The Champions Blog #2.1

 THE CHAMPIONS BLOG

The Champions League is back, and what a phenomenal amount of drama, excitement, and hype that has been delivered all across Europe over the last three days. From the return of many favorites and the debuts of three teams to the nail-biting drama that the Champions League has delivered on many occasions in the past. Welcome back, everyone. This is the Champions Blog.

Tuesday 17th: 

Juventus vs PSV Eindhoven (Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy)

Young Boys vs Aston Villa (Wankdorf Stadium, Bern, Switzerland)

Real Madrid vs Vfb Stuttgart (Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain)

Bayern Munich vs Dinamo Zagreb (Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany)

Sporting CP vs LOSC Lille (Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal)

AC Milan vs Liverpool (San Siro, Milan, Italy)

The football week started with separate games in Turin and Bern, with Juventus and PSV taking to the stage in the Allianz Stadium and Young Boys and Aston Villa taking each other on at the Wankdorf Stadium. Villa is appearing in the Champions League for the first time since 1983, after finishing 4th in the Premier League last season. Juventus slumped in the 2022-23 season but rose back last season, finishing 3rd in Serie A while winning the Coppa Italia. After his incredible season with Bologna, Juventus have brought in Thiago Motta, after qualifying Bologna for the Champions League. 

Both games kicked off at the same time at 6:45 pm in both Switzerland and Italy. After 20 minutes of play, the first goal of the new Champions League campaign was scored in Turin as Kenan Yildiz of Juventus opened the scoring, after scoring a fantastic curling effort on his Champions League debut, scoring the first goal in the league phase of the competition. Six minutes later, goals were celebrated in both games. In Bern, Villa scored their first Champions League goal since 1983, when Youri Tieleman's shot fired past David von Ballmoos. Tielemans scored Aston Villa's first goal in the Champions League since Peter Withe scored against Juventus in the quarter-finals of the competition in 1983. Speaking of Juventus, the Old Lady had their own reason to celebrate as Weston McKennie slotted the ball past Joel Drommel, to double Juve's lead. Meanwhile in Bern, 10 minutes after Tieleman's opener, the Villans' lead was doubled when Jacob Ramsey managed to capitalize on defensive errors made by Young Boy's backline as Ramsey scored his first goal of the season. By halftime, Juventus and Aston Villa had 2-0 leads to take into the interval, while PSV and Young Boys looked as though they've got work to do in the second half. After the interval, the two matches sprung back into action and it didn't take long for another goal to be registered. In Turin, Nico Gonzalez made things even better for Juventus as he scored his first goal for the club since joining on loan from Fiorentina. So far, Gonzalez has had a great night as he assisted and scored on his Champions League debut. Half an hour later, the deal was sealed for Aston Villa in Bern as Amadou Onana scored once again for Aston Villa, continuing his impressive start to life as an Aston Villa player, making it 3-0 to the Villans. In the third minute of extra time in Turin, PSV got their goal from Ismael Saibari, but it proved only a consolation goal as they scored with just seconds left. In the end, Juventus and Aston Villa had positive starts as they got the new campaign rolling.

Pictures Above: Juventus forward and Aston Villa midfielder, Kenan Yildiz and Youri Tielemans celebrating after scoring against PSV and Young Boys.

Later on that night, the reigning champions, Real Madrid kicked off their campaign at home against VfB Stuttgart, who were appearing in the Champions League for the first time since 2010. Los Blancos's title defense started with a comfortable win at the Bernabeu, winning 3-1 with goals from Kylian Mbappe, on his Champions League debut for Real, Antonio Rudiger, who scored against his boyhood club, and Endrick, who scored on his Champions League debut.

 In Munich, dethroned Bundesliga champions, Bayern Munich kicked off their UCL campaign at home to Dinamo Zagreb, and what a start it was. The Bavarians surpassed their 8-2 win over Barcelona in 2020 and annihilated the Croatians, 9-2. Bayern became the first team to score 9 goals in a single Champions League match since Real Madrid in October 1990. Harry Kane was the star of the show, as he scored four goals (three of which were penalties), and he became the first player in Champions League history to score 3 penalties in a single match. Goals for Bayern also came from Michael Olise, Raphael Guerreiro, and Leroy Sane. 

Elsewhere, in Lisbon, Sporting CP returned to the Champions League stage after a one-year absence, defeating Lille, who returned after a two-year absence. Goals from Viktor Gyokeres and Zeno Debast awarded Ruben Amorim's men with three points and a positive start to the competition. Sporting won the game with a man-up as well. Angel Gomes of Lille was sent off before halftime for a clumsy challenge on Gyokeres. 

Meanwhile in Milan, 7-time winners, AC Milan took on 6-time winners, Liverpool, in what would be a mouthwatering match in Milan. Liverpool are returning to the Champions League after a one-year absence, with a new man in charge of the Reds as Arne Slot replaced the outgoing legend, Jurgen Klopp. A third-minute goal from Christian Pulisic gave I Rosseneri a positive start, but Liverpool dominated the game from that moment onwards, with goals from Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, and Dominik Szoboszlai sealing a famous win in the Arne Slot era, as the Reds returned to winning ways after their weekend defeat over Nottingham Forest. 

Pictures Above: Real Madrid players, Kylian Mbappe and Antonio Rudiger celebrating after Mbappe's goal against Stuttgart (top left). A look at the scoreboard in Munich as Bayern defeated Dinamo Zagreb 9-2 in the Allianz Arena (top right). Lille defender, Alexsandro, trying to defend a shot from Sporting CP, Viktor Gyokeres (bottom left). Liverpool midfielder, Dominik Szoboszlai celebrating after scoring against AC Milan (bottom right). 

Wednesday 18th: 

Bologna vs Shakhtar Donetsk (Renato Dall'Ara, Bologna, Italy)

Sparta Praha vs RB Salzburg (epet ARENA, Prague, Czech Republic)

PSG vs Girona (Parc de Princes, Paris, France)

Club Brugge vs Borussia Dortmund (Jan Breydal Stadium, Bruges, Belgium)

Celtic vs Slovan Bratislava (Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland)

Manchester City vs Inter Milan ( Etihad Arena, Manchester, England)

The following night, Premier League champions, Manchester City took on Serie A champions, Inter Milan. An exciting match in Manchester looked on the cards as the Nerazurri looked to avenge their final defeat from 2023. A replay of the 2023 final looked to make pulses race with excitement. 

However, the first half lacked excitement as the teams went into the half drawing 0-0. Man City's best chances of the first half came in the 19th minute when Savio crossed a ball to Erling Haaland. The Norweigan headed the ball goalwards but Yann Sommer managed to grab the ball safely into his arms. Man City had many more chances, but Inter's defense was all too good for Guardiola's men. Inter's best chance of the half came on the stroke of half-time when Carlos Augusto's strike was saved by Ederson, to cap off a goalless half. In the second half, Man City's attacking threats came on hard, with Inter's best chance of the half coming 15 minutes from time, when former Man United and Arsenal forward, Henrikh Mkhitaryan skied the ball over the post, keeping the scores at 0-0. One of City's best chances of the game came soon after when Josko Gvardiol's long shot was comfortably saved by Sommer. With time running out, City's final chance came when Ilkay Gundogan's header was safely caught by Sommer and the deadlock is still yet to be broken. With 30 seconds remaining, Gundogan had another header. This time, the ball went sailing over the bar, meaning City had to open up their Champions League campaign with a goalless draw at home. 

Elsewhere, in Bruges, last season's runners-up, Borussia Dortmund took on the Belgian champions, Club Brugge. Dortmund's run to Wembley last season was simply incredible, but the old masters, Real Madrid were too good for the Yellow and Black. Hopefully, we see another amazing run from this remarkable team. 

Things started well for Dortmund in Belgium, with the German side having prominent attacks in the early stages of the game. However, it was Club Brugge who was the closest to scoring, in the 11th minute when Hugo Vetelsen's rebounded effort hit the crossbar after Raphael Onyedika's shot was saved comfortably by Gregor Kobel. Dortmund's best chance of the half came when Karim Adeyemi's shot from the far post was magnificently saved by Simon Mingolet. The teams would go into the half drawing 0-0, with anyone able to break the deadlock sometime in the second half. The first big chance of the second 45-minute period came for Club Brugge when Vetelsen's first-time shot was saved by Kobel, keeping the scores at 0-0. With 15 minutes left of play, the opening goal was yet to be found by either side, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens's shot took a deflection off Joel Ordonez. Thankfully, for the young Englishman and for Dortmund, the ball sailed into the back of Mingolet's net, finally breaking the deadlock and giving the lead to the away side. 10 minutes later, Bynoe-Gittens added another goal to his name, scoring a brace since coming on as a substitute, making it 2-0 Dortmund. In stoppage time, Dortmund were awarded a penalty after Serhou Guirassy was brought down by Brandon Mechele. Bynoe-Gittens could've completed his hat-trick, but Guirassy stepped up and chipped the ball past Mingolet to make it 3-0 of the night and sealing Dortmund's first three points of the Champions League campaign, securing a debut win in Nuri Sahin's first Champions League game as new Dortmund manager. 

Pictures Above: Manchester City midfielder, Ilkay Gundogan, heading the ball toward the goal. Dortmund players celebrating after scoring against Club Brugge. 

Earlier on that day, Bologna played their first Champions League game since the 1964-65 season as the Italian side took on Shakhtar Donetsk. The Ukrainian side had a penalty early on in the game, but Lukasz Skorupski denied Heorhiy Sudakov from the spot, keeping it 0-0. It would eventually end 0-0 as Bologna's return to Europe ended in a goalless draw.

 In Prague, Sparta Praha made their first Champions League appearance since 2005 as the Czech side took on RB Salzburg, the reigning Austrian champions. It was a sensational night in Prague for the home side as Lars Friis's men routed Salzburg 3-0, with goals from Kaan Kairinen, Victor Olantuji, and Qazim Laci, sealing Sparta Praha's first Champions League win in 20 years. 

In Paris, reigning Ligue 1 champions, PSG took on tournament debutants, Girona, who qualified for the Champions League for the first time in their history. It looked as though Girona's European debut would end in a draw, but a late mistake from goalkeeper, Paulo Gazzaniga awarded PSG a winning start in the new Champions League season.

 In Glasgow, Celtic took on Slovan Bratislava, who also made their debut in the Champions League, becoming the first Slovakian team in the UCL in 14 years. It was a five-star performance from Brendan Rodgers's men, as the side annihilated the Slovaks, 5-1 as they produced an infrequent Champions League night to remember at Celtic Park. It's the first time that Celtic have won their opening game of the Champions League.

Pictures Above: Bologna goalkeeper, Lukasz Skorupski, saves a penalty to give Bologna a point against Shakhtar Donetsk (top left). Sparta Praha striker Victor Olatunji celebrating after scoring against RB Salzburg (top right). PSG players celebrate after scoring the winner against Girona (bottom left). Celtic and Japanese duo, Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate celebrate after Celtic's sensational win over Slovan Bratislava (bottom right). 

Thursday 19th: 

Crvena Zvezda vs Benfica (Rajko Mitic Stadium, Belgrade, Serbia)

Feyenoord vs Bayer Leverkusen (De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands)

Atletico Madrid vs RB Leipzig (Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain)

Monaco vs Barcelona (Stade Louis II, Monaco, France)

Brest vs Sturm Graz (Stade du Roudourou, Guingamp, France)

Atalanta vs Arsenal (Stadio Atleti Azzurri d'Italia, Bergamo, Italy)

The next day in Rotterdam, the newly-crowned Bundesliga champions, Bayer Leverkusen took on Feyenoord, the Eredivisie runners-up. Leverkusen returned to the Champions League after a one-year absence. Last season was probably the best ever for Bayer Leverkusen, as Xabi Alonso's side ended Bayern Munich's 11-year dominance and won the Bundesliga and the DFB Pokal while going undefeated in both competitions. The club's only loss came in the Europa League final when Atalanta defeated them, 3-0 in Dublin. 

Leverkusen had a dream start in their evening in the Netherlands, when the away side took advantage within the 5th minute when youngster and rising star, Florian Wirtz, managed to capitalize from the monstrous defending of Feyenoord. It was a dream start to his Champions League debut. Leverkusen's night only got better from there. The away side started to dominate possession and 25 minutes after Wirtz's opening goal, Leverkusen's lead was doubled after a beautiful play from Alonso's men. The goal came from brilliant thinking from Victor Boniface who faked his shot and passed to Frimpong who set up Alex Grimaldo to tap it home to make it 2-0 for the visitors. Leverkusen's night would only get better from that point on. Six minutes after Grimaldo made it 2, Wirtz netted a brace for himself, scoring a fantastic volley to put the Germans in the clear. It turned into a wonderous night in Rotterdam for Leverkusen, and right before halftime, a fourth was added. In the 44th minute, Grimaldo floated in a free-kick, and Edmond Tapsoba headed the ball across goal. Feyenoord goalkeeper, Timon Wellenreuther stook out a leg, but the ball unfortunately went into his own net, wrapping up an emphatic 4-0 lead at the break. Many people expected Leverkusen to potentially find a fifth in the second half, but it never happened. Their best chance of that half came in stoppage time when Grimaldo's volley was saved off the line by David Hancko. However, it wouldn't matter that much to Xabi Alonso, as his side's start to the Champions League was emphatic, as Leverkusen took home a 4-0 win and three points. 

Later on in France, Monaco made their first Champions League appearance since 2018, as Adi Hutter's men took on Hansi Flick's Barcelona. It was a big test for Hutter's men as Barcelona have had a winning start to the season, scoring a staggering 17 goals in 5 La Liga games while conceding only 4 times. 

However, early on in the match, the favor seemed to go Monaco's way. 10 minutes into the game, Barca goalkeeper, Marc Andre Ter Stegen, made a clumsy mistake by passing the ball to Eric Garcia. Takumi Minamino was near him and was able to pounce on the chance. This lead Garcia to make a clumsy challenge on the Japanese man, causing him to get sent off. Monaco managed to take advantage with an extra man, as only 6 minutes after Garcia's sending-off, Manghes Akliouche would open the scoring for Monaco. The 22-year-old drove the ball towards the Barcelona penalty area and shot the ball into the bottom corner, catching Ter Stegen off guard, making it 1-0 to Monaco. Barcelona wasn't behind for long. 12 minutes after Akliouche's opener, Barca found the equalizer through youngster, Lamine Yamal. The youngster proved that he could be the man for Barcelona as he struck the ball into the bottom corner to make it 1-1 in Monaco. Yamal became the second youngest goalscorer in Champions League history, at 17 years and 69 days, behind only fellow teammate, Ansu Fati, at 17 years and 40 days. Eventually, both teams would go into the half drawing 1-1, with all to play for in the second half. In the second 45-minute period, both teams took chance after chance, but neither team could find the potential winner. Eventually, in the 71st minute, Monaco managed to regain their lead. The goal came from new signing, George Ilenikhena, who managed to deliver a one-on-one chance to find the lead once again for the home side. Eventually, the home side managed to hold on a cap off a famous victory at the Stade Louis II and register Barcelona's first defeat of the season. 

Pictures Above: Monaco forward, George Ilenikhena scoring against Barcelona. Bayer Leverkusen forward, Florian Wirtz, celebrates after scoring against Feyenoord. 

Earlier that day, Benfica traveled to the Serbian capital to face off against Crvena Zvezda. The Portuguese side had a 2-0 advantage with half an hour played, with goals from Turkish duo, Kerem Akturkoglu and Orkun Kocku giving the side from Lisbon a cushion. Crvena got a goal back through Milson, but it wasn't enough to save a point for the Serbian side. 

After Benfica's victory in Belgrade, and Leverkusen's win in Rotterdam, tournament debutants, Brest took on Sturm Graz, who were appearing in the Champions League for the first time in 23 years in northwestern France. The side from France took the lead in the 23rd minute thanks to Hugo Mangetti. An own goal before halftime by Edmilson Fernandes equalized things for Sturm Graz, but Brest regained the lead thanks to Abdallah Sima, and Brest opened their European account with a 2-1 victory. 

In Madrid, Atletico Madrid took on RB Leipzig in what would be an exciting match in the venue of the 2019 final. Leipzig took an early lead as Benjamin Sesko found the target for Leipzig, giving them the lead inside four minutes. Antoine Griezmann equalized for the home side over 20 minutes later. With time running out, it was 1-1, and neither team wanted to start the Champions League with a point. However, in the 90th minute, Jose Gimenez headed home the winner for Atletico, winning the game for his side. 

Arsenal took a trip to Bergamo to face the reigning Europa League champions, Atalanta. The game ended 0-0 as both teams shared the points in Italy. David Raya was considered the hero of the match for Arsenal, as he made a fantastic double save to deny Mateo Retegui from 12 yards out and rescue a point for the Gunners. 

Pictures Above: Crvena Zvezda defender, Seol Young-woo trying to take the ball from Benfica forward, Angel Di Maria (top left). Atletico Madrid forward, Alexander Solroth battling with RB Leipzig defender, Castello Lukeba for the ball (top right). Brest midfielder, Hugo Mangetti trying to keep the ball (bottom left). Arsenal goalkeeper, David Raya saves a penalty by Atalanta forward, Mateo Retegui (bottom right). 

One down, seven to go. The Champions League is back with a bang as the new format has delivered so many exciting matches over the three days across Europe, and it's only going to get tougher from there. The road to Munich has officially begun. The Champions Blog will return on the 5th of October as Matchday 2 kicks off.