Real Madrid, Man U pay price for fielding weakened teams

Like Madrid, United selected a largely second-string lineup with qualification secure, even though Jose Mourinho's team still had a chance of climbing above Juventus to first place with a win.

With Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus surprisingly losing 2-1 at Swiss club Young Boys, United could have finished top - only to lose by the same score line at the Mestalla. Adding to United's misery, Phil Jones scored an own-goal from outside his own area and Paul Pogba missed a great chance from around four yards out.

"Tonight, it is job done in a difficult group," said Mourinho, whose team is now assured of facing one of the following group winners: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Porto or Paris Saint-Germain.

United was one of four English teams to reach the knockout stage for the second straight season. This was the first year when 16 group-stage places were guaranteed for the Big 4 leagues in Europe - Spain, England, Germany and Italy. The four countries put 12 teams in total into the round of 16, the draw for which is on Monday.