Man City Avoid Shock Loss, Barcelona Run Riot
20 September, 2023
Group G
Manchester City 3-1 Red Star Belgrade
Manchester City began the defence of their UEFA Champions League title with a 3-1 victory over Red Star Belgrade at the Etihad.
The Citizens fell behind against the run of play just before the break when Ghanaian forward Osman Bukari broke through on goal to slot past Ederson, with the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) confirming the strike.
City only needed two minutes to get back on level terms after the break, as Julian Alvarez rounded the goalkeeper to slot into an empty net.
Alvarez got his and City's second goal in fortunate circumstances when his free-kick sailed into the net after a howler from Red Star goalkeeper Omri Glazer.
The Citizens managed to bag a third with around 15 minutes to play as Rodri did well to carve out a space before calmly slotting into the far corner.
Group H
FC Barcelona 5-0 Royal Antwerp
FC Barcelona made a wonderful start to their campaign after thrashing Royal Antwerp 5-0 at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys.
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Xavi Hernandez's charges took control in the first half and broke the deadlock through Joao Felix's strike in the 11th minute. Robert Lewandowski added his name to the score-shet eight minutes later, before an own goal from Jelle Bataille made it 3-0 for the home side before the break.Gavi extended the home side's lead ten minutes after the interval while Felix completed his brace and made it 5-0 in the 66th minute.
Shakhtar Donestk 1-3 FC Porto
FC Porto cruised to a 3-1 victory in their Champions League opener on Tuesday evening.
Galeno put the visitors ahead on eight minutes before Kevin Kelsey restored parity for Shakhtar five minutes later.
The Portuguese giants did manage to restore their lead on 15 minutes through Galeno's second while Mehdi Taremi added the third goal in the 29th minute.
Group F
Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 Borussia Dortmund
Paris Saint-Germain made a winning start in the Group of Death with a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund.
After a scoreless first-half, Kylian Mbappe opened the scoring from the penalty spot four minutes after the break before Achraf Hakimi doubled the lead just before the hour mark.
The French champions will travel to England for their next clash in two weeks as they take on Newcastle United.
Group E
Lazio 1-1 Atletico Madrid
Lazio struck late in the second half to earn themselves a point against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday evening.
Diego Simeone's charges got the breakthrough in the 29th minute, with Pablo Barrios firing home after being set up by Nahuel Molina.
With Atletico seconds away from the victory, Lazio goalkeeper Ivan Provedel popped up with the equaliser in the 95th minute by nodding home Luis Alberto's cross.
Feyenoord 2-0 Celtic
Feyenoord enjoyed a winning start to the group stages after defeating Celtic 2-0.
The Dutch champions managed to open the scoring on the stroke of halftime through Calvin Stengs' second goal of the season.
The Scottish champions would go on to finish the with nine players as Gustaf Lagerbielke and Odin Holm were sent in quick succession after the hour mark, before Alireza Jahanbakhsh sealed the win for the hosts in the 77th minute.
Source: www.snl24.com
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