A round-up of Wednesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
Robert Lewandowski scored a hat-trick in his first Champions League game for Barcelona to power the Catalans to an emphatic 5-1 home win over Viktoria Plzen on Wednesday.
Midfielder Franck Kessie put Barca in front in the 13th minute, heading in his first goal for the club following a corner.
Lewandowski extended their lead with a right-footed finish into the bottom corner in the 37th, after Barca had survived a scare which almost led to them conceding a penalty and having a man sent off.
Viktoria were awarded a penalty and Barca defender Andreas Christensen was shown a red card for hauling down Jhon Mosquera but a VAR review showed Mosquera had struck Christensen with an elbow and the decision was overturned, the Plzen forward being shown a yellow card instead.
Plzen pulled themselves back into the game in the 44th minute with a header from Jan Sykora but Barca quickly restored their two-goal cushion when Lewandowski produced a diving header from an Ousmane Dembele cross in first-half stoppage time.
The Poland striker completed his treble midway through the second period, meeting a layoff from Ferran Torres and curling the ball inside the far post with one touch.
"That's how Robert is, insatiable," said coach Xavi Hernandez of the striker Barca paid Bayern Munich 45 million euros for in a big summer of spending in a bid to return the club to past glories.
"The way he trains, the way he helps the team, his humility, his work-rate...I can't praise him enough because it's not just about his hat-trick, it's the way he works, how he knows to dominate the tempo of the game," Xavi added.
It was Lewandowski's sixth hat-trick in the Champions League and he became the first player in the competition's history to score one for three different clubs, having netted trebles for Bayern and Borussia Dortmund.
Torres completed a hugely satisfying evening for Xavi Hernandez's side by scoring the fifth goal to put Barca top of Group C. They head to Bayern next on September 13, when Plzen host Inter Milan.
It was a near-perfect night for Barca and in stark contrast to their first game of the competition last season, when they were outclassed and beaten 3-0 by Bayern on their way to crashing out at the group stage for the first time in 21 years.
Liverpool get a thrashing from Napoli
Liverpool, Champions League runners-up last season, suffered a shock 4-1 defeat by Napoli in their opening Group A game at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium.
The Italian side was magnificent in the opening 45 minutes, going in 3-0 up at the break, having opened up a woeful Liverpool defence at will.
Juergen Klopp's team looked nothing like the side that reached the final last season, disorganised at the back and lacking any edge in midfield or attack.
Napoli have now beaten Liverpool on all three occasions they have hosted them in the competition's group stage and Luciano Spalletti's side will feel they have a real chance of getting out of a group that also features Ajax and Rangers.
Napoli were quick out of the blocks with Victor Osimhen hitting the post in the second minute and three minutes later they grabbed the lead when James Milner handled in the box and Piotr Zielinski converted the penalty.
Napoli were opening up Liverpool with ease and were awarded a second penalty when a VAR review ruled that Osimhen had been brought down by Virgil van Dijk. The Napoli forward opted to take the kick himself but his effort was saved by Alisson Becker.
Van Dijk had to clear off the line to keep out an effort by the outstanding Khvicha Kvaratskhelia after Osimhen had robbed a struggling Joe Gomez.
Gomez lost out again leading to the second goal when Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa played a quick one-two with Zielinski and slotted in off the inside of the post.
Liverpool had a brief spell of pressure, Van Dijk forcing a save out of Napoli keeper Alex Meret with a header and Harvey Elliott putting the ball wide from close range at the back post.
But Napoli were devastating in possession and substitute Giovanni Simeone made it 3-0 just before the break, slotting home after Kvaratskhelia had beaten Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez before slipping the ball across.
Liverpool replaced Gomez with Joel Matip but within two minutes of the restart Napoli went 4-0 up. Simeone found Zielinksi and the Pole's shot was blocked by Alisson before he reacted sharply to poke the ball home.
Klopp's side pulled a goal back two minutes later thanks to a fine curling shot from Luis Diaz but there was no way back for the English side.
Richarlison's late double helps Tottenham beat Marseille
Richarlison's first goals for Tottenham Hotspur helped them mark their return to the Champions League with a 2-0 victory over 10-man Olympique de Marseille in Group D.
The Brazilian forward, signed for a reported 60 million pounds ($69 million) from Everton in the summer, enjoyed a dream Champions League debut as he struck twice in five minutes late on to secure three points for his side that had not looked likely.
Richarlison rose to head home Ivan Perisic's pinpoint cross in the 76th minute and scored an almost identical goal from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg's cross to deflate Marseille.
Richarlison's brace glossed over a largely mediocre display by Tottenham, who were second best against a lively Marseille until the French side had Chancel Mbemba sent off three minutes into the second half for a foul on Son Heung-min.
Tottenham, who missed out on the Champions league for the past two seasons, did not register a shot on target in a lacklustre first half but Richarlison eventually ensured a perfect start for Antonio Conte's team.
They share top spot in the group with Sporting Lisbon, who beat Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0.
Marseille fans vented their frustration at the final whistle with ugly scenes as they clashed with stewards and police.
Conte elected to start with Richarlison alongside Tottenham's established strike duo Harry Kane and Son Heung-min for the second successive game and was richly rewarded.
Richarlison was denied his first Tottenham goal when he had an effort disallowed against Fulham at the weekend.
But he did not have to wait much longer to open his account as he displayed the cutting edge that Tottenham's attack had been lacking throughout the Group D opener.
Marseille, like Tottenham, have enjoyed an unbeaten start to the season and were comfortable during the first half.
Tottenham could not build any attacking momentum and the visitors looked sharper all over the pitch.
Former Arsenal player Matteo Guendouzi controlled the midfield and forced Tottenham keeper Hugo Lloris into a low save in first-half stoppage time.
Marseille suffered a blow in the 48th minute though when Son was played through on goal and was crudely taken down by Mbemba who was shown a red card by Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic.
Even then Tottenham struggled to make much impression and Marseille looked like taking home a point until Perisic delivered a superb right-footed cross from the left and Richarlison thumped a header past Pau Lopez.
Marseille did not learn their lesson and the Brazilian then found space in the area again to glance Hojbjerg's delivery into the net off the post in the 81st minute.
Last-gasp Griezmann goal gives Atletico victory
A goal in the 11th minute of stoppage-time by Antoine Griezmann earned Atletico Madrid a 2-1 home win over 10-man Porto in the Champions League after a frantic end to the match with all the goals coming in added time.
Atletico, who were without a victory in their last eight home fixtures in European competition, are level on three points in Group B with Club Brugge, who beat Bayer Leverkusen 1-0.
With the sides meeting in the competition's opening group fixture for the second year in a row, the game sprung to life after a dull first half when Atletico midfielder Koke smashed home in the 50th minute but the goal was ruled out for offside.
Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak was crucial to the hosts keeping a clean sheet through regulation time as the Slovenian made several good saves, including from a fine effort by Stephen Eustaquio in the 54th minute.
Eustaquio went close again and Oblak saved well from Joao Mario.
In the 81st minute, Porto were reduced to 10 men after striker Mehdi Taremi received a second yellow for diving inside the box.
Atletico had failed to register a single shot in the second half as full time approached but a minimum of nine minutes were added on following a lengthy delay when Porto midfielder Otavio was injured and had to be carried off the pitch on a stretcher.
Atletico defender Mario Hermoso opened the scoring two minutes into stoppage time when his deflected shot from the edge of the box left Porto keeper Diogo Costa helpless.
Porto midfielder Mateus Uribe levelled four minutes later from a penalty after Hermoso handled the ball inside the area.
With a 1-1 draw looming at the Metropolitano Stadium, substitute Griezmann sealed victory for the hosts with a close-range header in the 101st minute after Axel Witsel set the Frenchman up with a superb header following a corner.
Atletico next travel to Leverkusen on September 13 when Porto host Club Brugge.
Teenager Sylla gives Club Brugge winning start
Teenager Abakar Sylla scored the only goal of the match just before hal-ftime as hosts Club Brugge beat Bayer Leverkusen 1-0.
The 19-year-old scored in the 42nd minute when his flicked header from a corner to the near post was caught by Leverkusen goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky, but he fell back over the line with ball in hand to give the Belgian champions a winning start to their Group B campaign.
It was Sylla’s first goal for the club in his fifth start and topped a strong individual performance.
Leverkusen had the ball in the Brugge net twice in the space of four second-half minutes, but both were called back for off-side.
The first was a tight call when Callum Hudson-Odoi’s curling 73rd-minute free kick almost evaded all and bounced into the net, with the faintest of touches along the way from tall striker Patrik Schick.
Yet it was disallowed after a touchline review by the Bosnian referee Irfan Peljto. VAR showed Leverkusen’s Jonathan Tan was fractionally offside as he jumped alongside Schick, trying to get a touch onto the free kick.
The referee had a much easier decision soon after when Schick put the ball in the net but from a clearly offside position.
Leverkusen created more chances but failed to find their range, although Moussa Diaby forced home goalkeeper Simon Mignolet to touch his rasping shot onto the post and away to safety in the first half.
Mignolet was also at full stretch to deny a stinging free kick from substitute Adam Hlozek two minutes into stoppage time at the end of the game.
Brugge are at Porto next week while Leverkusen host Atletico Madrid at the same time in their next group games.
Sane dazzles as slick Bayern outclass Inter
Bayern Munich's Leroy Sane scored one goal and forced an own goal by Inter Milan as they beat the Italian side 2-0 away in their Champions League Group C opener on Wednesday.
The Germany international superbly controlled a pinpoint Joshua Kimmich cross before rounding Inter keeper Andre Onana, who was making his debut for the club, to give Bayern the lead in the 25th minute.
Man-of-the-match Sane also deserves credit for their second goal after dismantling the Inter defence with a lightning-quick double one-two with Kingsley Coman in the 66th before his shot was turned into the net by Inter captain Danilo D'Ambrosio.
Bayern, who bounced back following two consecutive draws in the Bundesliga, are now unbeaten in their last 29 Champions League group stage matches, having won the last eight.
They host Barcelona next week, while Inter, who have now lost their last two matches following their derby defeat by AC Milan on Saturday, take on Viktoria Plzen in the other group match.
The German champions shot out of the blocks and would have taken an early lead were it not for Onana who denied Thomas Mueller twice as well as Kimmich.
But he was beaten by Sane's first touch and clinical finish as Bayern took a deserved lead.
Cameroon international Onana, who replaced Samir Handanovic, came to the rescue once more in the 37th minute, punching an Alphonso Davies shot wide before Marcel Sabitzer's rebound whizzed just past the post.
The hosts recovered after the break and both Edin Dzeko and D'Ambrosio had chances but Bayern's win never looked in doubt after they added another through D'Ambrosio's own goal.
Inter's frustration was complete when Joaquin Correa benefited from a Bayern mistake but his shot, with only Neuer to beat, narrowly missed the target seven minutes from time.
Ajax sweep to four-goal win over Rangers
Ajax Amsterdam built a commanding early lead before overwhelming Rangers 4-0 in Champions League Group A at the Johan Cruyff Arena.
Edson Alvarez, Steven Berghuis and Mohammed Kudus scored in a one-sided first half and Steven Bergwijn added the fourth 10 minutes from time to complete the rout.
It was a dominant display from a new-look Ajax, who sold several key players in the off-season but still proved far too strong for the Scottish side, last season’s Europa League runners-up.
Defender Alvarez got the opening goal in the 17th minute with an easy header from a corner as the home side reaped reward for early pressure.
It continued as Ajax stroked the ball around the pitch, leaving Rangers chasing shadows with skipper Dusan Tadic at the heart of most of the enterprising attacking moves by the Dutch side.
The second goal came with a touch of fortune as Berghuis’s 32nd-minute effort was diverted into his own net by defender James Sand.
A minute later, the strength of Ghanaian international Mohammed Kudus led to a superb individual goal as he collected the ball, turned and ran with intent up the flank, holding off Rangers captain James Tavernier before hitting a sumptuous left- foot drive into the corner of the net.
Clinical Sporting ruin Eintracht's Champions League debut
Eintracht Frankfurt's long-awaited first match in the Champions League was spoiled by a 3-0 defeat at home to Sporting in their opening Group D match.
English forward Marcus Edwards put the Portuguese side in front from inside the area in the 65th minute and then two minutes later laid on the pass for Francisco Trincao to double the visitors' lead.
Nuno Santos deepened the hosts' misery by grabbing a third goal in the 82nd after impressive play from Pedro Porro down the right wing.
Sporting host Tottenham Hotspur next on September 13 while Frankfurt visit Olympique de Marseille.
Eintracht were European Cup runners-up in 1960 but had not previously reached the modern version of the competition until they qualified for this season's edition as winners of the Europa League.
There were 51,000 boisterous fans crammed into the Deutsche Bank Park for the occasion and they almost got off to the dream start when Randal Kolo Muani pounced on a soft back pass but the French forward was thwarted by goalkeeper Antonio Adan.
Sporting were awarded a penalty in the 15th minute when Edwards went down in the area but the referee overturned his decision after being advised by VAR to review the play on the pitchside monitor.
