At 21:45 Lithuanian time, the 2016-17 season of the UEFA Champions League kicked off. On Tuesday evening, eight matches took place where teams from groups A-D competed against each other.
One of the most interesting matches took place in the capital of France, where Paris Saint-Germain, supported by their fans, fought for their first win in Group A against Arsenal from London. After a tough match that resulted in two red cards, the teams ended in a 1-1 draw.
We saw the first goal of the match in the very first attack. In the 43rd second of the game, Serge Aurier made a high pass into the penalty area, and Edinson Cavani, who was unmarked by the opponents, headed the ball into David Ospina's goal.
Arsenal had no real chances to equalize in the first half, so the battle continued into the next 45 minutes. PSG still seemed more active, but E. Cavani couldn't manage to beat D. Ospina again. The Uruguayan, who had a great opportunity to score a hat-trick in this match, did not score any more goals, and this was largely due to the successful goalkeeper's performance.
In the 78th minute, Arsenal finally managed to equalize the score when Alexis Sanchez powerfully sent the ball into the net after a penalty box scramble. At the end of the match, Olivier Giroud and Marco Verratti were shown second yellow cards for conflicts and were sent off.
In other matches of Group A, Basel and Ludogorets also ended in a 1-1 draw. In Group A, there is absolute equality: all four teams have one point each and a zero goal difference.
In Group B, Lisbon's Benfica conceded a late victory against Besiktas from Istanbul, while Napoli celebrated a 2-1 victory after a fierce battle against the Polish national team striker A. Milik's brace.
There were supposed to be two more matches in Group C, but due to heavy rain in Manchester, the match between Man City and Borussia Monchengladbach did not take place.
The weather was much better in Catalonia, where Barcelona defeated Celtic Glasgow 7-0. The scorers for the winners were Lionel Messi (3), Luis Suarez (2), and also Andrés Iniesta and Neymar scored one goal each.
In Group D, the favorites celebrated victories - Munich's Bayern crushed Rostov from Russia, while Madrid's Atletico celebrated a minimal victory in Eindhoven against PSV after Saul Niguez's goal.
Results:
Group A
PSG 1 - 1 Arsenal
1' [1 - 0] E. Cavani
78' [1 - 1] A. Sanchez
90+3' O. Giroud (Arsenal) sent off from the field
90+3' M. Verratti (PSG) sent off from the field
Basel 1 - 1 Ludogorets
45' [0 - 1] J. Cafu
79' [1 - 1] R. Steffen
Group B
Benfica 1 - 1 Besiktas
12' [1 - 0] F. Cervi
90+3' [1 - 1] A. Talisca
Dynamo Kiev 1 - 2 Napoli
26' [1 - 0] D. Garmash
36' [1 - 1] A. Milik
45+2' [1 - 2] A. Milik
68' S. Sydorchuk (Dynamo) sent off from the field
Group C
Barcelona 7 - 0 Celtic
3' [1 - 0] L. Messi
27' [2 - 0] L. Messi
50' [3 - 0] Neymar
59' [4 - 0] A. Iniesta
60' [5 - 0] L. Messi
75' [6 - 0] L. Suarez
88' [7 - 0] L. Suarez
24' M. Dembele (Celtic) missed an 11m penalty
Man City vs. Borussia Gladbach (did not take place)
Group D
Bayern 5 - 0 Rostov
28' [1 - 0] R. Lewandowski (11m penalty)
45+2' [2 - 0] T. Muller
53' [3 - 0] J. Kimmich
60' [4 - 0] J. Kimmich
90' [5 - 0] J. Bernat
PSV 0 - 1 Atletico
43' [0 - 1] S. Niguez
45+2' A. Guardado (PSV) missed an 11m penalty
