The second day of the opening round of the Champions League group stage has the makings of a… blockbuster, with Barcelona, Paris, Liverpool, Atlético Madrid, Arsenal, and Napoli all entering the fray for a strong start to the new European season.
The action kicks off at 7:45 p.m., with Barcelona hosting Feyenoord and Stuttgart hosting Viking. The Catalans are looking to get off on the right foot in front of their home crowd, with Lamine Yamal as one of the stars of the night— who needs just two goals to tie Kylian Mbappé’s record for the most Champions League goals scored by a player aged 20 or younger.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
Kickoff for the 28th Futsal Championship – The Schedule
McTominay has been cleared to play again
In the other 7:45 p.m. match, Stuttgart is finally looking to celebrate a victory in its Champions League season opener, while Viking is participating in the group stage—or League Phase—of a European competition for only the second time, and for the first time in the Champions League.
At 10:00 p.m., all eyes will be on Paris vs. Slovan Bratislava. The reigning Champions League champions begin their quest to make history and become only the second team in the Champions League era to win three consecutive titles, after Real Madrid.
Meanwhile, at Anfield, Liverpool hosts Atlético Madrid in a matchup between two teams that know each other very well. The two teams also faced off in the opener of last year’s League Phase, with the “Reds” prevailing 3-2.
In Portugal, Sporting Lisbon, featuring Greek players, faces Galatasaray for the first time in its history in what is expected to be a particularly intense match. The Portuguese side reached the Champions League quarterfinals last year, matching their best-ever European performance, while the Turkish team returns aiming to continue its European run after reaching the Round of 16 last season.
Finally, the big Napoli-Arsenal matchup, one of the most intriguing pairings of the night. The two teams have met four times in the past, with the “Gunners” having three wins. Arsenal enters the tournament as the English champion and a finalist in last year’s Champions League, while Napoli will play without Scott McTominay, who underwent successful surgery and will miss the match.
Results and schedule for Matchday 1 of the Champions League group stage:
Tuesday, September
8: Club Brugge – Aston Villa: 2-3 (19′ Vetlesen, 61′ pen. Tresoldi – 11′ McGinn, 22′ Buendía, 43′ Jackson)
AEK – LASK: 1-0 (21′ Marin)
Real Madrid – Inter: 2-1 (14′ Bape, 23′ Valverde – 77′ Augusto)
Dortmund – Villarreal: 3-2 (53’ own goal by Veiga, 80′, 85’ pen. Girassi – 66′ Mourinho, 90’+3 own goal by Girassi)
Porto – Manchester City: 0-2 (47′, 90’+1 Haaland)
Lille – Betis: 2-3 (12’ Ueda, 36’ Alessandro – 33’, 49’ Bartra, 53’ Parrot)
Wednesday, September
9 Barcelona – Feyenoord 7:45
PM Stuttgart – Viking 7:45
PM Paris Saint-Germain – Slovan Bratislava 10:00
PM Liverpool – Atlético Madrid 10:00
p.m. Sporting L. – Galatasaray 10:00
p.m. Napoli – Arsenal 10:00 p.m.
Thursday, September
10: PSV Eindhoven – Shakhtar Donetsk 7:45
p.m. Fenerbahçe – Roma 7:45
p.m. Bayern – Bodø/Glimt 10:00
p.m. Manchester City – Sabah 10:00
p.m. Slavia Prague – Lens 10:00
p.m. Como – Leipzig 10:00 p.m.
*photo source: KYPE
