win.
The 10 winners of the playoff ties will join the clubs who
automatically qualified for the lucrative group stages, including
holders Barcelona and runners-up Manchester United.
