Manchester City talisman Erling Haaland hit a brace against Copaghean, rolling his goals tally to 19 since joining the Citizen. Only 27 players have scored more Champions League goals than the 22 years old.
Erling Haaland’s remarkable start to life at Manchester City continued as he helped the English side to a third win from three. Real Madrid also moved to nine points on a night when Dortmund, Chelsea, Leipzig, Salzburg, and Juventus also recorded wins. The meeting between Group H’s top two ended all square as Benfica pegged back Paris in Lisbon.
Group E
Chelsea 3-0 AC Milan
Chelsea cruised to their first Champions League win of the season to move off the foot of Group E. The visitors started brightly, but lax marking at defensive set pieces proved their downfall as Wesley Fofana capitalized. Rade Krunić spurned a glorious chance on the stroke of half-time, but that was as good as it got for Milan as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang steered in Reece James’ cross for the second, before James smashed in the third after Milan were caught playing out from the back.
Salzburg 1-0 Dinamo Zagreb.
Highlights: Salzburg 1-0 Dinamo Zagreb
Noah Okafor secured Salzburg’s first Group E victory with a cool penalty. The visitors started brightly, and Josip Mišić brought the best out of Philipp Köhn with a long-range effort. The home side soon took charge and had their breakthrough when Sadegh Moharrami brought down Andreas Ulmer; Okafor sent Dominik Livaković the wrong way with the resultant spot kick. Köhn was pressed into action again in the closing minutes, denying Josip Drmic.
Leipzig 3-1 Celtic
André Silva scored two second-half goals as the German side edged a compelling encounter in which they were denied once by the post and twice by VAR. Christopher Nkunku’s well-taken goal soon after the first close offside call separated the sides at half-time, but Jota soon got Celtic back on terms. With Leipzig increasingly enjoying the most of the plentiful chances at both ends, André Silva’s clinical finishes made the difference.
Real Madrid 2-1 Shakhtar.
Brazilian wingers Rodrygo and Vinícius Jr struck in the opening half-hour as Real Madrid maintained their 100% start. Oleksandr Zubkov’s improvised volley at the end of the first half got Shakhtar right back in it, and the Pitmen enjoyed some bright moments in the second period. The holders stood firm, though, to move five points clear in Group F.
Group G
Man City 5-0 Copenhagen
Erling Haaland scored with his first touch as Manchester City cruised to another thumping home win. Haaland buried a João Cancelo pass before tapping in a second to move to 28 goals in just 22 Champions League appearances. Copenhagen goalkeeper Kamil Grabara excelled throughout, making 12 saves, but his side was outclassed. David Khocholava turned in an own goal, Riyad Mahrez scored a penalty after Haaland was withdrawn at the break and Julián Álvarez tapped in a fifth after a great run from Jack Grealish.
Sevilla 1-4 Dortmund
Dortmund consolidated second place in Group G thanks to a commanding win in Spain. Raphaël Guerreiro set the tone, before quickfire Jude Bellingham and Karim AdeyAdeyemi’sls gave BVB a commanding half-time lead. Youssef En-Nesyri reduced the arrears early in the second period, but Julian Brandt added a fourth Dortmund goal to put the result – their second win of the current campaign – beyond doubt, Sevilla parting company with coach Julen Lopetegui after the final whistle.
Group H
Juventus 3-1 Maccabi Haifa
Juventus earned their first Group H win, providing all three assists. The Argentinian’s brilliantly disguised pass teed up Adrien Rabiot for the opener in 3inminutes, and he released Dušan Vlahović to beat Joshua Cohen early in the second half. Din David pulled one back for the visitors in the closing stages, but Rabiot headed in a Di María corner to quash any hopes of a comeback.
Benfica 1-1 Paris
Highlights: Benfica 1-1 Paris
Benfica held on to keep pace with Paris at the top of Group H after Danilo’s own goal cancelled out some Lionel Messi magic. The visitors were indebted to Gianluigi Donnarumma in the opening exchanges before Messi hit a sumptuous curling finish from the edge of the box. However, the Eagles kept to their game plan and levelled when Enzo Fernandez’s centre was chested past his owner by former Porto man Danilo. Both sides went searching for a winner after the break but found Odisseas Vlachodimos and Donnarumma in sparkling form.
Tuesday’s Results:
Bayern 5-0 Plzeň
Marseille 4-1 Sporting CP
Liverpool 2-0 Rangers
Ajax 1-6 Napoli
Porto 2-0 Leverkusen
Club Brugge 2-0 Atlético
Inter 1-0 Barcelona
Frankfurt 0-0 Tottenham
