đź’« Real Madrid, Bayern, Villa, PSG, Levekusen, Brest and Bruges seal victories
đź’« Real Madrid, Bayern, Villa, PSG, Levekusen, Brest and Bruges seal victories The Champions League returns tonight for the sixth matchweek of the new format,…
The Champions League returns tonight for the sixth matchweek of the new format, and the table is now starting to take full shape. Nine matches took place across the continent, all of which will have a major impact on progress to the knockout stage.
Here’s what happened.
Big names do Real’s business
Scorers: De Ketelaere (pen) 45+2′, Lookman 65′; MbappĂ© 10′, VinĂcius Jr. 56′, Bellingham 59′
Real Madrid have their star men to thank for the valuable three points in Bergamo, beating Atalanta 3-2.
Kylian Mbappé put Real ahead after 10 minutes with a finish that recalled the Frenchman at his best.
Brahim DĂaz slipped it and he touched the ball past a defender before sending the ball into the bottom corner.
It was MbappĂ©’s 50th goal in the competition, but his evening would be cut short before half-time as he limped off injured.
Atalanta equalized just before the half-time whistle thanks to Charles De Ketelaere. Sead Kolašinac was the victim of a foul by Aurélien Tchouaméni and the Belgian midfielder made no mistake from the spot.
After 11 minutes of play, VinĂcius JĂşnior, returning to the lineup after a spell out due to injury, gave his team the lead for the second time, finishing calmly with his left foot after the ball bounced.
Jude Bellingham gave the champions some breathing room soon after, striking confidently after clipping an Atalanta defender.
Atalanta did not accept defeat and found their way back into the competition with 25 minutes remaining. The ball came to Ademola Lookman on the left side of the box, and he cut inside before finding the net at the near post. Thibaut Courtois’ positioning wasn’t even bad, but the finish was perfect.
Real held on and relaunched their quest for automatic qualification for the round of 16.
Bayern too strong for Shakhtar
Scorers: Kevin 5′; Laimer 11, MĂĽller 45′, Olise (pen) 70, 90+3”, Musiala 85′
Bayern Munich survived an early scare to defeat Shakhtar Donetsk 4-1.
Bayern trailed after five minutes, and it wasn’t the first time their defensive line was extremely questionable.
Shakhtar recovered a second ball and with a pass, Kevin found himself on Manuel Neuer. He still had a lot to do, but he brilliantly curled a finish into the bottom corner.
Konrad Laimer quickly leveled things up, collecting a loose ball in the box and hammering in an unstoppable strike from close range.
Bayern turned the game on its head just before half-time thanks to Thomas MĂĽller. Jamal Musiala ran into the box and fed the veteran to finish calmly with his left foot. The goal means the Bayern icon has now scored in 16 consecutive seasons in the Champions League.
With 20 minutes remaining, Michael Olise made it safe with a penalty, before Musiala scored the goal his performance deserved, and Olise scored another in added time.
The win means Vincent Kompany’s side are in a good position to automatically qualify for the knockout stages, with two wins in their last two games likely to see them finish in the top eight.
PSG wins the three essential points
Scorers: Ramos 30′, Mendès 72′, DouĂ© 85′
PSG sealed a well-deserved Champions League victory by beating RB Salzburg 3-0.
Unsurprisingly, the French champions dominated possession and created almost every opportunity from the start of the match. However, they failed to find an early breakthrough, continuing their wayward scoring run in this season’s competition.
They finally broke through on the half hour mark, with Gonçalo Ramos coming close to heading the ball home after Achraf Hakimi spotted him with a cushioned header across goal.
It was another Portuguese international who sealed the three precious points for Luis Enrique’s team with just under 20 minutes remaining. Good build-up play led to the ball deflecting into the path of Nuno Mendes, who mercilessly finished from inside the box.
Désiré Doué capped off a perfect evening for his team with a late third, who will now look to capitalize and force their way through to the round of 16.
Bayer Leverkusen strikes again late
Scorers: Mukiele 90′
Bayer Leverkusen scored a late winner again, beating Inter 1-0 at the Bayer Arena, to maintain their place in the Champions League top eight.
As expected, Leverkusen had the majority of the ball throughout the match, but Inter showed why they are one of the toughest teams to break down in Europe, limiting the Bundesliga champions to just two shots on target.
The Italian champions were on the verge of another valuable away point when Leverkusen struck late, as they have done on many occasions. This time it was Nordi Mukiele who was the hero, striking from inside the box after the ball fell to him.
What’s next…
Villa eliminates Leipzig late
Scorers: Openda 27′, Baumgartner 62′; McGinn 3′, Durán 51′, Barkley 85′
Aston Villa moved into the Champions League top eight with a 3-2 win over RB Leipzig, who are now out of the Champions League.
Villa took the lead after just three minutes through John McGinn. Matty Cash cut in on his left foot, centered the ball to Ollie Watkins who signaled his captain to strike from close range.
For all their dominance, Villa failed to capitalize on their lead and were made to pay the price in the 27th minute. A long ball went through the Villa defense, and LoĂŻs Openda stepped up to round a needlessly rushed Emiliano MartĂnez and head home.
Jhon Durán came on at halftime for Watkins and needed just six and a half minutes to prove why he is currently the best super sub in the game.
A neat interplay with Youri Tielemans saw him run towards the Leipzig defense before passing the ball past Péter Gulácsi for a brilliant goal.
Durán thought he was a second behind shortly after, but Matty Casg was ruled offside in the build-up. Villa then lost their lead a second time, this time Christoph Baumgartner brilliantly regaining the ball from an Openda cross.
Gulácsi kept his side level, making a fine save from Lucas Digne, before turning away an Ezri Konsa cross.
Ross Barkley came off the bench to strike the winner five minutes from time, a shot from outside the box deflected by Lukas Klostermann.
Sporting’s difficulties continue in Bruges
Scorers: Quaresma (OG) 24′, Nielsen 84′; Catamo 3′
Sporting’s winless streak after Ruben Amorim continued with a 2-1 loss to Club Brugge.
Sporting got off to a dream start, needing just three minutes to open the scoring through Geny Catamo, who scored after Maximiliano Araujo’s shot hit the post and fell to him.
Brugge equalized just over 20 minutes later, albeit a little fortunately. A decent build-up eventually saw a shot from inside the box unleashed by Sporting defender Eduardo Quaresma and former goalkeeper Franco Israel.
With only six minutes remaining, the Belgians took advantage of a certain defensive relaxation to seal the victory. Casper Nielsen was the scorer, finishing expertly after being played on against Israel.
The Brest fairy tale continues
Scorers: The Cardinal 43′
Brest’s incredible debut Champions League campaign continued with a 1-0 win over PSV.
Despite a certain domination, Brest took the advantage just before the break, Julien Le Cardinal smashing the ball two meters after a free kick which reached him.
They held on in the second half to claim another famous victory and can now start dreaming of a last 16 place.
Salah’s kick continues his 100% record
Scorers: Salah (pen) 63′
Liverpool had a penalty from Mohamed Salah and an excellent performance from the returning Alisson to thank as they continued their superb 100% record in the Champions League this season with a 1-0 win at Girona.
Everything could have been simpler, with the Reds almost taking the lead within five minutes. Virgil van Dijk rose highest from a corner, but his strong header was pushed away by Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga.
Alisson was called into action on his return, saving from Alejandro Frances after Daley Blind missed the ball from a Miguel Gutierrez cross. Bryan Gil then made a mess when he faced the Brazilian, as the LaLiga side threatened to take a surprise lead.
In a frenetic first half, Darwin Núñez had the Reds’ other good chances, deceiving a header before seeing a fine shot saved by Gazzaniga, but it was Girona who got the upper hand on the openings. Alisson was called into action again, stopping Yaser Asprilla’s deflected shot.
The second half started in the same vein, with Liverpool number 1. 1 keeps them tied, stopping at Arnaut Danjuma’s near post.
Liverpool took the lead from the penalty spot after the hour mark. Donny van de Beek was judged by VAR to have stood on Luis DĂaz’s heel, and Mohamed Salah hammered home from 12 yards.
Despite their lead, the Premier League leaders were far from their best, with Núñez personifying their frustration, replaced by Cody Gakpo after another unproductive performance in front of goal.
Trent Alexander-Arnold almost scored a second late, but his fine free-kick was saved by Gazzaniga, and any bigger defeat would have been tough for Girona.
Celtic organized in Zagreb
Celtic could miss a missed opportunity after drawing 0-0 with Dinamo Zagreb in a match of poor quality and few chances, which continued its long away streak without a Champions League win.
Despite dominating possession for much of the first half, Celtic struggled to do much against a determined Zagreb side, who posed little threat themselves.
The second half saw the Hoops look to break through, but the Croatian champions’ low block revealed little, with Nicolas Kuhn’s deflected effort the closest they came to an opener.
Their best passing play saw Arne Engels slide the ball for Kuhn, who then found Anthony Ralston on the outside. The full-back’s attempted cross was desperately disappointing and symbolic of Celtic’s last ball throughout the night.
Kasper Schmeichel ensured they remained level, managing brilliantly to overturn one of Zagreb’s rare chances.
Celtic almost claimed victory at the death. James Forrest played a superb ball down the line for Engels, whose low ball was about to be headed home by Adam Idah before a Zagreb defender cleared it brilliantly.
In truth, a draw was fair, with neither team doing enough to secure victory.
📸 ALBERTO PIZZOLI – AFP or licensors
