IMAGES from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Wednesday
Liverpool regained top spot in the Champions League table and registered a first victory over Real Madrid in 15 years on Wednesday with a dominant 2-0 win courtesy of goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo.
Such was The Reds' superiority that they could afford the luxury of a rare Mohamed Salah penalty miss in between goals as they claimed a fifth win from five games to sit two points clear at the head of the new-look league format.
On a miserable night for the Spaniards, now 24th in the 36-team competition, Kylian Mbappe was well-shackled and also missed a penalty that would have drawn Real level against the run of play in the second half.
With Liverpool dominating possession and chances against the Champions League holders, Mac Allister struck the opener in the 52nd minute after a neat one-two with Conor Bradley in front of a delirious Kop end at Anfield.
Gakpo sealed the game in the 76th minute with a header past Thibaut Courtois from an Andy Robertson cross.
"When you play against teams like Real Madrid, it’s always nice to score, but the most important thing is that we won it, and I think in a really good way," Mac Allister said.
"We dominated the game, we deserved this."
The result continued boss Arne Slot’s scintillating start at Liverpool, who as well as their 100% Champions League record also sit top of the Premier League by eight points.
Liverpool had not beaten Real Madrid since 2009, failing to win any of the previous eight matches including two painful Champions League final defeats.
"It’s a big result, it was a massive game for us. Obviously, they got the better of us the last few times in the Champions League so we wanted to come out here tonight and put on a performance," said goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher.
His second-half penalty save against a confidence-sapped Mbappe brought one of the biggest roars of the night. "I don’t really look at the player too much, I was confident and thankfully I went the right way again," he said.
Slot has surpassed expectations in the transition from his popular predecessor Juergen Klopp, bringing more calm and control to Liverpool's play while retaining their relentless high press and swashbuckling attacking style.
The home side could have run away with the game in the first half, as Darwin Nunez had three glorious chances but found Courtois in formidable form. The biggest cheer of the first half came when right back Conor Bradley produced a stunning tackle to stop Mbappe's marauding run towards goal.
In the second half, after Mbappe's weak penalty was saved by Kelleher, Salah brought more gasps from the crowd when he sent his spot kick wide of the post.
Real coach Carlo Ancelotti is struggling in the Champions League: his side has now lost three of their five games.
"I think that to be totally honest with you, it was a fair result. Liverpool deserved to win. They have a really good dynamic at the moment," he acknowledged graciously.
The top eight teams qualify automatically for the last 16 while the next 16 enter a two-legged playoff to join them.
PSV stage dramatic comeback with three late goals to beat Shakhtar
Malik Tillman scored two late goals before substitute Ricardo Pepi netted five minutes into stoppage time to see PSV Eindhoven stage a dramatic comeback against 10-man Shakhtar Donetsk and win 3-2 in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Danylo Sikan and Oleksandr Zubkov had the Ukraine club 2-0 up at halftime but after Pedro Henrique was sent off with 21 minutes remaining, PSV were able to fashion a remarkable recovery that stretched their two-year unbeaten home record to 47 games.
Tillman squeezed home a free kick in the 87th minute and then on 90 minutes thumped home a shot from outside the box to level the scores.
American international Pepi then got the winner as PSV went one better than the heroics of their Dutch counterparts Feyenoord, who came back from 3-0 down to draw at Manchester City on Tuesday.
The victory pushed PSV up to 18th in the standings after five matches and left their opponents bewildered after Shakhtar had helped to ensure an exciting spectacle at the Philips Stadion.
The Ukraine champions proved lightning quick on counter-attacks and caught PSV with an early sucker punch in the eighth minute after quick combination play down the right saw Yukhym Konoplia set up Sikan whose sliding effort squeezed just beyond goalkeeper Walter Benitez.
Zubkov then struck a superb curling effort beyond Benitez’s outstretched arm for the second goal in the 37th minute, again set up by Konoplia who had robbed PSV left back Matteo Dams of the ball near the halfway line.
Despite PSV having numerous efforts on goal, Shakhtar looked comfortably on course for an upset away win until Pedro Henrique was sent off for a dangerous challenge on the ankle of Johan Bakayoko in the 69th minute.
That allowed PSV to pile on the pressure and the Ukrainian defence eventually crumbled after Tillman’s free kick squeezed in at the near post as Dmytro Riznyk failed to hold on to the ball.
Goalkeeper Riznyk had been one of the side's heroes up to then, dealing with everything the Dutch threw his way, but he had no chance when Tillman cued up a long-range effort on the stroke of fulltime.
The panic-stricken visitors then allowed PSV to slide in the winner as Pepi finished off a series of passes across the face of goal, with an effort that went in off the post, to the delirious delight of the home support.
“It was rare, actually unbelievable,” said PSV skipper Luuk de Jong.
"You have to score the first goal and once you do that it gives you an extra boost. But we just couldn’t find a way of scoring – until Malik took that free kick.
"Brilliant to take three points in that manner. We are going to celebrate properly in the changing room," he added.
Villa held by depleted Juventus
Aston Villa had to settle for a 0-0 draw against depleted Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday after a last-gasp effort by Morgan Rogers was chalked off for a foul on Juventus keeper Michele Di Gregorio.
Villa thought they had won it at the death when Di Gregorio failed to catch a free kick, but Diego Carlos fouled the Juventus keeper as Rogers was lashing the ball into the net, and boos poured out from the home fans after the final whistle.
"It was the interpretation of the referee, only the interpretation," Villa manager Unai Emery told reporters. "For me, of course (the call was harsh), here in England, I know usually not fault because it was very soft contact. And in Europe, could be fault."
The match was far from a classic, with Juventus seemingly content to keep possession, and both sides squandered chances, with Villa's best coming from Lucas Digne who hammered a free kick off the crossbar seconds before halftime.
Midway through the second half, Francisco Conceicao's short-range header from a corner looked destined for the back of Villa's net but their World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emi Martinez dived to get his fingertips to the ball. Television replays showed a mere sliver of the ball failed to cross the goalline.
Villa captain John McGinn almost gave the home side the lead when he latched on to a pass from Leon Bailey in the 70th minute, but the Scotland international's shot was blocked by Manuel Locatelli.
"We were closer than them to winning the match," Emery said. "They're very difficult to beat but we created a plan. There weren't many clear chances for either team."
Emery's team, who started their Champions League campaign with three victories and three clean sheets, are ninth in the table after five games.
Victory would have been a big confidence boost for the home side, who have not won since their 2-0 Champions League victory over Bologna on Oct. 22 and have slipped to eighth in the Premier League table with one win in their last five games.
Their Italian visitors, who are unbeaten in Serie A this season but had only 14 outfield players available on Wednesday, are 19th in the 36-team table. The top eight after eight matches qualify automatically for the last 16, with the next 16 sides entering a two-leg playoff to try to join them.
"We always want to win, we have three games to qualify," Juve manager Thiago Motta said. "An important moment, where we have to play every game to the maximum as we did today."
Dortmund beat Dinamo Zagreb 3-0 to stay firmly on qualification course
Borussia Dortmund eased past hosts Dinamo Zagreb 3-0 in the Champions League on Wednesday to stay firmly on course for a top-eight finish and automatic qualification to the knockout stage.
Jamie Bynoe-Gittens fired last year's finalists into a deserved lead in the 41st minute before the unmarked Ramy Bensebaini headed in their second goal in the 56th.
Forward Serhou Guirassy, back after a short illness, also got on the scoresheet in the 90th, slotting in after coming on as a substitute in a perfect dress rehearsal ahead of Saturday's big Bundesliga clash against leaders Bayern Munich.
The Ruhr valley club, who also hit the woodwork twice, have now won four of their five matches in the competition despite struggling on the road in the Bundesliga this season with no away wins.
They are now on 12 points in fourth place of the new-format Champions League with three games left. Dinamo are on seven points in 23rd.
The top eight teams automatically qualify for the knockout stage while the next 16 teams go into qualification playoffs.
"To win away from home is something that feels great," Dortmund coach Nuri Sahin told a press conference.
"It is important for the table, for our morale. It was not an easy game but we let the ball roll and after the 1-0 we became even more dominant. Now we need to keep working."
"I look forward to that game (against Bayern) but I want to enjoy the evening tonight with my boys and from tomorrow the focus will be on Bayern," Sahin said.
It was one-way traffic from the start with Dortmund, controlling possession and hitting the woodwork through Bensebaini's looping header and Donyell Malen's effort a little later.
The Dutch forward then saw Dinamo keeper Danijel Zagorac spectacularly stop his point-blank header in the 41st, seconds before the ball landed with Bynoe-Gittens who shook off two defenders and unleashed an unstoppable shot past the keeper.
Bensebaini then did it better himself, heading in a corner after being left with far too much space in the box.
Dinamo's Zagorac had to come to the rescue again in the 65th, palming a deflected Malen shot wide.
Zagorac could do nothing in the final minute of the game when Guirassy broke clear and pounced on a deflected pass to slot in through the keeper's legs.
Benfica secure superb comeback win over Monaco
Benfica twice came from behind to end AS Monaco's unbeaten run in the Champions League on Wednesday, scoring two late headers to grab a thrilling 3-2 win at the French high-fliers who had Wilfried Singo sent off.
Monaco's Eliesse Ben Seghir got his side off to the perfect start, breaking the deadlock in the 13th minute by ghosting into the box to rifle home Aleksandr Golovin's pullback after a superb counter-attack.
Benfica took control and should have equalised in the 37th minute when Angel Di Maria snapped up a poor back-pass, but Radoslaw Majecki saved, and Nicolas Otamendi's header from the resulting corner flew just wide.
The second half started frenetically with Monaco's Breel Embolo smacking a shot off a post, a miss that proved costly when Benfica's Vangelis Pavlidis made the most of Monaco defender Caio Henrique's weak header to steal the ball and equalise.
The chaos continued as both sides had goals ruled out for offside by VAR before Monaco centre back Wilfried Singo picked up his second yellow card just before the hour mark.
Monaco went ahead again as substitute Soungoutou Magassa picked the perfect time to score his first goal for the club, charging on to Christian Mawissa's angled pass and drilling it low into the corner to restore their lead in the 67th minute.
With Monaco tiring, their Portuguese visitors sensed an opening and winger Di Maria produced a superb cross for Arthur Cabral to level in the 84th minute. Four minutes later the Argentine attacker crossed for Zeki Amdouni to head the winner.
Monaco slipped to eighth place in the 36-team standings on 10 points. Benfica are 14th on nine.
Misfiring Girona suffer 1-0 loss at Sturm Graz
Girona lost 1-0 at Sturm Graz in the Champions League on Wednesday as Mika Biereth's second-half goal secured the hosts' first points of the competition's group stage.
Sturm celebrated their first victory over a Spanish side in Europe, as well as their first Champions League group points in over 23 years. Girona became the first Spanish team in Champions League history to lose four of their opening five matches.
Both teams are outside the playoff section with three matches left, Girona in 30th place and Sturm 29th, both on three points.
Although Girona dominated possession and controlled most of the match, they never fully tested the Sturm defence, only registering one shot on goal.
Sturm's Biereth broke the deadlock just before the hour mark, slotting home from close range after Girona keeper Paulo Gazzaniga had saved a shot from inside the box.
"I go into every game expecting to score. A lot of my goals are rebounds and some would call that lucky, but it's about getting into the right positions to make it easy, and more often than not I hit the back of the net," Biereth said.
Girona coach Michel is still confident his team can reach the knockout stages.
"We must accept that we lost a match in which we had our chances, but we are not out of the Champions League. We have to keep fighting for a dream that is still alive," he said.
"This is something we cannot lose. The challenge is there, and at home, with our people, we will have to turn it around.
"We started very well and created chances, but we lacked the right pace to break down a defence like Sturm Graz's," Michel added.
Girona, surprise third-place finishers in LaLiga last season, should have scored midway through the first half when Ivan Martin found himself unmarked in front of an unguarded net but he somehow sent the ball over the bar.
"The chance missed by Martin in the first half, with the score at 0-0, could have completely changed the match, but that is football," Michel said.
As time ran out for the Spanish side, they poured forward and Cristhian Stuani sent a header wide.
Gazzaniga moved up the pitch for a last-ditch corner, only for Girona to narrowly escape conceding a second goal after Sturm swiftly cleared the ball.
"Girona might not be a big name like Barcelona or Real Madrid, but there's a reason that they're here, and I'm really pleased that we've broken the losing streak against them (Spanish teams)," Sturm coach Jurgen Samuel said.
Mukau double earns Lille win at Bologna
Jhon Lucumi scored Bologna's first goal of the Champions League but they fell to a 2-1 home defeat by Lille on Wednesday, with Ngal'ayel Mukau netting twice for the visitors.
Lille, who have beaten Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid and drawn with Juventus, are 12th in the standings on 10 points while Bologna are 33rd on one point after slumping to a third successive defeat.
"I think it's beyond all expectations given the first four matches, which were very difficult," Lille manager Bruno Genesio told a press conference.
"After the draw, given our calendar, it was difficult to expect 10 points after these games.
Mukau opened the scoring for Lille a minute before the break before Bologna struck through Lucumi in the 63rd minute.
The home fans were still celebrating when Mukau scored his second three minutes later and Bologna were unable to find another goal.
Bologna came into the game as the only side in the competition yet to score, and in the fifth minute they looked to have found the breakthrough but Thijs Dallinga's effort was disallowed for offside.
Lille thought they had found a way through but Alexsandro's header from a corner came crashing back off the upright.
The visitors had another chance when Matias Fernandez-Pardo skipped through the Bologna defence but keeper Lukasz Skorupski was quick off his line to stop him getting his shot away.
Lille did not have long to wait, however, and the goal came from poor Bologna defending. Stefan Posch's attempted clearance came back off teammate Sam Beukema and Jonathan David was quickest to react and pull the ball back for Mukau.
He had time to settle himself for the strike and when Charalampos Lykogiannis blocked the goalbound effort, Mukau made no mistake at the second attempt.
Fernandez-Pardo had another chance to get the better of Skorupski, but again the Bologna keeper got down to snatch the ball away as the Lille forward attempted to take it past him.
Dallinga had a header saved by Lille keeper Lucas Chevalier but Bologna could finally celebrate when Lykogiannis floated a free kick into the box and Lucumi got ahead of everyone to poke the ball in at the near post.
Elation turned to heartbreak for Bologna when Fernandez-Pardo was allowed make his way into the area yet again and this time he pulled the ball back for the unmarked Mukau who steered his shot in from close range.
"We should have ridden that wave and instead we didn't succeed," Bologna coach Vincenzo Italiano told reporters.
"It's a shame because we can't win."
Red Star Belgrade crush VfB Stuttgart 5-1 to earn first points
Red Star Belgrade came from a goal down to thrash visitors VfB Stuttgart 5-1 in the Champions League on Wednesday and earn their first points in the competition.
In a pulsating start the visitors silenced the home crowd when Ermedin Demirovic volleyed in from close range to give them a fifth-minute lead.
Red Star, desperate to put points on the board after four consecutive defeats, levelled through Silas, on loan from Stuttgart, seven minutes later.
With Red Star's fans growing louder the hosts took the lead in the 31st minute with a fierce volley from Rade Krunic.
The hosts should have scored again early in the second half, wasting golden chances with two consecutive counter-attacks and with Silas firing over the bar from close range in the 62nd.
But the pressure eventually paid off when unmarked Mirko Ivanic headed in at the far post in the 65th minute to make it 3-1 before another quick break allowed Nemanja Radonjic to add another four minutes later. Radonjic bagged his second goal of the evening in the 89th.
Both teams are on the elimination places with three matches left, with Red Star on three points in 31st spot and Stuttgart with a point more in 27th.
Celtic's Maeda rescues 1-1 home draw against Brugge
Celtic and Club Brugge played out a 1-1 draw in the Champions League on Wednesday, with Daizen Maeda equalising after an own goal by defender Cameron Carter-Vickers had given the visitors a first-half lead.
The stalemate leaves Celtic in 20th position on eight points, one point ahead of Brugge in 22nd, with both sides remaining in the knockout playoff spots in the 36-team table.
Carter-Vickers blundered in the 26th minute when he misjudged a back pass intended for goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who had drifted out of position, allowing the ball to sneak into the bottom corner.
The visitors dominated the first half with intense high-pressing that caused problems for Celtic, who were far from their best.
After the break, however, the hosts looked in better shape and Maeda levelled when he curled in a superb shot from the right of the box in the 60th minute.
Brendan Rodgers' side fought for a winner but ultimately settled for a draw, maintaining their unbeaten home record in all competitions this season.
