Champions League Matchday 3: Chelsea, Roma Draw in Thriller; Messi Hits Milestone
Chelsea and Roma did not disappoint, playing to a 3-3 thriller in the Champions League headliner on Tuesday. While those teams split the points, a number of powers collected all three, with Manchester United, Bayern Munich, PSG, Barcelona and Juventus all securing victories to wrap up Matchday 3 and get the group stage to the halfway point.
Lionel Messi's free kick gave Barcelona some breathing room in its win over Olympiakos and was the 100th goal he's scored in UEFA club competitions. His former teammate, Neymar, scored on a free kick as well as part of PSG's romp at Anderlecht. Here's how the day's action played out:
CSKA Moscow 0, FC Basel 2
Benfica 0, Manchester United 1
Anderlecht 0, PSG 4
Bayern Munich 3, Celtic 0
Chelsea 3, Roma 3
Qarabag 0, Atletico Madrid 0
Juventus 2, Sporting CP 1
Barcelona 3, Olympiakos 1
Here are full highlights from throughout the day's action:
OLYMPIAKOS SCORES CONSOLATION GOAL
Dimitrios Nikolaou made up for his earlier own goal with a nice header of his own to get Olympiakos on the board, but it was nothing more than late consolation in a 3-1 Barcelona victory.
MANDZUKIC NETS GO-AHEAD GOAL FOR JUVE
Juventus was facing potential dropped points at home, but Mario Mandzukic's 84th-minute strike put the Old Lady in position for the win, with the Croatian scoring on a six-yard header to do the honors.
DI MARIA FINISHES OFF ANDERLECHT
Angel Di Maria capped a 4-0 rout for PSG with a deft chip over the keeper while on the breakaway, ending another dominant Champions League showing for the French powerhouse.
BASEL CAPS ITS ROAD WIN
Taulant Xhaka turned provider after scoring earlier, setting up Dimitri Oberlin for Basel's late second goal in a 2-0 win at CSKA Moscow.
HAZARD BRINGS CHELSEA BACK
After watching Roma score three straight to seize the lead, Chelsea pulled back level, with Eden Hazard scoring his second of the day. His glancing header tucked inside the far post to make it 3-3 in the 75th minute.
RASHFORD PUTS MAN UNITED UP
Manchester United got its breakthrough at Benfica, and it came from teenage sensation Marcus Rashford, though this one was of a unique variety. His long-range free kick was caught by Benfica goalkeeper Mile Svilar, who then proceeded to back into his own goal in possession of the ball in the 64th minute.
NEYMAR TUCKS FREE KICK UNDER WALL
With Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani having already scored, you figured it was only a matter of time before Neymar got in the mix, and he did just that by tucking a free kick under the wall to make it 3-0 PSG at Anderlecht.
SUPERB DZEKO GIVES ROMA LEAD
Roma battled back from a two-goal deficit in London to pull even with Chelsea, with former Premier League striker Edin Dzeko doing the honors on a phenomenal volley from a left-sided angle in the 65th minute.
Roma went better five minutes after, with Dzeko heading home off Aleksandar Kolarov's free kick to take a stunning lead
MESSI FREE-KICK MAGIC FOR BARCELONA
With Barcelona down to 10 men and nursing a one-goal lead, you'll never guess who stepped up and created some breathing room.
Lionel Messi's sensational free kick extended Barcelona's lead to 2-0, with him scoring the 100th goal of his career in UEFA club competitions in his typical, magical fashion.
Lucas Digne followed soon after with another insurance strike, created by Messi, ensuring Barcelona won't be shocked in its home park.
HUMMELS PUTS CELTIC AWAY
It didn't take long into the second half for Bayern Munich to stake its claim to all three points. Mats Hummels extended Bayern's lead to 3-0 over the Scottish power, all but sealing the result with his header off Arjen Robben's corner kick.
CAVANI MAKES IT TWO FOR PSG
PSG scored early in the first half, and it managed to score late as well. Edinson Cavani followed Kylian Mbappe's opener with a header to double the club's advantage at Anderlecht.
PIQUE SENT OFF
Gerard Pique thought he'd scored Barcelona's second goal. Instead, he saw his second yellow card and was sent off just before halftime for trying to redirect a cross in deliberately with his arm.
HAZARD EXTENDS CHELSEA'S ADVANTAGE, KOLAROV CANCELS IT OUT
Eden Hazard started and finished Chelsea's second goal, volleying home at the far post with a clinical finish in the 37th minute.
It didn't take long for Roma to answer, though, with Aleksandar Kolarov breaking through on the left side and blasting one by Thibaut Courtois, with the help of a deflection, to make it 2-1.
KIMMICH HEADER DOUBLES BAYERN'S LEAD
The latest Jupp Heynckes era is off and running at Bayern Munich, with Joshua Kimmich heading across goal toward the upper left-hand corner to give Bayern a 2-0 lead over Celtic in the 29th minute.
PJANIC FREE KICK BRINGS JUVE LEVEL
Miralem Pjanic did what he does best–bury free kicks–to bring Juventus even with Sporting CP after Alex Sandro's early own goal:
XHAKA PUTS BASEL ON TOP OF CSKA
Taulant Xhaka–brother of Arsenal midfielder Granit–gave FC Basel the lead at CSKA Moscow with a wonderful hit from long distance.
OWN GOAL BENEFITS BARCELONA
Gerard Deulofeu's cross was turned into Olympiakos's net by defender Dimitrios Nikolaou, giving Barcelona the advantage at Camp Nou. Typically, Barcelona doesn't need much help scoring at home, but it'll certainly accept the gift.
MULLER GETS BAYERN ON THE BOARD
Thomas Muller pounced on a rebound off a saved header from Robert Lewandowski to give Bayern Munich the early edge over Celtic. With the two sides level on three points after two games, it's a big result in determining who will be in the top two with PSG heading into the final half of group play.
DAVID LUIZ STUNNING CURLER PUTS CHELSEA UP ON ROMA
David Luiz may be largely a defender, but his attacking chops were on display early at Stamford Bridge. His curling blast from over 20 yards out defied physics and put Chelsea up 1-0 on Roma.
JUVENTUS GOES DOWN ON EARLY OWN GOAL
Alex Sandro scored into the wrong net for Juventus, putting the Italian champions into an early hole against Sporting Lisbon in Turin. There wasn't much he could do, with Gianluigi Buffon's sliding save had the ball ricochet off the Brazilian's leg while in stride trying to defend the play.
MBAPPE TALLIES EARLY FOR PSG
PSG has coasted in the Champions League (and Ligue 1) with its new cavalcade of stars, and Kylian Mbappe has fit right in. He's scored three minutes in vs. Anderlecht to give PSG a 1-0 lead.
Here are the lineups for all of the day's matches:
CSKA Moscow vs. FC Basel
Benfica vs. Manchester United
Anderlecht vs. PSG
Bayern Munich vs. Celtic
Chelsea vs. Roma
Juventus vs. Sporting CP
Barcelona vs. Olympiakos
The Champions League resumes later this month, with Matchday 4 kicking off on October 31 and continuing November 1 with the reverse fixtures from Matchday 3.
