Industry Odisha Bureau, Sep 09: Real Madrid and Manchester City won their Champions League openers. Kylian Mbappe scored for Madrid in a 2-1 win. Erling Haaland scored twice as Man City beat Porto 2-0. PSG, the two-time defending champion, plays Wednesday.
Mbappe opened the scoring after just 14 minutes. Brahim Diaz slipped him through against Inter Milan. Mbappe finished low past goalkeeper Josep Martinez.
The goal was Mbappe’s 71st in the competition. That tally moved him level with Real Madrid great Raul. The pair now share fifth on the all-time scorers list.
Federico Valverde added Madrid’s second goal soon after. Martinez hesitated and Valverde poked the ball home. Carlos Augusto pulled one back for Inter late on. Inter finished the match with 61% possession overall. Inter’s pressure came too late to change the result.
Jose Mourinho made a winning return as Madrid’s coach. He previously won the Champions League twice, including with Inter. Mourinho is now chasing a third title with Madrid. He hopes to join Guardiola, Enrique and Zidane with three titles.
Manchester City opened its campaign with victory at Porto. The match was played at Estadio do Dragao. Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa impressed during the first half. City are considered among this season’s leading challengers.
Haaland broke through with a header after halftime. He added a second goal during stoppage time. Those two goals sealed City’s 2-0 victory.
Haaland has now scored 59 Champions League goals. He reached that mark in just 59 appearances. That statistic distinguishes goals across all his clubs. Enzo Maresca is Manchester City’s new head coach. City began the new season with a perfect record.
Borussia Dortmund defeated Villarreal by a 3-2 scoreline. Serhou Guirassy scored twice and added an own goal. His late penalty put Dortmund ahead in the contest. Dortmund teenager Konstantinos Karetsas left the field early. He was taken to hospital for further tests. Dortmund said he was doing well afterward.
Aston Villa beat Club Brugge 3-2 in Belgium. John McGinn opened the scoring in the 11th minute. Emiliano Buendia and Nicolas Jackson also found the net. The win ended Villa’s winless and goalless start this season.
Real Betis won 3-2 at Lille through Troy Parrott. Parrott had also scored a late winner against Madrid recently. AEK Athens beat LASK 1-0 via Razvan Marin’s free kick.
Mbappe and Haaland again proved decisive for their clubs. Their scoring records now rank among the competition’s best. Madrid and City still lean heavily on their strikers. Both strikers remain central to their teams’ European hopes.
