Bayern Munich recorded the most dominant 2-0 victory you could ever imagine over Olympiacos on Wednesday in the Champions League. Olympiacos goalkeeper José Sá recorded nine saves before finally being beaten by Robert Lewandowski’s delicate one-touch finish in the 69th minute. In the 89th, just one minute after entering the field as a substitute, Ivan Perišić made it two.
Cristiano Ronaldo had been subbed off, as had goal scorer Aaron Ramsey. So needing a goal late to see off Lokomotiv Moscow, Juventus winger Douglas Costa took things into his own hands.
Costa almost single-handedly smoked the entirety of the Lokomotiv defense to score a stunning 93rd-minute winner as Juventus eked out a 2-1 win in Champions League Group D play on Wednesday in Moscow.
There’s a term in multiplayer video games called KSing — kill stealing — that refers to one player getting credit for a kill when another did most of the hard work.
Aaron Ramsey just KS’d Cristiano Ronaldo.
Trailing Inter Milan 2-0 at home with just 40 minutes remaining and contemplating an almost certain drop to the Europa League, Borussia Dortmund stormed back to a 3-2 victory with the Westfalenstadion roaring on its heroes, including 21-year-old breakthrough star Achraf Hakimi.
There’s something about Ajax playing against London clubs that makes for can’t-miss television. Whether it’s Tottenham’s remarkable last-gasp win in the Champions League semifinals last season or Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic teeing up Michy Batshuayi late in the group stage a couple weeks ago, Ajax has provided English fans with more than a few memorable moments.
If you’re a goalie, the only thing worse than giving up an Olimpico goal is giving up a goal that deflects off of you and into the back of the net. Kepa Arrizabalaga got to experience both on this Hakim Ziyech goal vs Chelsea on Tuesday.
After a stupid foul by Chelsea in the corner in the 35th minute, Ziyech curled in a beauty over the stretched arms of Kepa. The ball struck the post before bouncing off Kepa’s nose for an embarrassing own goal, giving Ajax a 3-1 lead at halftime of their Champions League match. Technically it was an own goal, but we think Ziyech deserves credit.
Swaths of empty seats around the Camp Nou on Tuesday for Slavia Prague's visit in the Champions League reflected the current malaise surrounding Barcelona, one amplified by this past weekend’s 3-1 defeat to Levante in LaLiga. That match both increased the pressure on manager Ernesto Valverde and condemned Luis Suárez to a three-week spell on the sidelines with a new calf injury.
RB Leipzig went top of UEFA Champions League Group G following a 2-1 victory over Zenit Saint Petersburg on Wednesday, and the match-winner — scored by Marcel Sabitzer in the 59th minute — could ultimately end up as the competition’s best goal.
Yaroslav Rakitskiy had given Zenit the lead in the 25th minute, but Leipzig came storming back in the second half. First, Konrad Laimer (great name) provided the equalizer in the 49th, and then Sabitzer happened.
Inter Milan revived its hope of advancing to the Champions League Round of 16 with a much-needed 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund at the San Siro on Wednesday. Goals from the red-hot Lautaro Martínez and Antonio Candreva catapulted Inter up to second in Group F — three points behind leaders Barcelona — while Dortmund dropped to third.
Barcelona needed everything it could muster to hold on to a narrow 2-1 win over Slavia Prague on Wednesday in the Czech capital, surviving a late flurry from the hosts.
The three points would have been much easier to come by had it not been for a once-in-a-lifetime miss from Barcelona’s No. 10.