Malta Independent

Humiliate Spurs

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good measure after Lewandowsk­i claimed Bayern's sixth.

Real Madrid had to overcome a disastrous first half against Club Brugge to avoid a second consecutiv­e loss to open its Champions League campaign.

Real Madrid rallied from two goals down to salvage a 2-2 draw against the Belgian club, avoiding a home defeat that would have left the 13-time European champions in a deep hole in Group A.

Young Nigerian forward Emmanuel Bonaventur­e scored two first-half goals — imitating former Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo's goal celebratio­n after the second — but the hosts recovered with headers by Sergio Ramos in the 55th and Casemiro in the 85th.

Casemiro's header came from a free kick straight after Brugge went down to 10 men as captain Ruud Vormer was sent off for a second yellow card.

Shakhtar Donetsk scored with practicall­y the last kick of the game to beat Atalanta 2-1 yesterday as the Italian side's first home match in the Champions League ended in defeat.

Substitute Manor Solomon netted in the fifth minute of stoppage time after Junior Moraes canceled out Duvan Zapata's opener for Atalanta in the first half.

It was Solomon's first goal in European competitio­n and the Israeli defender said he was so surprised to score that he was unsure how to celebrate.

Atalanta had an early penalty saved while both sides also hit the woodwork in a match that was largely even but left La Dea still seeking its first Champions League point.

Mauro Icardi's first goal for Paris Saint-Germain was enough for a 10 win at Galatasara­y yesterday as the French champion claimed its second win from two Champions League games.

Icardi scored with a tap-in after being set up by Pablo Sarabia in the 52nd minute, but PSG wasted a host of other chances without the suspended Neymar and injured Edson Cavani.

Goalkeeper Fernando Muslera also did his part to keep Galatasara­y in the game. The Uruguay internatio­nal denied Angel di Maria's first chance in the second minute, swooped to take the ball from Icardi, then produced a brilliant save to deny di Maria again.

Gonzalo Higuain scored one goal and set up another, with Cristiano Ronaldo also getting on the scoresheet as Juventus beat Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 in the Champions League yesterday.

It was an encouragin­g performanc­e for the Bianconeri after squanderin­g a two-goal lead in a draw at Atletico Madrid to open the group phase.

Higuain scored early on and then set up Federico Bernardesc­hi's goal after the break before Ronaldo added the third in the 89th.

Higuain was loaned away to AC Milan and Chelsea last season but is back with Juventus under new coach Maurizio Sarri, who also coached "Pipita" at Napoli.

João Félix and Thomas Partey scored second-half goals as Atlético Madrid defeated Lokomotiv Moscow 2-0 in the Champions League.

Félix opened the scoring from close range in the 48th minute and Partey doubled the lead from Diego Costa's pass in the 58th, giving Atlético its first win after a home draw against Juventus in its opener.

Red Star Belgrade recovered to beat Olympiakos 3-1 in the Champions League after the Greeks went down to 10 men in the second half.

Dominant at first, Olympiakos took the lead through Ruben Semedo in the 37th when the Portuguese midfielder flicked in a free kick from Giorgos Masouras, in an awkward maneuver that caught goalkeeper Milan Borjan off guard.

Yassine Benzia was sent off with a second booking in the 58th, forcing Olympiakos onto the defensive.

Substitute Milos Vulic punished a poor clearance to level with a powerful shot in the 62nd minute. The Greeks looked poised to steal the win with late counteratt­acks but a shot on target by Mohamed Camara was blocked by Borjan and moments later Yassine Meriah sent the ball wide at close range.

Rad Star prevailed in the Group B match after captain Marko Marin set up two goals with corner kicks in the final five minutes. Nemanja Milunovic and Richmond Boakye got on the scoresheet with headers to delight fans at Rajko Mitic Stadium.

Raheem Sterling came off the bench to score one goal and set up a late second for Phil Foden as Manchester City beat Dinamo Zagreb 2-0 in the Champions League yesterday for a second straight victory to open the group stage.

City's finishing had been wasteful at Etihad Stadium before Sterling met a cross from Riyad Mahrez with a sidefooted finish from close range in the 66th minute.

Foden, also on as a substitute but only in the 90th minute, made the points safe by running onto Sterling's pass on a counteratt­ack and shooting low into the corner with virtually the last touch of the game.

 ??  ?? Bayern’s hero Serge Gnabry who scored four of Bayern’s seven goals against Tottenham
Bayern’s hero Serge Gnabry who scored four of Bayern’s seven goals against Tottenham
 ??  ?? Juve’s Gonzalo Higuain takes a shot at goal
Juve’s Gonzalo Higuain takes a shot at goal
 ??  ??

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