The theme of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League action was statement-making wins, with Liverpool stunning Real Madrid in a victory at home and Bayern Munich handing reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain a first defeat of the European season.
The Reds were fully dominant in a 1-0 win over Los Blancos at Anfield, with Alexis Mac Allister bagging the game's lone goal in the second half. Real Madrid were limited to just two shots on total and 0.45 expected goals, all while Liverpool provided test after test for visiting goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. The victory serves as a signal that manager Arne Slot is finally beginning to solve his side's tactical imbalance despite entering the game with just two wins in their last eight.
Bayern were off to a fast start in Paris as Luis Diaz scored twice in the opening 32 minutes, catching PSG's defense off guard in two quick moments. That was especially true on the second goal, with PSG captain Marquinhos giving the ball away to Diaz, who he may not have spotted pressing him. Diaz, though, picked up a red card just before halftime for a tackle on Achraf Hakimi, complicating matters for Bayern. PSG pulled one back with about 15 minutes to go thanks to a goal from Joao Neves, though it was not enough to rescue a point for Luis Enrique's side.
Final scores
90'+6 Atletico Madrid are nervous no more -- Marcos Llorente bags a goal and it's 3-1 to the hosts just before the final whistle, ensuring they come out of today's game against Union Saint-Gilloise with a sizable victory.
90'+3 Ricardo Pepi bags a much-needed equalizer for PSV at Olympiacos and becomes the second U.S. men's national team forward to score today -- Folarin Balogun scored earlier today for Monaco against Bodo/Glimt.
90'+2 Again, a mix of good news and bad news for Tottenham Hotspur -- they earn a penalty in stoppage time but Richarlison cannot convert. He hits the woodwork on the opportunity, just as he did moments before and moments after.
74' Substitute Joao Neves pulls one back for Paris Saint-Germain against Bayern Munich and all of a sudden, it's game on in the French capital. Neves nearly bags a second minutes later, keeping things very competitive in the final stages of that game.
80' Looks like we'll have a nervy finish in Madrid as Ross Sykes scores for Union Saint-Gilloise, cutting the deficit in half against Atletico Madrid. The hosts still have a 2-1 lead with 10 minutes to go.
81' Trent Alexander-Arnold is back for Real Madrid for the first time in nearly two months, making his return for his new tam at the home of his boyhood club. Boos ring around Anfield when he enters the field and the fans break out into a Steven Gerrard chant, remembering the ex-Liverpool player who spent nearly the entirety of his career at the club before a move to the LA Galaxy.
72' Just 10 minutes after coming on, Conor Gallagher makes it 2-0 for Atletico Madrid against Union Saint-Gilloise with an impressive finish. Diego Simeone's side are undoubtedly in cruise control, well on their way to a second win of the league phase.
73' Things have hit a steady pace at Anfield, in some sense a natural reaction as Liverpool maintain a firm control over this game. A chance from Kylian Mbappe just came and went, fizzling out in no time at all, the latest opportunity to join a small list of unimpressive attempts. Real Madrid have mustered just 0.32 expected goals today despite starting all of their stars, stumped in front of goal like this for perhaps the first time all season.
67' Well, I suppose going down to 10 has not actually been much of an issue for Tottenham Hotspur, has it? Joao Palhinha makes his mark and it's now 4-0 to the hosts after a great break.
64' Looks like Tottenham Hotspur can mix some bad news with some good -- Micky van de Ven makes a lengthy run and slots the ball into the back of the net, an impressive feat for the center back in a solo effort. Van de Ven has six goals this season -- a surprise top goalscorer for Spurs this season -- but it's rare to see him use his impressive speed in this way, to the point that goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario ran the length of the pitch to celebrate. Can you blame him?
62' Liverpool's hard work finally pays off and they now have a deserved lead against Real Madrid, a common theme of the day serving them well. Dominik Szoboszlai once again stands on the ball for a freekick and whips in a fantastic ball into the box, the 5'9" Alexis Mac Allister connecting with the bal to pop it into the back of the net. The goal passes a VAR check, too.
57' Taking a page out of Bayern Munich's book isn't usually such a bad idea but in Tottenham Hotspur's case, it isn't such a good idea. Like Luis Diaz before him, Brennan Johnson is the latest goalscorer to be sent off, this time for harsh challenge on an opponent. Xavi Simons comes off for Joao Palhinha to compensate for the red card, Spurs switching to survival mode after a more fluid approach to the game.
Meanwhile, goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario received medical attention but seems to be willing and able to continue.
51' Tottenham's goalscoring woes seem to be a thing of the past, at least for now -- they now have a 2-0 lead over Copenhagen, with Wilson Odobert doubling Spurs' lead as they look for heir first win in the Champions League since Matchday 1.
Bayern Munich might be off to a strong start against Paris Saint-Germain but Luis Diaz picked up a red card just before the break for a tackle on Achraf Hakimi, who was substituted for Senny Mayulu. PSG, meanwhile, have been without Ousmane Dembele since the 25th minute after he picked up an injury, Lee Kang-in coming on in his place.
45' Jude Bellingham bags Real Madrid's first shot in nearly 20 minutes and forces Giorgi Mamardashvili into a quick save, while Arda Guler takes a stab of his own moments later but Mamardashvili comes up with another important save just before the break.
43' U.S. men's national team forward Folarin Balogun notches his first Champions League goal of the season, giving Monaco the lead just before the half against Bodo/Glimt. It's a stellar finish, too, one that should inspire further confidence for USMNT fans that he's ready to be the team's No. 9 heading into the World Cup.
41' Dominik Szoboszlai tries to get the better of Thibaut Courtois again but the Real Madrid goalkeeper comes up with another brilliant save, making the save with his wrist as his 6'8" frame dives to his right. Still goalless a Anfield, but not for a lack of trying from Liverpool.
39' Giuliano Simeone connects with Julian Alvarez against the run of play, Alvarez knowing exactly what to do as he bags Atletico Madrid's go-ahead goal against Union Saint-Gilloise.
34' Juventus earn the reward for their hard work with an equalizer against Sporting Lisbon, with this season's top goalscorer Dusan Vlahovic getting them on the board. Credit is due to Khephren Thuram, who made a run down the flank to kick things off as Juventus charged towards goal.
32' Bayern are making quite the statement in the French capital, now boasting a 2-0 lead over reigning Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain! Marquinhos has the ball but he does not even notice Luis Diaz pressing him and so the Bayern attacker nicks the ball off him, wasting no time going for goal and completing a brace.
30' The referee calls that Aurelien Tchouameni commits a handball and initially gives a freekick, but he quickly realizes that Tchouameni is technically in the box so a VAR review is underway to decide if it is a penalty. The referee eventually goes over to the screen and decides that there's no penalty, finding that there was not a deliberate attempt at handball. Play resumes, the score still 0-0 between Liverpool and Anfield.
27' The first meaningful shot of the game goes Liverpool's way, the hosts winning a tackle that eventually allows Dominik Szoboszlai to take a shot from close range, hoping to sneak it past Thibaut Courtois. The Real Madrid goalkeeper, though, expertly reads the shot while he's falling to the ground and steers the ball out of trouble. The Reds also have a freekick right after but not much comes of it, though it's just one phase in a steady period of pressure for Liverpool.
23' Vinicius Junior picks up a yellow card for manhandling Conor Bradley and Liverpool have a freekick, though not much comes of it. Still, it is hard to deny that Liverpool are the ones in charge here -- their press is working well and has allowed them to possess the ball frequently in the attacking half, and they've also come into shape nicely when Los Blancos find themselves in front of goal, even if the opportunities are few and far between. That's true for both teams -- no shots on goal just yet at Anfield, the two sides combining for just 0.2 expected goals so far.
19' Tottenham Hotspur are on the board against Copenhagen, with Brennan Johnson scoring his first European goal since bagging the lone goal in the Europa League final in May. Xavi Simons, Spurs' most notable summer signing, notches his second assist since joining the club.
17' The Greek side are off to the races against Dutch champions PSV with Gelson Martins notching his first Champions League goal of the season as Olympiacos target their first win of the league phase.
18' A little back-and-forth at Anfield -- Liverpool go on the counter, with Hugo Ekitike, Florian Wirtz and Dominik Szoboszlai fall into line but they cannot get a shot off, allowing Real Madrid to muster a counter of their own. It ends with Kylian Mbappe in front of goal but he cannot get a great touch on the ball so it goes flying over the crossbar instead of challenging goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili.
12' Luciano Spaletti's first Champions League game in charge of Juventus is not off to a flying start -- Maximiliano Araujo with a thunderous strike from an angle and it's 1-0 to the visiting Sporting Lisbon.
11' It's still very early in the big match at Anfield but both sides have had a look at goal to start this one, though the only shots of the game so far have been Alexis Mac Allister's off-target attempts. Hugo Ekitike has looked bright to start this one for a Liverpool side who have arguably been better so far, though Real Madrid had a moment of promise when Arda Guler stood on a freekick yards from goal.
4' In a battle of two sides off to a perfect start in the Champions League, Bayern Munich strike first! Paris Saint-Germain's giveaway is Serge Gnabry's gain and even though Lucas Chevalier gets a save on Bayern's first attempt, Luis Diaz scores on the rebound. It's his fifth goal in six games and it marks a strong start for Bayern, who have so far won every one of their games this season.
Bayern have blitzed the two lesser opponents that they ran into and were extremely impressive in dismantling Chelsea, against whom they conceded from one of the two high grade chances they have allowed throughout this competition. So far in the Champions League they have allowed only 1.4 expected goals (xG). To contextualize that, even Arsenal are at 1.46. In the Bundesliga too, Bayern are a lockdown defense, four goals and six xG conceded through nine games, all of them wins. Just look at their shots allowed chart below and how there is legitimately only one chance there that is better than one in three.
At the other end, it's like every day is November 5 for Harry Kane. There's fireworks everywhere. His 18 games this season have delivered 25 goals and three assists, establishing the England captain as a legitimate contender for the Ballon d'Or. Flanking him with Michael Olise and Luis Diaz is only going to buttress that case over the coming months. The latter might have had the feel of a curious way to spend $85 million -- a 28-year-old winger who has never set the scoring charts alight -- but when you're Bayern Munich you can make a few missteps, which this may not prove to be, and still win the Bundesliga title.
That, however, is the problem with assessing this team's standing among the European contenders. Bayern might be blitzing the Bundesliga but, well, have you seen most of the Bundesliga? Borussia Dortmund are performing credibly so far in the Champions League but there is only one other German side ranked in the top 20 by club ELO, a Bayer Leverkusen side who are falling like a stone. Eintracht Frankfurt will do well to cling on to a top 24 berth while conceding four-plus goals a game and in the Europa League VfB Stuttgart are hardly setting the continent alight.
