The pinnacle of club football is back. The créme de la créme. Whatever a team accomplishes in their own domestic league does not matter here. It is all about what a team can do on the grandest of stages. All eyes descended on Matchday One of the 2025/2026 UEFA Champions League campaign, which provided 67 goals.
The match of the week was the thrilling 4–4 draw that Juventus and Borussia Dortmund served up. Kenan Yıldız (remember the name) scored a beauty from outside the box alongside the other seven goals in the second half. Dortmund found themselves cruising 4–2 up in the 86th minute when Dušan Vlahović grabbed his second goal of the game, making it 4–3 in the 94th minute of the encounter. Lloyd Kelly saved the day for Juventus with a 96th minute header to bring an end to “extraordinary evening in Turin”.
Speaking of late heroics, Virgil van Dijk delivered once again for Liverpool at Anfield. The Dutch defender’s bullet header in the 92nd minute of the game saw off Atletico Madrid in a 3–2 home win. Liverpool dominated the first half of the game with Mohammed Salah showing glimpses of his best, while Ryan Gravenberch also stood out. In typical Atletico fashion, Marcos Llorente scored twice to level the game at 2–2, but the Reds displayed their ability to win matches in sudden death once again.
Marcus Rashford stepped up in the absence of Barcelona’s talisman, Lamine Yamal, with two goals as Barça beat Newcastle United at St James’ Park. The first one was a well-executed header to break the deadlock, and the second was a rocket from his right foot that hit the crossbar and rattled the net. Midfielders Pedri and Frenkie de Jong dictated the game and ran the show on a cold Thursday night in Newcastle.
In the other matches, titleholders Paris Saint-Germain breezed past Atalanta 4–0. A Giovanni Di Lorenzo red card ruined Kevin De Bruyne’s return to Manchester City. The City legend was subsequently substituted in the 26th minute as Erling Haaland and Jérémy Doku scored to secure a comfortable 2–0 win for the Citizens.
Super-subs Gabriel Martinelli and Leoandro Trossard ensured that Arsenal beat Athletic Club 2–0 in Spain. In Madrid, Kylian Mbappé converted two penalties as Real Madrid beat Marseille 2–1 despite a red card to veteran Dani Carvajal. Tottenham Hotspur’s return to the competition got off to the right start with a 1–0 win over a tricky Villarreal side. It was a disappointing start to Chelsea’s UCL campaign as they lost 3–1 to Bayern Munich in a tense competition.
The UEFA Champions League never fails to entertain.
