By Chris Sampson
- Liverpool win “Battle of Britain”
- Missed chances cost Tottenham, disappointment for Celtic
- Big win for Chelsea and a stroll for City
Europe – Mixed fortunes for British clubs as the UEFA Champions League groups take shape.
Liverpool 2 Rangers 0
The first ever competitive meeting between Liverpool and Rangers saw the Reds run out as comfortable winners. Liverpool have endured a disjointed and disappointing start to the season, therefore the manner in which the victory was gained will be a major boost to confidence.
Jurgen Klopp opted for a change of shape, swapping the usual 4-3-3 for a 4-2-3-1, which at times was almost a 4-2-4. The double pivot of Jordan Henderson and Thiago Alcántara provided greater protection to the back four and with the full-backs being slightly less adventurous, the line-up had a more solid look. This sound platform gave the four attacking players the freedom to cause the visitors problems.
After only seven minutes Trent Alexander-Arnold gave the home side the lead with a superb free-kick, putting his recent frustrations behind him. Liverpool went on to dominate, with only an outstanding display from veteran goalkeeper Allan McGregor keeping Rangers in the game. However, on 53 minutes Luis Diaz was fouled in the area by Leon King, allowing Mohamed Salah to score from the spot.
Rangers took an impressive following to Anfield and received great backing; however, it was another disappointing Champions League night. The jury is out as to whether they are not yet at the level to compete in this competition or whether their players have underperformed. They remain rock bottom of Group A, while Liverpool are in second place as they look to reach the knockout stage.
Eintracht Frankfurt 0 Tottenham Hotspur 0
Tottenham Hotspur came away with a point after a goalless draw with Eintracht Frankfurt. Spurs created a number of chances but failed to take them and while Antonio Conte will be pleased with his side’s performance, he will be aware that they need to be more clinical.
Harry Kane, Heung-Min Son and Ivan Perisic all had chances; however, it was not all one-way traffic. Hugo Lloris was forced into action, saving from Ansgar Knauff, and Jesper Lindstrom fired a good opportunity over the bar in an end-to-end encounter. In the end both sides had to settle for a point with Spurs second in Group D with four points after three games, a place above Eintracht Frankfurt on goal difference. Sporting Lisbon lead the group by two points after losing to Marseille.
Chelsea 3 A.C. Milan 0
Chelsea scored an impressive victory over A.C. Milan to blow Group E wide open. After a stuttering start to their Champions League campaign, it was vital that Graham Potter’s side took all three points against Milan, who were sitting on top of the group.
Wesley Fofana opened the scoring on 24 minutes with his first goal in Chelsea colours after the visitors failed to clear a corner. Milan missed a good chance to equalise just before half-time when Rade Krunic fired over. It was to prove costly as Chelsea took control in the second half. On 56 minutes Reece James, outstanding throughout, crossed for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to apply the finish. Five minutes later James sealed the win with a powerful strike.
The win takes Chelsea into second place in Group E, with only two points separating all four teams.
RB Leipzig 3 Celtic 1
Celtic suffered a major blow to their Champions League qualification hopes after a pulsating match against RB Leipzig ended in defeat for the Scottish champions.
Celtic had a lot of the play in the first half but Leipzig were dangerous on the break with Christopher Nkunku, linked with a January move to Chelsea, especially prominent. Having already served notice of his intent with a goal that was disallowed by VAR, Nkunku broke the deadlock on 27 minutes. Leipzig broke quickly and a strong run from Andre Silva led to Nkunku running through and rounding Joe Hart to finish.
Celtic stuck to their task and on 48 minutes they were level. Reo Hatate won the ball back deep in Leipzig territory and played in Kyogo Furuhashi who unselfishly squared it to Jota who finished well.
However, on 64 minutes, as Celtic tried to play out from the back, Hart gifted possession to Dominik Szoboszlai, who set up Silva to restore the lead. Silva then sealed the win 13 minutes later when a great pass from Nkunku found right-back Mohamed Simakan. The Frenchman, who had caused Celtic problems all night with his impressive forward runs, crossed first time for Silva to score.
Once again Celtic had positives to take from the game, but like the first two group games they failed to take their chances and their game management was found wanting at crucial times. Leipzig move above them into third, leaving Ange Postecoglou’s team bottom. The two sides meet again in Glasgow next week. Real Madrid, with three wins out of three, lead the group from Shakhtar Donetsk.
Manchester City 5 FC Copenhagen 0
Manchester City swept Copenhagen aside to make it three wins out of three in Champions League Group G. An Erling Haaland brace and an unfortunate own-goal from David Khocholava had City three up at half-time. Haaland now has 19 goals in 12 games for Pep Guardiola’s team and was given a rest in the second half with Cole Palmer replacing him at the interval.
A Riyad Mahrez penalty made it 4-0 after Aymeric Laporte was fouled, then Julian Alvarez, set up by Mahrez, made it five. City could have had more goals however, Kamil Grabara performed well in the Copenhagen goal to keep the score down. City travel to Copenhagen next week and a repeat victory will see qualification for the knockout stages guaranteed.
The next round of UEFA Champions League fixtures take place on Tuesday October 11 and Wednesday October 12.
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