Champions League: Matchday 3 roundup

A first-half brace from the inevitable Erling Haaland and an own goal from Davit Khocholava gave the Premier League champions an insurmountable lead at the break.

Before a Riyad Mahrez spot kick and a maiden Champions League strike from Julian Alvarez added the gloss to a perfect night at the Etihad.

The City boss hailed his side’s relentless approach to last night’s game which maintained their flawless start to this season’s European campaign.

“Today I made the best selection because we need the players for every game in this tight schedule,” he said. “But of course it’s an excellent result and an even better performance.

“I know what people will say about Copenhagen but they defend really well, but the way we played, we had everybody in position without the ball and especially with the ball.

“I think today we see the reason why this club has been really successful, it’s because after Manchester United we had a lot of compliments, a lot of nice things.

“But we are able to be humble enough to respect the opponent, this is the secret of this team; the work ethic.

“Yesterday we trained for 25 minutes and everybody was focussed, everybody paid attention and this is the reason why, not just in this season, every three days we are there.

“This is the biggest title we can get, beyond Premier League or Champions League this is the best.”

The Citizens’ progression to the knockout stages is all but assured thanks to Borussia Dortmund’s 4-1 victory against Sevilla in Andalusia.

On a night where starlet Jude Bellingham became the first English teenager to captain a side in the Champions League, the 19-year-old also became the second teenager to score in the competition’s first three match days when he doubled Dortmund’s lead after Raphael Guerreiro had broken the deadlock for the Germans.

In the 43rd minute, fellow prodigy Karim Adeyemi made it three for Eden Terzic’s men before Julian Brandt restored the away side’s dominant advantage after Youssef En-Nesyri had pulled one back for the sorry hosts, who unsurprising announcement the dismal of Julen Lopetegui shortly after the game.

Chelsea boss Graham Potter praised the outstanding talent of Reece James in his side’s vital 3-0 win over Serie A champions AC Milan.

Wesley Fofana opened the scoring for the hosts before going off with an injury which looked to be a recurrence of a knee issue which plagued his early career at Saint-Etienne.

The Blues doubled their lead through Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after the break, before James rifled in a third from close range to give Chelsea their first win in the competition this term.

“I think Reece is just a fantastic player,” Potter said. “And he’s a young player so he’s developing all the time and he’ll get better and better as we go.

“I’ve really enjoyed working with him, he’s got a lot to offer and he can play any game in the world.

“My job is just to help him reach his potential because it is beyond the sky.”

In Group E’s other tie, Noah Okafor’s 71st minute penalty was enough to give RB Salzburg all three points against Dinamo Zagreb.

The win maintained the Austrian’s unbeaten start and secured top spot in the group with five points ahead of Chelsea and Milan in second and third respectively a point behind.

Defending Champions Real Madrid maintained their perfect start with a 2-1 win against Shakhtar Donetsk while in Group F’s other fixture Celtic fell to a 3-1 defeat away at RB Leipzig.

Lionel Messi’s stunning strike wasn’t enough to give PSG the spoils against Benfica as the Portuguese side recovered to claim a creditable 1-1 draw while Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri kept his detractors - most of whom were sat in the home seats of the Juventus Stadium - at bay thanks to a 3-1 win over Maccabi Haifa.

An unlikely brace from Adrien Rabiot and a Dusan Vlahovic effort were the difference for the Italians in a game which showcased a vintage performance from Argentinien Angel Di Maria.

In Tuesday’s fixtures it was a mixed bag for the English sides as Liverpool recorded a 2-0 win against Rangers at Anfield but Tottenham stuttered to a 0-0 stalemate with Eintracht Frankfurt.

There were wins for Marseille, who put four past Sporting Lisbon in a 4-1 win, Bayern Munich, who thrashed Viktoria Plzen 5-0, and Porto and Club Brugge, who prevailed 2-0 against Bayer Leverkusen and Atletico Madrid respectively.

Inter Milan were beneficiaries of a couple of tight VAR decisions in their 1-0 win against Barcelona while Napoli produced the standout result of the matchday, maybe the competition so far, with an incredible 6-1 hammering of Ajax in Amsterdam.