It was an encouraging night for the German clubs as well: alongside Bayern, Borussia Dortmund and VfB Stuttgart also took all three points, while RB Leipzig endured a thoroughly miserable evening in a 4-1 defeat at Como. Austria’s representative LASK went down by a narrow 1-0 at AEK Athens.
Arsenal overpower Napoli; City and United untroubled
Five games, five wins: the Premier League made a flawless start to the new Champions League season. Arsenal’s 1-0 at Napoli was the most impressive of the lot, with the tight scoreline flattering the hosts and masking the gulf between the sides. Mikel Arteta’s team racked up 26 shots for an expected-goals tally of 4.05, while Napoli managed just 0.22. The decisive goal came from Martin Ødegaard, after a long, patiently worked spell of possession. The only reproach the Gunners will take from the 90 minutes is their wastefulness in front of goal.
Manchester City also needed patience at Porto. It was still goalless at the break before Erling Haaland struck immediately after the restart and then added a second in stoppage time to seal a 2-0 win. Porto did not register a single shot on target across the whole match. Haaland now stands at a staggering 59 goals in 59 Champions League appearances.
Liverpool had rather more trouble in their 2-1 win over Atlético Madrid. Diego Simeone’s clever build-up initially caused problems for the Reds’ aggressive press, but Andoni Iraola adjusted the markings during the first half and Liverpool gradually gained a firmer grip. Dominik Szoboszlai equalised before the break, and Alexis Mac Allister settled it with his goal in the 50th minute.
Aston Villa came away with a 3-2 win at Club Brugge despite seeing far less of the ball. Unai Emery’s side played much more directly and generated 21 shots; the expected-goals figures — 1.53 to 3.22 from the hosts’ point of view — also point to a deserved away win. Manchester United left nothing to chance in a 4-0 win over Champions League newcomers Sabah FK. Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes and Benjamin Šeško had the result beyond doubt before half-time, and Lisandro Martínez added a fourth.
Barcelona impress, Betis turn it around in Lille
The Spanish clubs also celebrated three wins. Barcelona beat Feyenoord 5-1 and were exceptionally clinical in the final third. Raphinha scored twice, with Karim Adeyemi, Lamine Yamal and Gabriel Jesus also on the scoresheet. Barça enjoyed around 72 percent possession and mustered 24 shots, converting their chances far more efficiently than their expected-goals figure of roughly 1.6 suggested.
Real Madrid beat Inter Milan 2-1. The Italians had considerably more of the ball and more shots, but Real fashioned the better-quality chances. The decisive factor was their targeted high press, which forced two serious errors in Inter’s build-up; Kylian Mbappé and Federico Valverde punished them ruthlessly.
One of the most spectacular turnarounds came from Real Betis, who won 3-2 at Lille. The French side led twice, but centre-back Marc Bartra cancelled out both deficits before Troy Parrott struck the decisive goal. Betis carried far more threat with a 20-6 edge in shots and later benefited from a red card for Ethan Mbappé.
It was a less successful evening for Atlético Madrid and Villarreal. Atlético lost 2-1 at Liverpool, while Villarreal went down 3-2 to Borussia Dortmund.
Bayern come alive after the break, Leipzig suffer a debacle
Bayern Munich dominated their match against Bodø/Glimt long before half-time but had to wait until the 47th minute to break through. Jamal Musiala finally unlocked it, after which Harry Kane and Alphonso Davies extended the lead. Michael Olise completed the 5-0 win with a late brace. Bayern registered 25 shots and did not concede a single effort on Manuel Neuer’s goal.
Borussia Dortmund saw off Villarreal 3-2. After a long, evenly balanced contest, Serhou Guirassy decided it late on with two goals. VfB Stuttgart beat Viking FK 3-1, with Ermedin Demirović scoring a hat-trick within twelve minutes to become the first Stuttgart player ever to net a treble in the Champions League or European Cup.
The evening unfolded very differently for RB Leipzig. The Saxons lost 4-1 at European debutants Como. Cesc Fàbregas’ side repeatedly played cleanly through Leipzig’s press and exploited the space left behind after turnovers. Martin Baturina and Tasos Douvikas put Como ahead before the break, and Assane Diao added another after a quick counter. Leipzig did pull one back, but Máximo Perrone rounded off the scoring.
Como salvage Italy’s matchday
Como were the only Serie A winners of the opening matchday. Inter, despite their 1-2 defeat at Real Madrid, put in a decent display for long stretches but paid dearly for two errors in their own build-up.
Napoli were far more comprehensively controlled in their 0-1 loss to Arsenal than the result suggests. They struggled to find any route into promising shooting positions against Arsenal’s compact structure.
AS Roma at least earned a point at Fenerbahçe. Bryan Cristante put the visitors ahead and Archie Brown levelled shortly after the break. The Turkish side created the better chances overall and rattled the crossbar late on.
PSG dominant, Lens win amid late drama
Paris Saint-Germain recorded the biggest win of the opening matchday, thrashing Slovan Bratislava 6-1. The holders racked up 35 shots and more than 70 percent possession. Ousmane Dembélé scored twice and Ferran Torres helped himself to a hat-trick. A really strong individual display in the Slovan ranks came from Suleiman Camara, who grabbed the consolation goal and generally acquitted himself remarkably well against the world-class opposition. The Gambian did his reputation no harm at all despite the heavy defeat and should attract plenty of interest with performances like that.
RC Lens won a dramatic game 3-2 at Slavia Prague. The Czechs played from the 49th minute onwards with ten men after a red card, yet still led twice. In stoppage time Lens turned the game on its head: first came the equaliser, and moments later Ruben Aguilar struck the winner.
Lille rounded off a disappointing night for the French clubs with a 2-3 home defeat to Betis.
LASK fall to AEK, Sporting come from behind against Galatasaray
Austria’s representative LASK lost 1-0 at AEK Athens, Răzvan Marin scoring the only goal directly from a free-kick. AEK were the sharper side when it came to second balls, duels and transitions, finishing with an 18-11 edge in shots and 1.59 to 0.81 in expected goals. LASK improved after the break, and Sasa Kalajdzic narrowly missed a headed equaliser in stoppage time.
Sporting CP turned an early deficit into a 3-1 home win over Galatasaray. The Portuguese had less of the ball but were far more dangerous after the break and took their key chances.
PSV Eindhoven and Shakhtar Donetsk ultimately shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw. The Ukrainians went ahead shortly before half-time before Sergiño Dest equalised for PSV after the restart.
After the opening matchday, it is above all the English clubs who stand out — and it wasn’t just their perfect points haul that caught the eye. Arsenal toyed with Napoli, Manchester City did not allow a single shot on their own goal against Porto, and Liverpool solved their early tactical problems to grow into the game.
