Tuesday night’s Champions League fixtures threw up a huge goal glut from Europe’s elite clubs. While Manchester City and Besiktas both qualified from their respective groups in first place, Real Madrid ran riot at the Bernabeu with a 6-0 victory of APOEL.
However, it turned out to be a frustrating night for Liverpool, who failed to hold onto a 3-0 lead over Sevilla – the game eventually ending in a draw in the 93rd minute.
However, the lead didn’t last long. Four minutes before the half time whistle blew, the home side drew level through Anderson Talisca. Being on the receiving end of a ball into his feet from Cenk Tosun, Talisca found himself in the middle of the box; his left footed shot beating Jose Sa in goal.
Monaco’s night got off to a torrid start against RB Leipzig – finding themselves 2-0 down in the first nine minutes. An unfortunate own goal from Jemerson was followed up by a good finish from Timo Werner only three minutes later. The German then managed his brace after converting a penalty in the 31st minute.
There was a small ray of hope for the French side when Falcao pulled one back for his team with a headed effort; only for Naby Keita to strengthen Leipzig’s lead once again right before the half time whistle blew. The score eventually ended 4-1 to the Germans, neither side netting after the break.
The game looked destined for a bore draw right up until the 82nd minute, when Spartak’s Ze Luis opened the scoring with well hit effort into the bottom right corner.
However, it seems the Russian outfit thought the job had been done, and lost concentration right at the death. An equaliser from Maribor’s Jasmin Mesanovic two minutes into added time ended Sparak’s hopes of jumping into second place in their group – the final score ending 1-1.
Group E’s other game tossed up a frustrating night for Liverpool fans – who saw their side bottle a 3-0 lead over Sevilla the match eventually ending as a draw in a night where Liverpool could’ve secured a first placed qualification.
The second half kicked off with a better start for the hosts when Wassim Ben Yedder pulled his side right back into the encounter with a quickfire brace – bringing the scoreline to 3-2 in the 60th with a converted penalty. It wasn’t until the 93rd minute when Liverpool’s heartbreak was dealt. Guido Pizarro earning his side a 3-3 draw at the death.
The Serie A outfit then all but sealed the three points with two more goals in quick succession in the last ten minutes. Piotr Zielinski hit the top left corner after a smart pass from Dries Mertens. The Belgian then turned from assistant to scorer only two minutes later with a close range header; taking the scoreline to 3-0.
Manchester City were made to wait until the 88th minute before they could break the deadlock against Feyenoord. Raheem Sterling ensured the Citizens would qualify from their group in first palce with an effort into the top left corner after latching onto a through ball from Ilkay Gundogan; the win giving Pep Guardiola’s men their first placed qualification.
Group H won’t be decided until the next round of fixtures, as both Spurs and Real Madrid won their respective matches on the night.
Borussia Dortmund got off to a strong start against Tottenham in their hunt for their first win in the Champions League this season – Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opening the scoring after 31 minutes.
The second half saw Spurs get their foot back into the game when Harry Kane levelled the scoring four minutes after the break. It was Son Heung-min who earned Spurs the three points with a well-struck finish on 76 minutes – ending the game at 2-1.
Real Madrid ran riot against APOEL, looking to make up for their loss against Spurs before the international break. It was Luka Modric who got the ball rolling before Karim Benzema scored a brace either side of Nacho Fernandez’s close range effort; handing the Spanish champions a 4-0 lead heading into half time.
Of course, it’s not a dominant Real Madrid win if Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t get amongst the goals. The 32-year-old quickly rectified that after the break with a brace – taking the scoreline to 6-0, as it stayed for the rest of the game.
