The Champions League returned this week as the biggest and best sides in Europe battled to get a positive start to the tournament. In reality, the 2025/26 renewal truly began with the first qualifying round way back in June. But the competition proper really kicked off with Matchday 1 of the league phase of the competition. So let’s take a look back at the best of the action from the opening round of fixtures and assess which teams will be tentatively celebrating and which will be going back to the drawing board.
Tuesday 16th September – Positive Start for North London Clubs
Despite Matchday 1 Champions League matches being spread over three days, there was plenty to get excited about on the opening night of the league phase. And that’s especially the case for fans of Arsenal or Tottenham.
Mikel Arteta’s men travelled to Athletic Bilbao and put in an assured and patient performance to win 2-0 in Spain. The manager relied on the greater squad depth he now has, and his two second-half substitutions paid dividends. Both Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli scored for the Gunners, the latter within 36 seconds of getting onto the pitch!
Spurs, meanwhile, weren’t quite as convincing against Villarreal as their boss Thomas Frank made his Champions League debut. They had some early luck with a 4th-minute own goal from Villarreal’s goalkeeper Luiz Junior. And after that, Tottenham stuck to their task well in what was a tight and nervy match. Neither side created many good chances: Spurs’ xG was 0.58 and the visitors’ was 0.53. But Frank’s men did enough to earn themselves a winning start to this term’s Champions League.
Elsewhere, Real Madrid edged victory on home soil, 2-1 against Marseille, while Juventus and Borussia Dortmund played out an exciting 4-4 draw in Turin, the home side scoring two goals in injury time to gain a share of the spoils in a clash that was 0-0 at the break. The biggest shock of the night came as Qarabağ of Azerbaijan won 3-2 at Benfica, a result that cost Bruno Lage his job and prompted the return of Jose Mourinho to Portuguese football as his replacement.
Wednesday 17th September – European Champions Off to Winning Defence
Wednesday evening saw three of the favourites for European glory in action: current champions Paris Saint-Germain, who hosted Atalanta; Premier League champions Liverpool at home to Atletico Madrid; and Bayern Munich, who welcomed last season’s Europa Conference League winners Chelsea.
First to Anfield, where Arne Slot’s side continued their nerve-jangling habit of leaving things very late to get the win. Despite the match being level at 2-2 after 90 minutes, the Reds didn’t give up their chase for a winner, which duly came in the 92nd minute from the head of captain Virgil van Dijk, much to the relief of the home supporters.
PSG, meanwhile, certainly didn’t have to rely on a late winner as they hammered Atalanta 4-0 in Paris. In a display that will send shivers down the spines of fans of the other main contenders, Luis Enrique’s team dominated the match from the moment they scored their first goal after just three minutes through Marquinhos’ neat finish. The holders could take some stopping if their opening match is anything to go by.
In Munich, Bayern eased to a 3-1 victory over Chelsea, thanks in no small part to a brace from England captain Harry Kane. Cole Palmer had a decent game for the Blues, scoring one and having another disallowed, but the home side were the deserved winners. Next up for Chelsea in the competition: the visit of Benfica, with their old hero Mourinho at the helm!
Last year’s losing finalists Inter Milan got a winning start as they triumphed 2-0 at Ajax, while Olympiakos versus Pafos, and Slavia Prague versus Bodo/Glimt both ended all square.
Thursday 18th September – Man City Look Solid as Magpies Sunk by Rashford
Manchester City underperformed in the Champions League last season, by their high standards. They didn’t even make it to the Round of 16 after getting knocked out by Real Madrid at the post-league-phase play-offs. Pep Guardiola is determined to avoid a similar result this term, and his side looked impressive against Antonio Conte’s Italian champions Napoli.
City’s cause was helped when the Napoli captain, Giovanni di Lorenzo, was shown a straight red for bringing down Erling Haaland when he was through on goal. And Napoli could find no response to City goals from Haaland and the impressive Jeremy Doku as the home side won 2-0. Haaland’s strike was his 50th in the competition and meant he had reached that landmark in just 49 games. That meant another goalscoring record smashed by the Norwegian, as he easily bettered Ruud van Nistelrooy’s 62-game half-century.
There was a party atmosphere at St James’ Park ahead of the Newcastle versus Barcelona match, and Eddie Howe’s men gave as good as they got for large chunks of the game. Ultimately, though, it was the Manchester United outcast Marcus Rashford who proved to be the Magpies’ undoing. Rashford scored two fine goals, one a guided header, the other a brilliant, powerful strike from 20 yards, and sent a reminder that he still has plenty to offer at the highest level.
Newcastle tried to find a way back into the game and pulled one back through Anthony Gordon in the 90th minute. However, it was too little, too late, and on balance Barca were good value for the three points.
Elsewhere, there were very good wins for Sporting (4-1 against Kairat), Club Brugge (4-1 against Monaco), and Eintracht Frankfurt (5-1 against Galatasaray). Bayer Leverkusen scored an injury-time goal to salvage a point at Copenhagen in an entertaining 2-2 draw.
Which Teams Looked the Best During Matchday 1?
It’s hard to look past the current champions when assessing the most impressive side from the opening games of this season’s Champions League. But we might get a better idea of their credentials next time when they travel to Barcelona. Liverpool didn’t quite look as impressive as some, but they did what they’ve done so often this term and found a way to win.
Both Mikel Arteta and Thomas Frank will be very pleased to start with victories against tricky Spanish opponents, and both sides have very winnable matches next time out (Arsenal host Olympiakos and Spurs travel to Bodo/Glimt). Enzo Maresca, meanwhile, will be disappointed with Chelsea’s inability to get a result against Bayern, and it will be interesting to see how they get on next time out against Benfica.