It was a thrilling start to this season’s Champions League as we had a first glimpse of the new format. See the Matchday 1 round-up as Bayern Munich sit pretty at the top of the table.
36 teams were in action from Tuesday-Thursday as fans saw the new look Champions League for the first time. Instead of the traditional eight groups of four teams, UEFA have introduced a new ‘Swiss-style’ 36-team league phase for the first time.
The top eight sides in the league qualify automatically for the last-16, while teams finishing 9th-24th will compete in a two-legged play-off against each other to build up the final 16. Unfortunately teams finishing 25th-36th will face elimination with no access to the Europa League.
Read our full Champions League Matchday 1 round-up below
Champions League Matchday 1 Round-Up: Bayern Sit Top
Tuesday 17th September – Kane breaks record and Villa win on UCL comeback
The action got underway on Tuesday night as Juventus comfortably dispatched of PSV and Aston Villa made a winning return to Europe’s elite with a 3-0 win over Young Boys in the early kick-offs.
Meanwhile it was Harry Kane and Bayern Munich who stole the headlines in the later games. The Bundesliga giants smashed Dinamo Zagreb 9-2 with Kane scoring four, becoming the all-time leading English goalscorer in the Champions League, overtaking Wayne Rooney.
Real Madrid survived a scare against Stuttgart, winning 3-1 in the end and Liverpool came from a goal down to defeat AC Milan by the same scoreline.
Not a bad night in the champions league! One to remember and another ball to take home! Let’s keep it going boys!! 🙌⚽️🎩 pic.twitter.com/l1fbZncy96
— Harry Kane (@HKane) September 17, 2024
Wednesday 18th September – Celtic hit five, City held to 0-0 draw at home
Wednesday’s proceedings kicked off with a quiet 0-0 draw between Bologna and Shakhtar. The second early kick-off saw Sparta Praha produce a convincing 3-0 victory over RB Salzburg.
Later on the evening, PSG were fortunate to beat Girona 1-0 thanks to a 90th minute own-goal. Borussia Dortmund also won their game late on with three goals in the last 20 minutes in a 3-0 win against Club Brugge. Young English talent Jamie Bynoe-Gittens scored twice turning plenty of heads in the process.
Scottish Premiership champions Celtic enjoyed a special night in Glasgow as they hammered Slovan Bratislava 5-1 in a second-half masterclass. But it was a night to forget for Manchester City, who could not find the back of the net against a resilient Inter Milan side. It was 0-0 at the Etihad, despite the hosts having 22 shots on goal.
https://twitter.com/BBCSport/status/1836512704355274873
Thursday 19th September – Arsenal saved by Raya, Barca suffer shock defeat
The final night of European action on Matchday 1 saw Bayer Leverkusen open the night with a dominating 4-0 success over Feyenoord. Benfica also picked up maximum points with a 2-1 win against Crvena Zvezda, concluding the early games.
European newcomers Brest made the perfect start to their campaign with a hard-earned 2-1 triumph over Sturm Graz. Arsenal can thank David Raya for earning a point in a 0-0 stalemate away at Atalanta. The Spaniard made a terrific double save to deny Ederson from the spot, saving his rebound too.
Barcelona shot themselves in the foot during the first half when Eric Garcia was shown a straight red, eventually losing 2-1 to Monaco. On the other hand, fellow La Liga club Atletico Madrid netted a late winner through Jose Gimenez, beating RB Leipzig 2-1.
David Raya had a just 3% chance of saving a goal, based on the xGOT of these two shots.
World class goalkeeping. pic.twitter.com/0D21u0F9Va
— The xG Philosophy (@xGPhilosophy) September 19, 2024
That concludes our Champions League Matchday 1 round-up. Matchday 2 takes place on Tuesday October 1st and Wednesday October 2nd.
Champions League Table After Matchday 1
How the new Champions League table looks after the first round of games 👀 pic.twitter.com/mBIYWylSxk
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) September 19, 2024
