Five takeaways from Champions League openers
The UEFA Champions League came back with a bang on Tuesday, with the opening matches of the new campaign providing action and goals aplenty.
Big names and big scorelines on the first night gave fans much to ponder.
MONEY DOESN’T BUY YOU LOVE ...
… but it does buy you a darn good soccer team. The lavishly assembled Paris St. Germain attacking line flexed its muscles, routing Celtic 5-0 on the road to make a swashbuckling start. Neymar, newly installed as the world’s most expensive player, looked
close to unstoppable, as did Kylian Mbappe, the French teenager priced more than $200 million.
Celtic might be one of the weaker teams in the competition, but it is no pushover at home, having beaten Barcelona and tied Manchester City in recent teams. This was a signal of intent from PSG — and a loud one.
FLUKE OR GENIUS?
Chelsea scored six goals in an unimpeded rout of Azerbaijan’s Qarabag, but there was one that got everyone talking. Davide Zappacosta either scored one of the most spectacular goals in Champions League history or — he got lucky.
Zappacosta burst down the right flank, beat two players, then scorched the ball past the goalkeeper’s despairing dive from close to the sideline. It looked like an intended cross, and it probably was, but either way Chelsea is flying and Zappacosta has one for the highlight reel.
MESSI ENDS JINX
There’s not much Lionel Messi has failed to do on a soccer field, but until Tuesday night he had never scored in three attempts against Juventus’ legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon. That barren streak ended at the Camp Nou, as the little maestro struck on halftime, then added another in the second half as Barca cruised to a 3-0 win over the team that dumped it out of last season’s quarterfinals. What motivates Messi these days? Revenge did here.
LESSER LIGHTS, HOTTER ACTION
Bayern, Barca, Chelsea and Manchester United have all won the Champions League within the past decade, and while their performances on Tuesday were all impressive, those favoring a bit more suspense would have enjoyed a pair of games off the radar.
CSKA Moscow came from behind to win at Benfica in a tough and intense struggle, while Sporting Lisbon looked sensational in bursting into a 3-0 lead at Olympiakos, before narrowly surviving a frenetic finish to win 3-2. Food for thought when planning your future viewing schedules.
THE RESPONSE
Step up Real Madrid, the challenge has been laid down.
With all the big hitters in rousing form on Tuesday, two-time defending champion Real Madrid will be keen to offer a strong response.
Real begins its campaign on Wednesday at home to Cyprus’ APOEL Nicosia, and if it gets off the mark early, don’t be surprised to see Los Galacticos try to run up the score to prove a point to its tournament rivals.