Chelsea survived a nerve-jangling finale to their 2-1 win over Lille on Tuesday, eventually holding on to clinch a place in the Champions League knock-out stages thanks to first-half goals from Tammy Abraham and captain Cesar Azpilicueta.

Chelsea, who needed a victory to make sure of qualification, had gone five Champions League games at Stamford Bridge without a victory, their longest such run at home in the competition.

They dominated almost the entire game yet Lille, who were already condemned to the bottom spot of Group H and fielded an under-strength side, scored in the 78th minute and came close to a late equaliser that would have eliminated Chelsea.

Victory left Chelsea second in the group on 11 points behind Valencia, who won 1-0 at Ajax Amsterdam, consigning the Dutch champions to third place and elimination. Lille ended with just one point.

“It did get twitchy,” Chelsea coach Frank Lampard said. “We need to take our chances better. At 2-0, I thought it was not quite done and when Lille scored it made it a more nervy finish to the game than it needed to be.”

After dominating the opening proceedings in a downpour and swirling wind, Chelsea went ahead in the 19th minute when U.S. striker Christian Pulisic darted forward to feed Willian and the Brazilian’s cut-back cross was turned in by Abraham.

The Londoners doubled their lead in the 35th minute when Azpilicueta shook off his marker to score with a close-range header from a corner by Emerson.

But what had looked like being a comfortable night for the Blues proved anything but once former Chelsea striker Loic Remy pulled a goal back for Lille with his shot going in off the underside of the bar.

Remy then wasted a chance to equalise when he shot straight at Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga in injury time.

Lille coach Christophe Galtier said his team had struggled in the opening 30 minutes to cope with Chelsea and the heavy rain and wind that swept around Stamford Bridge.

“Chelsea seemed to play a bit less in the second half. We got more of the ball and we deserved to get our goal,” he said. “It made the match more interesting than what went before it. We could have scored a second goal.”

The result meant all four English teams in this season’s Champions League – Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, as well as Chelsea – have reached the last 16 of the competition.

There was further good news for Chelsea as they welcomed back central defender Antonio Rudiger who had previously played only 45 minutes this season due to injuries.

Liverpool moved into the last 16 of the Champions League with a 2-0 victory over Salzburg on Tuesday as a potentially tricky encounter turned into a second-half cruise with quickfire goals from Naby Keita and Mohamed Salah.

Juergen Klopp’s side needed a point in Austria to be sure of qualification and after missing several good chances in the first half, they ended up with a comfortable win which should have been by a more convincing margin.

Two goals inside two second-half minutes from Keita and Salah, with the Egyptian finding the net with an exquisite finish from a tight angle, helped Liverpool finish top of Group E with 13 points.

That was one point ahead of Napoli, who beat Genk 4-0, while Salzburg, who finished third with seven points, will continue in the Europa League.

“It was a tough game but we were there – that’s what I love from my team. Salzburg did so many smart things, but we had the big chances. It was a very intense game. In the second half they obviously couldn’t cope with that intensity,” said Klopp.

Although the away defeat and home draw with Carlo Ancelotti’s Napoli had left Liverpool on edge going into the final round of games, their superior quality showed in the end.

With much at stake for two attacking sides, the game began in a frantic and open fashion and Liverpool keeper Alisson Becker had to be alert in the seventh minute to keep out a close-range effort from South Korean Hwang Hee-chan after good work from the lively Japanese forward Takumi Minamino.

Mane missed a good opportunity, curling wide from the edge of the box and then brought Salzburg keeper Cican Stankovic into action with a diagonal drive.

Highly-rated Norwegian striker Erling Haaland, who has been linked with a move to Manchester United, failed to make the most of space inside the box and his low shot was easily dealt with by the Liverpool keeper.

The 19-year-old Haaland missed another opportunity, six minutes after the interval, but Liverpool were beginning to get a grip on midfield and dictate the tempo.

The runaway Premier League leaders settled their nerves when Keita headed them in front,

Andy Robertson fed Mane who burst down the left past Jerome Onguene and he rounded Salzburg keeper Cican Stankovic, who had rushed out of his area, before lofting a cross into the box which was firmly headed home by Keita.

A minute later, Stankovic’s readiness to leave his area was behind the second goal, as Salah, wide on the right, pushed the ball around him and then impressively slotted home from the tightest possible angle.

Liverpool were in firm control from then on and wasted several chances to add to their total with Salah and Mane both missing opportunities.

Salzburg will take some comfort from their enterprising first-half performance and their overall displays in the group stage, which earned praise from Klopp.

“I couldn’t have more respect for what Salzburg are doing. When you see how good they were in the first game, against Napoli and against Genk. We could have come here as reigning champions and misunderstood the situation, but I love how smart we were against them,” he said.