Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) edged out Barcelona on another absorbing night of UEFA Champions League action that also brought wins for Dortmund, Liverpool, Manchester City, Napoli, PSV and Roma.
PSG held off Barcelona to claim a thrilling 4-2 victory as the goals continue to flow in the UEFA Champions League off the back of last week’s record-breaking return.
Paris made it three wins from three to go top of the league phase alongside Liverpool, narrow 4-3 victors over Villarreal. Napoli also beat Bodø/Glimt 4-3, while there were big victories for Manchester City and Roma.
Paris 4-2 Barcelona
Vitinha scored the clinching goal as Paris got the better of Barcelona in France. Désiré Doué danced free and picked his corner for the 38th-minute opener but Barcelona, helped by some fine Joan García saves, levelled shortly after the break courtesy of 19-year-old Xavi Espart. The Catalan club had answers once more after Lucas Hernández’s 72nd-minute header, Lamine Yamal bursting through and finishing superbly seven minutes later, but Paris showed irresistible quality in the closing stages to take the win. Vitinha chested down for a precise finish before Fabián Ruiz tapped in Achraf Hakimi’s cross.
Player of the Match: Désiré Doué (Paris)
Liverpool 4-3 Villarreal
Liverpool came from 0-2 down to beat Villarreal in an Anfield thriller as they maintained their 100% start. Georges Mikautadze took advantage of Virgil van Dijk’s lapse and Sergi Cardona struck as the visitors took control early on. Alexis Mac Allister’s header from a corner gave Liverpool hope before another from Ronald Araújo made it 2-2. A second Mac Allister finish and what was ultimately the decisive goal from Florian Wirtz won it, Tani Oluwaseyi’s late reply not enough for the visitors
Player of the Match: Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool)
Man City 5-1 AEK Athens
Phil Foden hit a hat-trick as Manchester City earned their second win in emphatic style. Elliot Anderson tapped in after Enzo Fernández’s early free-kick rattled the crossbar for City, who tested the woodwork again through Allan Elias’ shot and doubled their half-time lead courtesy of Foden via a one-two with Rico Lewis.
Stavros Pilios drilled in to halve the deficit but Rayan Cherki’s silky turn and finish and two more Foden strikes ensured the Greek side remain on three points, three behind City.
Player of the Match: Phil Foden (Man City)
Napoli 4-3 Bodø/Glimt
Scott McTominay shone as Napoli outscored Bodø/Glimt for their first Champions League win of the season. Matteo Politano got the party started after 53 seconds but the visitors levelled through Jens Petter Hauge. McTominay got his first in the 41st minute and though Andreas Helmersen equalised, the Scotland midfielder’s headed second put the home side back in front with 15 minutes left. Odin Bjørtuft turned into his own net late on but Sondre Brunstad Fet still had time to score again on a crazy night in Naples.
Player of the Match: Scott McTominay (Napoli)
Stuttgart 1-1 Atlético de Madrid
Stuttgart could not make their first-half supremacy count as ten-man Atleti held on to claim a point. Jan Oblak was forced into early saves as the hosts dominated the opening half, Jamie Leweling’s low effort putting them ahead at the break. However, half-time substitute Ademola Lookman made an instant impact as he picked out Julián Alvarez to sweep the ball into the top corner within a minute of the restart. Atleti were in the ascendency before Morten Hjulmand’s straight red card, but Stuttgart could not find a winner.
Player of the Match: Chris Führich (Stuttgart)
Fenerbahçe 2-2 Slavia Praha
Slavia substitute Pavel Kačor struck a 90th-minute equaliser as the visitors fought from 2-0 down to earn a share of the spoils in Istanbul. Fine finishes from Oğuz Aydın and Mason Greenwood had the hosts in firm control by the 11-minute mark, but Lukáš Provod soon halved the deficit after intercepting a pass on the edge of the Fenerbahçe penalty area. The visitors increasingly piled on the pressure and, with time running out, 20-year-old Kačor found the net with an acrobatic volley to snatch Slavia’s first point.
Player of the Match: Mattéo Guendouzi (Fenerbahçe)
Sabah 1-2 Dortmund
Serhou Guirassy’s double earned Dortmund a hard-fought win in Baku. The 30-year-old struck at the start of both halves, breaking the deadlock when he pounced on the rebound after Stas Pokatilov had parried Felix Nmecha’s first-half drive. Pokatilov made a splendid double save to deny Joey Veerman and Carney Chukwuemeka and before half-time it was level as Aden McCarthy glanced in Tymoteusz Puchacz’s free-kick. Guirassy’s close-range volley from Veerman’s delivery proved decisive, his 21st goal in just 27 Champions League appearances.
Player of the Match: Serhou Guirassy (Dortmund)
Roma 4-0 Slovan Bratislava
Roma bounced back from their late defeat by Real Madrid with a dominant display, securing their first victory of the league phase. Mario Hermoso opened the scoring with a close-range header and Nahuel Molina doubled the lead by reacting quickest to Dominik Takáč’s save from Donyell Malen. Niccolò Pisilli added a third from close range and Malen converted a penalty to round off an impressive performance. For Slovan it is an 11th consecutive Champions League defeat.
Player of the Match: Niccolò Pisilli (Roma)
Porto 0-1 PSV
Guus Til grabbed the only goal at the Estádio do Dragão as PSV got their first win of the league phase. Both sides had efforts in an open game, but moments after Esmir Bajraktarević volleyed against the post, his run led to the breakthrough as Til tapped in at the far post. André Silva and Victor Froholdt came close to a response, only to see their quickfire efforts blocked from close range and cleared off the line, respectively. Porto remain without a point after three games.
Player of the Match: Lutsharel Geertruida (PSV)
