Champions League Action Features Record Goals and Dramatic Finishes
Cesc Fabregas' Como secured a historic nine-goal victory while Real Madrid and Arsenal maintained their strong European campaigns.
The latest round of UEFA Champions League matches delivered a remarkable night of European football, highlighted by Cesc Fabregas' Como side matching a historic scoring feat and late drama across multiple fixtures. Como dismantled Lens in France with a 9-1 rout, becoming just the second team in tournament history to score nine goals in a single match. Anastasios Douvikas led the charge for the Italian side with a hat-trick, while seven different players found the back of the net after a commanding three-goal lead at halftime.
Real Madrid extended their perfect record in the league phase to four wins with a hard-fought 3-2 victory against AEK Athens. Federico Valverde secured the three points for the visitors with a stunning long-range strike in stoppage time. Real Madrid fell behind twice during the match after goals from Aboubakary Koita and Stavros Pilios, but responses from Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe kept the Spanish giants level before Valverde's late heroics silenced the home crowd.
Meanwhile, Liverpool suffered their first defeat of the European campaign in a five-goal thriller against Fenerbahce in Istanbul. Managed by former Liverpool player Dirk Kuyt, Fenerbahce came from behind twice to claim a 3-2 victory. Trey Nyoni opened the scoring for Liverpool with his first professional goal, and Alexander Isak added a second, but strikes from Mason Greenwood, Archie Brown, and a decisive header from Vedat Muriqi handed the Turkish side their first league-phase win.
Arsenal maintained their unbeaten run in the competition with a 2-1 victory over Slavia Prague on the road. Noni Madueke opened the scoring early in the first half after collecting a strong pass from Viktor Gyokeres, who then added the second goal himself before halftime. Despite controlling the opening period, Mikel Arteta's side faced heavy pressure after the break. Slavia Prague peppered the Arsenal goal with 18 shots, forcing goalkeeper David Raya into crucial saves and requiring goal-line clearances before W. Nowak scored a late consolation goal in the 90th minute.
Manchester City returned to winning ways by defeating RB Leipzig 3-2 in Germany, overcoming domestic setbacks. An own goal by Castello Lukeba opened the scoring for City, and although Leipzig twice equalized through B. Baku and A. Nusa with answers from Enzo Fernandez, Erling Haaland netted the winner in the 78th minute to secure the points.
Other notable results across the continent included Borussia Dortmund edging Real Betis 2-1 courtesy of a winner from Konstantinos Karetsas, and Porto securing their first points of the phase with a 4-1 victory over Napoli. Club Brugge continued their strong momentum with a 3-2 aggregate-style run by defeating PSV 2-1, while Viking earned their first league-phase win by defeating Sabah 4-1 behind a double from Erik Botheim.