UEFA Champions League 2024/2025

[Trollheart]

Here then is the League Table after Matchday 3





Note: Mistake on Real Madrid, who have not drawn any of their matches. I typed in the wrong place. That's what happens when you have to create your own league tables (no I couldn't find one online I could use, oddly). Real's tally should read
W2 D0 L1 not W2 D1 L0

Dammit! Also Atletico Madrid, which should read
W1 D0 L2 instead of W0 D1 L2

[Trollheart]

I know! For someone who hates maths, I sure do love my statistics and calculations, don't I?

Anyway, it's time once again to look at

Nations' Progress.

Let's see who did well tonight, and who did, ah, not so well, and if the order has changed since the first two matchdays.

Austria
Red Bull Salzburg and Sturm Graz, despite their hard-sounding names, continue to fail to earn a single point or win a single match. Salzburg went down 2-0 to Dinamo Zagreb while Sturm Graz fell to the same score when they met Sporting.

Austrian tally (After Matchday 2): L2
Austrian tally (Matchday 3): L2
Austrian tally (so far): L4

Belgium
Even with just the one club in the competition, the Belgians still far outpace the two teams of Austria, having at least one win under their belt. Tonight they succumbed to Inter Milan 3-1, but at least they have goals to their name.

Belgian tally (after Matchday 2): W1, L1
Belgian tally (Matchday 3): L1
Belgian tally (so far): W1, L3

Croatia
With just the one team also competing, Croatia had no wins at the end of matchday 2, but managed to notch up their first against the eternally struggling Austrians, beating Salzburg 2-0. They're on their way.

Croatian tally (end of Matchday 2): D1, L1
Croatian tally (Matchday 3): W1
Croatian tally (so far): W1, D1, L1

Czech Republic
In the same position, teamwise, as Croatia, the Czechs are doing better, having a win and a draw to their name. Tonight they suffered their first defeat, and a big one as Man City rolled over them, putting five past them without reply. Ouch.

Czech tally (end of matchday 2): W1, D1
Czech tally (Matchday 3): L1
Czech tally (so far): W1, D1, L1

England
English clubs, overall, have been doing very well. Though both Manchester City and Arsenal only drew their first games, they came back with convincing wins, and all of them won tonight. Arsenal narrowly beat Shakhtar, Villa were commanding against Bologna, Liverpool fought out a cagey 1-0 against Leipzig while Man City crushed Sparta Prague five-nil.

English tally (end of matchday 2): W6, D2
English tally (Matchday 3): W4
English tally (so far): W10, D2

France

French teams have also been doing well, with PSG and Lille both winning their first but losing their second game, while Brest has been taking scalps, with 2 wins to their tally so far. Tonight, though PSG and Brest could only manage a draw, to PSV and Bayer Leverkusen respectively, Lille took all three points against Atletico.

French tally (after matchday 2): W4, L2
French tally (Matchday 3): W1, D2
French tally (so far): W5, D2, L2

Germany
The Germans had mixed fortunes initially, with only 2 of the 5 teams they have in the competition winning, while three lost a match each and one (Leipzig) lost both. Tonight it was a similar story, as Leverkusen were held to a draw by Lille and Bayern were beaten by Barcelona, Leipzig fell (their third defeat) to Liverpool, while Borussia Dortmund were thrashed by Real, the only German team to win being Stuttgart, who beat Juventus.

German tally (after matchday 2): W5, D1, L4
German tally (Matchday 3): W1, D1, L3
German tally (so far): W6, D2, L7

Italy

Italy also had a mixed opening two days, with more wins than losses or draws, but just. The only team to win both their matches was Juventus, while AC Milan lost both theirs. Atalanta, Bologna and Inter both had one draw each, but only Atalanta and Inter notched up a victory. Tonight, again like the Germans, much the same. Juventus lost to Stuttgart, Bologna lost to Villa, Atalanta drew with Celtic and only Inter and AC Milan managed victories, against Club Brugge and Young Boys respectively.

Italian tally (after Matchday 2): W4, D3, L3
Italian tally (Matchday 3): W2, D1, L2
Italian tally (so far): W6, D4, L5

Monaco

With just the one team, Monaco have been doing well, winning their first match (famously against the mighty Barca) and then drawing the next. Tonight they took on Red Star and hit them for five, adding another victory to their impressive list.

Monaco tally (after Matchday 2): W1, D1
Monaco tally (Matchday 3): W1
Monaco tally (so far): W2, D1

Netherlands

The Netherlands could definitely be doing better. With two teams in the competition they've only managed one win so far between them. Tonight Feyenoord did what they could to redress that balance, beating Benfica, but PSV could only manage a draw against PSG.

Dutch tally (after Matchday 2): W1, L2, D1
tally (Matchday 3): W1, D1
tally (so far): W2, L2, D2

Portugal

And Portugal also have two teams, though they're putting them to far better use, it would seem, than the Dutch, with three wins of four between them. Tonight Sporting beat Sturm Graz while Benfica fell to Feyenoord.

Portuguese tally (after Matchday 2): W3, D1
Portuguese tally (Matchday 3): W1, L1
Portuguese tally (so far): W4, L2, D1

Spain

Surprisingly, Spain had more losses than wins after matchday 2, with Barcelona, Real and Atletico all suffering unexpected defeats, while at least Girona... lost both their games. Tonight it was, though, revenge of the Spanish, as all but one of them won, Barcelona hammering Bayern, Real thrashing Dortmund and even Girona coming good as they took Slovan Bratislava for two goals. Not a clean sweep though, as Lille again spoiled the Spanish party by making Atletico the second team from Spain they've beaten. Much better though from the Spanish.

Spanish tally (after Matchday 2): W3, L5
Spanish tally (Matchday 3): W3, L1
Spanish tally (so far): W6, L6

Switzerland

The Swiss made the worst possible start they could, Young Boys being battered by Aston Villa and then  Barcelona, and it hasn't got any better, as they succumbed to another defeat, this time to Milan.

Swiss tally (after Matchday 2): L2
Swiss tally (Matchday 3): L1
Swiss tally (so far): L3

Scotland

The hopes of the Scottish people rest on Celtic's shoulders, and though they won their first match they lost their second in no uncertain fashion. Tonight they could only manage a draw, not a lot of use to them.

Scottish tally (after Matchday 2): W1, L1
Scottish tally (Matchday 3): D1
Scottish tally (so far): W1, L1, D1

Serbia

No luck for the Serbs either, as Red Star Belgrade add another loss to the two they already had.

Serbian tally (after Matchday 2): L2
Serbian tally (Matchday 3): L1
Serbian tally (so far): L3

Slovakia

With also only the one team in it, Slovakia are in the same situation, having lost both their opening games, and again beaten tonight, this time by Girona.

Slovakian tally (after Matchday 2): L2
Slovakian tally (Matchday 3): L1
Slovakian tally (so far): L3

Ukraine

No luck for Ukraine either, where their solitary team, Shakhtar Donetsk, though at least managing a draw in their first match, lost their second, and fell again tonight to Arsenal.

Ukrainian tally (after Matchday 2): L1, D1
Ukrainian tally (Matchday 3): L1
Ukrainian tally (so far): L2, D1

So how do the rankings stand now? Let's check it out.

WINS
England (10)
Spain (7)
Italy and Germany (6)
France (5)
Portugal (4)
Monaco and Netherlands (2)
Scotland, Czech Republic, Croatia and Belgium (1)


LOSSES[
Germany (7)
Spain (6)
Italy (5)
Austria (4)
Belgium, Serbia, Switzerland and Slovakia (3)
Ukraine, Portugal, Netherlands and France (2)
Scotland, Czech Republic and Croatia (1)

DRAWS
Italy (5)
France, Netherlands, England and Germany (2)
Ukraine, Scotland, Portugal, Monaco, Czech Republic and Croatia (1)

Generally speaking then, at a glance, England remains top with the most wins (10), Germany replaces Spain as the country with the most losses (7) while Italy is still drawing the most games, now up to 5. However, looking just a little deeper, Italy are also losing the most games of all the countries and are winning less than England and Spain, lagging in third place and tying with Germany on 6. England has not yet lost a single game and has only drawn 2, so definitely the most successful country so far as Matchday 3 comes to a close.

Of course, this is not a fair contest as England has far more teams than some of the other countries, and that of course gives them the scope for more wins. On the other hand, it also opens up the possibility of their losing more, which they have not. Not only that, England has less teams in the competition than either Germany or Italy, both well behind them in third place with six games won each, and that's between five teams, so really an average of almost one game per team - in the entire three matchdays so far - compared to England's 10 in 4, a much higher percentage of more than 2 per team.

And if you expand that out across the whole competition as played so far (and taking only the first four countries, in a total of 12 matches (3 for each team) England have won 10, so that's an 83% win ratio. Spain, out of 12 matches, have won 7, so 58%, while Italy and Germany, with one team extra each, have to be measured by a slightly different metric: playing, in all, then, 15 matches over the three matchdays, they've each won 6, so that's just over 2 per team, or 40%. England come out on top no matter what.

In terms of losses, it's the same thing. England are top (so to speak) with precisely no losses, while Germany and Italy, both with five teams, are right up there with 7 (Germany) and 5 (Italy). Even Spain have 6 losses for their 4 teams.  So running the same calculations, Germany and Italy are 7 for 15, or 47% (close to half) while Spain are 6 for 12, or 50% exactly. On that basis, Spain have lost 50% and Germany/Italy 47% (Germany only overhaul Spain at the top in terms of actual lost matches, not percentages, but in fact percentage-wise Spain are top) with England having a loss of 0%. So again, it's rule Britannia, or something.

In terms of draws, Spain are right at the bottom, with not a single one of their, so far, 12 matches ending level. England are higher up the pecking order here, with 2, but so too are France, Germany and Netherlands, while Italy tops the list with 5. Again, percentage-wise, Italy have 33%, or have drawn a third of all their matches, while England have a very much lower 16%. Germany's 2 draws out of 15 matches gives them a percentage of 13%, so actually lower than that of England, while France, with only 3 teams racks up a percentage of 22%, putting them behind Italy. Netherlands have just the 2 teams, so really their percentage is even higher, 33%, which puts them level with Italy.

I'm not going to rate them in a table based on percentages, because in the end it's the actual matches that count. But this little calculation will I hope just help to show that the above figures aren't exactly a totally accurate reflection of how each country is doing, as the number of teams each of them has is different.

When all is said and done though, the proof of the pudding is in the consumption, and English teams are really tucking in. So all we can say really, is

[Trollheart]

Okay, time to put this finely-tuned brain to work! Hey! You up there! Wake up or I'll stab you with a Q-Tip! Whaddya think I pay you for??

That's better!

Now that we've had three matchdays, I think some of the next matches may be a little easier to predict. I mean, sure, Barca may still have a bad day or Atalanta may start to play, but let's be honest: nobody is putting money on Sturm Graz or Shakhtar Donetsk to win, are they?

Sorry, but they haven't exactly covered themselves in glory have they? This is why I think I may be able to make more of a guess as to who will be the


in the next match and where


In order as they will be played then:

PSV Eindhoven v Girona: PSV haven't been great so far, but then Girona only won their first of three matches this week, so shrug. Can't call this one.

Prediction: Could go either way

Slovan Bratislava v Dinamo Zagreb: The Slovakians ain't got a single point, and while Dinamo have not exactly set the tournament alight, they have won 2 of their matches.

Prediction: A win for the Croatians.

Bologna v Monaco: Bologna, like most of their countrymen, have found it tough in the league so far, while Monaco have had a storming start, already fourth in the table with a perfect score of 3 wins, so this has to go to the visitors.

Prediction: Monaco for the win, Bologna for the sauce possibly. MMmm! Bolognese!

Borussia Dortmund v Sturm Graz: Now who expects the Austrian team to notch their first-ever point in the league this year against the German giants? I'd predict a big win for Borussia, but either way I don't see Sturm Graz surviving this.

Prediction: Borussia Dortmund to win by some margin.

Celtic v Leipzig: Can the Scots come good against the Germans? My own opinion would be no. Leipzig held Liverpool to just the one goal, though they have yet to gain a single point, but I just don't see Celtic rising to the occasion. Could be wrong, but I'm going for the Germans.

Prediction: Leipzig by a small margin

Liverpool v Bayer Leverkusen: Speaking of Leipzig's most recent opponents, this will be a big one. Will Liverpool slip up and become the first English team in this tournament to lose? Leverkusen are 6th in the table with 2 wins and only 1 draw, but then Arne's boys are second with a clean record of 3 wins. Hmm. Could be a cagey affair, could be a goalfest.

Prediction: Draw (probably not nil-nil though)

Lille v Juventus: The French team have been doing really well, sitting 15th with 2 wins, and have taken down major Spanish opposition already. Juventus have failed to meet the high bar Italian football, and their own history, sets for them, and lost their last match. They are however just above Lille in 14th, with just the one win, and will be looking for revenge. Still, I think Lille are unlikely to falter and I'd give it to the French team.

Prediction: Lille for the win

Real Madrid v Milan: Despite that one humiliating defeat, Real are flying with 2 wins, while Milan are another Italian team not exactly cruising along, with just one win and currently looking at being eliminated. This would have to be one you'd expect the Spanish to take.

Prediction: Real to win, possibly a walkover.

Sporting CP v Manchester City: Sporting have done kind of all right, 2 wins and 8th in the table, the last team - at the moment - liable to go through automatically to the Round of 16. But after a shaky start Man City have been buzzing, with 2 wins and now third in the table, so I'd imagine they'd walk this one.

Prediction: Man City to win.

Club Brugge v Aston Villa: Do you need to ask? The Belgians are looking at elimination, sitting in 26th place with two losses, whereas we're top of the table with three wins. Four wins after this.

Prediction: Villa for the win. In Bruges. Sorry.

Shakhtar Donetsk v Young Boys: This is a tricky one. Two of the worst teams (in terms of points, wins, and goals scored against) meet, and only one will leave. Well no, actually, UEFA's controversial "Thunderdome" proposal is still under review, so both teams will leave. But I can't see this being much of a match. Can Young Boys get their first ever point? Can Shakhtar? The smart money says no to both questions.

Prediction: Draw, most likely nil-all

Sparta Prague v Brest: I can't see the debutantes who have set the tournament on fire with 2 wins already faltering here against a Sparta side who are 21st in the table with just one win and 2 losses. Going to have to be another French victory.

Prediction: Brest look best for the win. Sorry.

Bayern Munich v Benfica: Both teams will be looking to bounce back from defeat in their last match, but particularly Bayern, who will have expected to be much higher up the table than they are, currently 23rd with just one win and 2 defeats. Benfica did well initially but lost their last match, but I think the Germans will come out all guns blazing and take them down. Not literally, of course, though football is, as has been remarked before by people far more knowledgeable about it than I, a funny old game.

Prediction: Bayern to win.

Inter Milan v Arsenal: Speaking of gun, the Gunners are one of the English teams not quite letting down the side, but have struggled in two of their matches, drawing the first and just barely winning the last one. Inter, by far the best of the five Italian teams in the league, are two places above Arsenal at 7th and have won all their games. Could be an upset for English football. Also, I hate Arsenal so...

Prediction: Inter to win.

Feyenoord v Red Bull Salzburg: I'm afraid once I see either of the Austrian teams I just assume they'll lose, as they have done up to now. I wonder what will happen if they come up against each other before being eliminated? At any rate, with no wins and no points versus Feyenoord's 2 wins and 6 points, 16th plays 34th and while miracles do sometimes happen in footy, I don't see it.

Prediction: Feyenoord to win

Red Star Belgrade v Barcelona: The word slaughter comes to mind. Can the pointless Serbians hold out against Spain's titanic legends? Duck to avoid low-flying pigs if you think they can, and don't forget, you owe me for that bridge I sold you.

Prediction: Barcelona to win easily

Paris Saint-Germain v Atletico Madrid

PSG have one win, Atletico have one, and the difference between them in terms of table positions is a massive 8 points. But Atletico are Atletico, so maybe. I don't know. Another one I'm not going to call.

Prediction: Could go either way

VfB Stuttgart v Atalanta: Again, neither team have really impressed, though Stuttgart did win their last match. Both teams are mid-table, so again no real way to know which side to bet on, so I won't.

Prediction: Could go either way

[Trollheart]

@jimmy jazz What did you think of that stupid fucking penalty? Were we robbed or what?

[jimmy jazz]

Nope. Definite pen. Couldn't believe it when I saw it. One of the dumbest things I've ever seen.

[Trollheart]

Well I haven't got the understanding of footy you do, of course, but was it not a clear mistake by the defender? Hardly a deliberate thing. And it's not like there were any Brugge players near the ball. I thought it was fucking stupid. And cost us our place too.

[jimmy jazz]

Well I haven't got the understanding of footy you do, of course, but was it not a clear mistake by the defender? Hardly a deliberate thing. And it's not like there were any Brugge players near the ball. I thought it was fucking stupid. And cost us our place too.

It wasn't deliberate it was Mings having a lapse in concentration. It's irrelevant though really as handball in the box is a penalty and Martinez had clearly played the ball so it was in play.

We'll qualify but it could cost us a place in the top 8, meaning an extra playoff round.

The good thing is I'm glad that happened now with three wins in the bag and not during the knockouts when it could literally end it all for us.

[Trollheart]

Matchday Four

PSV Eindhoven v Girona
(Netherlands v Spain)
Philips Stadion, Eindhoven

PSV scored in the first sixteen minutes from a long throw, somewhat reminiscent of Tonks' halfway-across-the-pitch throw that led non-league side Tamworth to their first ever FA Cup victory last week, and the Dutch team added a second just after the half hour, to put the match beyond Girona. But they weren't finished yet, not by a long chalk, or even a short one. Girona lost a man and from then on PSV capitalised, slotting in a third five minutes from time and completing the rout when the Spanish netted into their own goal three minutes later, to give the Dutch a four-goal victory, not that PSV needed the help.



Result: PSV Eindhoven 4 - 0 Girona
Next Opponent: Shakhtar Donetsk/Sturm Graz
Prediction was: Never made

Feyenoord v Red Bull Salzburg
(Netherlands v Austria)
De Kuip, Rotterdam

Could an Austrian team score their first goal and earn their first points, or would Feyenoord continue their good start and breeze past Salzburg? My money would be on the Dutch, but it was in fact the Austrians who scored first - in every sense: for their team, in the match, for their country - in extra time at the end of the first half to give themselves an unlikely lead. They only got the chance, though, thanks to a pretty ridiculously rolled ball from the Feyenoord keeper, but Salzburg still had a lot to do, and credit to them I guess.

Could they hold on to that precious lead though, that was the question, and actually they did better than that, adding a second on the hour, and then with the Dutch having a man sent off for a red card they, um, conceded one. With 9 minutes to go. Desperate to restore their two-goal cushion Salzburg raced forward, man down in the box and a penalty was the result. Unfortunately, the Austrian team's unfamiliarity with scoring in this tournament meant that spot kicks are hardly their forte, and the bar was struck, so 2-1 it remained. With time ticking away, four minutes left they made it safe with a third to finally win their first match. Hey, maybe Red Bull does give you wiiiings after all!


Result: Feyenoord 1 - 3 Red Bull Salzburg
Next Opponent: Manchester City/Bayer Leverkusen
Prediction was: Incorrect



Slovan Bratislava v Dinamo Zagreb
(Slovakia v Croatia)
Tehelne Pole, Bratislava

The Slovakians have not been having a good time of it in this competition, and Dinamo took full advantage as they put them to the sword, after Bratislava had grabbed an unlikely lead five minutes in. Dinamo were level within another five minutes though, and added a second as the half-hour passed. A third was on the cards, and it duly came in the ninth minute of the second half, with the Croatians completing a very bad night for Slovan Bratislava 18 minutes from time with their fourth.

Result: Slovan Bratislava 1 - 4 Dinamo Zagreb
Next Opponent: AC Milan/Borussia Dortmund
Prediction was: Correct

Bologna v Monaco
(Italy v Monaco)
Stadio Renato Dall'ara, Monaco 

Poor Bologna, back in Europe after decades, probably wish, on balance, they'd stayed at home. They've hardly set the competition alight, losing almost all their matches and with, I see from MOTD stats, a zero percent shot conversion rate! Small wonder, then, that they fell to Monaco, who continue to have a strong presence in the Champions League, scoring the only goal in this match with four minutes of normal time to go. The Italians must have been heartbroken, believing they had managed at least another draw, but the net bulged down their end and it was yet another defeat.

Result: Bologna 0 - 1 Monaco
Next Opponent: Lille/Benfica
Prediction was: Correct

Borussia Dortmund v Sturm Graz
(Germany v Austria)
Westfalenstadion, Dortmund

The other Austrian team in the competition could not emulate their cousin and win their first match, falling to the German giant after holding them for almost the entire match. A gift of a ball given away by Sturm Graz just outside the box led to Dortmund's first and only goal, but it was enough to win it five minutes from time.

Result: Borussia Dortmund 1 - 0 Sturm Graz
Next Opponent: Dinamo Zagreb/Sturm Graz
Prediction was: Correct (but not by the large margin I expected)

Celtic v RB Leipzig
(Scotland v Germany)
Celtic Park, Glashow

Celtic are really struggling in Europe, but then so are Leipzig, the worst-scoring of the German teams in the competition so far, but it was they who struck first, halfway through the first half, to give the Scots that oh-so-familiar sinking feeling. They almost went two behind soon after, riding their luck a little with the corner, and again from a Leipzig break, but things began to change for them when they levelled the game with a beautiful curling shot ten minutes from the break, and went in search of a second, which they got just before the half ended, the same player, Kuhn, netting for the second time.

In the second half Leipzig came close to restoring parity, but Schmichael was equal to it, and again, before Celtic slammed in a third to surely put the game beyond the Germans with less than twenty minutes to go. Celtic's second win in the competition, and hell but they needed it.

Result: Celtic 3 -1 RB Leipzig
Next Opponent: Club Brugge/Inter Milan
Prediction was: Incorrect

[Trollheart]

Liverpool v Bayer Leverkusen
(England v Germany)
Anfield, Liverpool

Liverpool were back at the top of the Premier League at the weekend, and with a perfect start in the Champions League must have fancied this against the mighty German side. Anfield is often the twelfth man, and the crowd certainly spurred their team on to a great win, though Leverkusen seemed to have scored first, but the goal was ruled out for handling. Liverpool went on the attack, but neither team had scored by the break. Second half though, entirely different kitchen utensil of sea creatures.

Diaz opened the scoring just past the hour with a superb shot, and from then on it was all the English team as Salah headed in for their second, flagged for offside but ruled in by VAR. Diaz took his second, and Liverpool's third, seven minutes from time, and they wrapped up a commanding performance with a fourth in extra time, Diaz with the hat-trick, Liverpool with yet another win.

Result: Liverpool 4 - 0 Bayer Leverkusen]
Next Opponent: Real Madrid/Red Bull Salzburg
Prediction was: Incorrect

Lille v Juventus
(France v Italy)
Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Villeneuve-d'Ascq

Mixed fortunes for French teams tonight as Lille could only draw with Italian giants Juventus, scoring just before the halfway mark in the first period, the Italians coming back just before the hour on the back of what looked like a soft penalty.


Result: Lille 1 - 1 Juventus

Next Opponent: Bologna/Aston Villa
Prediction was: Incorrect

Real Madrid v AC Milan
(Spain v Italy)
Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid

The second giant of Spanish football have been rather worryingly for them showing themselves not to be the unbeatable goal-scoring machine they have built their reputation on, and they showed this fragility again when they came up against Italy's AC Milan. The Italians were ahead on 11 minutes, Real awarded a penalty 12 minutes later and the scores were level. Before the break Milan were ahead again, Morata catching the rebound and slotting the ball beyond the Real keeper.

With 17 minutes to go Milan scored again, victory surely now looking certain for the Italians, Real facing another embarrassing defeat. The Spaniards almost pulled one back late on, but it was a fraction offside, then another last-minute effort drew the best out of the Milan keeper to give the Italians an important win.


Result: Real Madrid 1 - 3 AC Milan
Next Opponent: Liverpool/Slovan Bratislava
Prediction was: Incorrect

Inter Milan v Arsenal
(Italy v England)
San Siro, Milan

Inter are carrying the honour of Italy more or less, as the other four Italian teams - or at least three of them - perform poorly. Arsenal intended to keep up the 100 percent win record of English clubs in the tournament so far. Inter had the early chance, the ball coming off the crossbar, but a warning surely to the Gunners that they were in for a game tonight. They kept the pressure up, Arsenal seemingly unable to get near the ball and surviving attack after attack by the skin of their teeth. Why do people say that? Teeth don't have skin.

The English team did get a shot on goal, but easily gathered by the Inter keeper, a second attempt better as Arsenal began to play, and could have had a penalty but VAR said no. In the first of two minutes of extra time at the end of the half Inter broke free but a foul which led to a free became a shout for handball in the box and VAR nodded wisely and granted the Italians' wishes, Canhanoglu converting to put Inter ahead at the break.

Considering how Arsenal had been outplayed earlier on, that goal did in the end come against the run of play, as the Gunners had mostly taken control of the game, and Martinelli set about regaining that control in the second half, shooting into the side netting, but showing that the Englishmen were not lying down and taking it. A corner allowed them to come within a whisker of equalising, but Saliba missed it by a hair. Arsenal kept the pressure up, Inter now fighting to retain their one-goal lead, and you couldn't help but think the visitors were going to get their chance the longer the half went on.

All Arsenal now as they surged forward again, got another corner and almost forced Inter inter an own goal (geddit?) but it was cleared off the line. Didn't see a single Inter chance in the whole second half, their early dominance now a distant memory as Arsenal fought to draw level. Finally the Italians got their chance, but again only the outside of the net rippled, Arsenal close to going two down despite their possession.

Havertz almost grabbed the equaliser but it was blocked, definitely in otherwise. How close could the Gunners get without scoring? As the last minutes of extra time ran out, five becoming eight, they had one last chance but again blocked from Jesus and the whistle blew, Arsenal becoming the first English team to lose a match in this Champions League competition, but not for the want of trying. Sometimes, no matter what you do, it just is not going to be your day.

Result: Inter Milan 1 - 0 Arsenal
Next Opponent: RB Leipzig/Sporting CP
Prediction was: Correct



Sporting CP v Manchester City
(Portugal v England)
Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon

The man who will be attempting the almost impossible task of returning Manchester United to the legends they once were faced the other Manchester tonight, and bowed out in fine style as Sporting took them down after Foden had scored on four minutes, to put Pep's team in a commanding position, from which you would have expected they would have gone on to take control. But it seems tonight was an off one for most of the English clubs, and Sporting were level just before half time, going on to add another twenty seconds after the restart.

Things just got worse and worse for City, as Sporting were given a penalty two minutes later, Sporting now two goals ahead. City got their own penalty but of all the men to make an arse of it, Haaland hit the bar. Then, perhaps even more unbelievably, the Portuguese team got another penalty, leaving the English champions with too steep a mountain to climb, even for them. A game of three penalties, then, two taken, one not, and that was the difference. As an aside, this may have been seen by fans of Man United as their new manager beating their rivals, so essentially a sort of Manchester derby? Though,um, played in Lisbon. Ah you know what I mean.


Result: Sporting 4 - 1 Manchester City
Next Opponent: Arsenal/Feyenoord
Prediction was: Incorrect

Club Brugge v Aston Villa
(Belgium v England)
Jan Breydel Stadium, Bruges

Villa went into their fourth match with a perfect record of wins, Club Brugge have had mixed fortunes, so we must have been favourites. But the Belgians were at home, which can often make a difference, plus Villa were beaten at the weekend; would that fire them up or depress them? My money would have been on the former, and in fact Watkins went close early on but just the wrong side of the Belgian post. Brugge hit back but also hit the bar, then Martinez had to save the rebound. This was clearly going to be no walkover for the European leaders.

You couldn't fault Club Brugge's effort, striking twice in quick succession, but scoreless at the break, then a totally bizarre penalty awarded against Villa when Mings picked up the ball his keeper had tapped out, seen as handball! So Villa conceded their first goal in European football this season, to perhaps the most ridiculous mistake made in the competition. Could they come back after that? This was the question, and they did their best, but chances were few and far between, and in the end Brugge took the win, in the most bizarre circumstances you can think of.  A bad night for Villans, and so far, a bad night for English football too.

Result: Club Brugge 1 - 0 Aston Villa
Next Opponent: Celtic/Juventus
Prediction was: Incorrect

[Trollheart]

Shakhtar Donetsk v Young Boys
(Ukraine v Switzerland)
Arena Aufschalke, Gelsenkirchen

Two of the worst teams in the competition came up against each other, and surely we were in for a yawnfest and a nil-nil? Well, perhaps it was the night for teams who have so far not scored to start doing so, as Young Boys finally got their first ball in the net just before the half hour, even if it was a gift from the Ukrainians, who were level four minutes later, as they exploited a defence just as bad as theirs, which has let in 11 goals so far. All square, but Shakhtar had obviously tasted blood and wanted more, and they got it four minutes from the end of the half.

That, apparently, was it. I don't think I've heard before of a game effectively being won in the first half, with no further goals scored by either side, but that's where the coverage of the highlights ended, and as the score was shown I can only assume nothing of note happened in the second 45. Everything in fact seems to have happened over a fourteen-minute period in the first half.

Young Boys cruelly robbed of their first victory, their first point, but at least they saw their ball pass an opponent's keeper and nestle in the back of the net. Got to count for something. In reality, of course, counts for nothing. Shakhtar though are off the mark at last.


Result: Shakhtar Donetsk 2 - 1 Young Boys
Next Opponent: PSV Eindhoven/Atalanta
Prediction was: Incorrect

Sparta Prague v Brest
(Czech Republic v France)
Stadion Letna, Prague

The French debutantes continue to shine in their inaugural appearance at the competition, taking down Sparta Prague with their first goal just after the half-hour, their second coming with 12 minutes to go, and though Prague pulled on back in extra time, Brest's perfect start continues.

Result: Sparta Prague 1 - 2 Brest
Next Opponent: Atletico Madrid/Barcelona
Prediction was: Correct

Bayern Munich v Benfica
(Germany v Portugal)
Allianz Arena, Munich

Talk about Spanish upsets! Germany ain't been doing so well either, kamerad! The mighty Bayern Munich have lost both of their last games, and are nowhere near where they need to be - or expected to be, or were expected to be - in the table, and need to put that right without further ado. Kane did his best but could not find a way past the Benfica keeper, despite several attempts. In the second half Elise tried, but again into the keeper's hands, then Kane shot wide again, but you would have to think he was getting closer.

Benfica didn't seem to have had a shot on goal, playing a defensive line all through the game, and Bayern were bound to score against such play, and finally the Portugese net bulged just after the hour, giving the Germans their first win in three, and perhaps helping them back on track.


Result: Bayern Munich 1 - 0 Benfica
Next Opponent: Paris Saint-Germain/Monaco
Prediction was: Correct

[Trollheart]

Red Star Belgrade v Barcelona
(Serbia v Spain)
Red Star Stadium, Serbia

When you're just barely clinging on at the bottom of the league table, the last people you want to see drive into town is Barcelona, and Red Star must have been anticipating a thrashing here. The Serbians were under pressure from the off, as you would expect, and Barca opened the scoring on thirteen minutes, after a foul on Lewandowski resulted in a free, but Red Star came back just before the half hour to equalise, surely against the run of play, and surely nonplussing Barcelona.

Lewandowski re-established the Spaniards' lead though just before the break, catching the ball on the rebound after it had come back off the post. The second half saw him score again to put Barcelona in the driving seat, and before the hour they were four up, Red Star's single goal now looking very much like nothing more than a poor consolation as the Spanish team went into showboating mode. A fifth followed with still 15 minutes to go, and though the Serbs scored an unlikely second near the end, the night was indeed Barcelona's, another of the highest-scoring matches so far in this competition. And one of those others was theirs.

Result: Red Star Belgrade 2 - 5 Barcelona
Next Opponent: VfB Stuttgart/Brest
Prediction was: Correct

Paris St. Germain v Atletico Madrid
(France v Spain)
Parc des Princes, Paris

Neither team has done as well as they might have expected, and it was the French who came closest in the early stages, then their pressure told, and they scored in the 14th minute. Atletico went up the other end and forced a save out of the PSG keeper, the French giving the ball away in the box from the rebound and the Spanish scoring. All square, senors y monsieurs. Who would break the deadlock in the second half? Well again PSG came closest, shooting at the keeper and then over, and again into the keeper's arms after they had been awarded a free kick.

Atletico could not get out of their own half, but at the same time PSG were unable to capitalise on their one goal, and in the end Madrid raced clear and scored in stoppage time to take the game.


Result: Paris Saint-Germain 1 - 2 Atletico Madrid
Next Opponent: Bayern Munich/Sparta Prague
Prediction was: Not made

VfB Stuttgart v Atalanta
(Germany v Italy)
MHP Arena, Stuttgart

Stuttgart have been proving to be one of the only German teams in the Champions League to have consistent victories, while Atalanta, like many of the Italian sides, have struggled. It was they who scored first though, putting Atalanta one to the good in the second half, and then lobbing the Stuttgart keeper with two minutes of normal time to go, to take the game 2-0.


Result: VfB Stuttgart 0 - 2 Atalanta
Position in League Table:
Next Opponent: Red Star Belgrade/Young Boys
Prediction was: Not made

[Trollheart]

Overview: Matchday 4

Rather than write headlines, I'm just in future going to give  general sense of what happened on the night - or two nights - of the current matchday. Not a terrible night for Spanish football, with Barcelona recording another of the competition's highest scores, but then Real slipped to AC Milan, while Girona also lost out to PSV. Atletico came back from 1-0 to win against PSG, showing some fighting spirit. German football wasn't exactly waving the flag either, with Leipzig going down to Celtic, Stuttgart losing to Atalanta and even the mighty Bayern Munich could only manage a single goal against Benfica, while Bayer Leverkusen were thrashed by Liverpool.

However the big story of the night begins with Liverpool, who were the only English team to hold their head high and continue to win, and in fact make it to the top of the table by the end of the Matchday. Villa lost, in crazy circumstances (but we had not been playing well anyway), Arsenal fell to Inter and Man City were absolutely pummelled by Sporting, leaving the Merseyside team the only ones to continue flying the flag while the rest of the British empire collapsed, so to speak. A bad night for English football, but a good one for Scottish, as Celtic finally came good and beat their opponents by two goals.

Elsewhere in the table, we have only five teams now yet to score or gain a single point, these being the ones you would expect, though surprisingly perhaps the whipping boys (no pun intended) of the tournament up to now, Young Boys have finally one goal to their name, if not a point. Leipzig, Sturm Graz, Young Boys, Red Star Belgrade and Slovan Bratislava remain the only teams without a win, and the Austrian team are the only one who have failed to net even once so far.

Italian teams though have done well. Inter beat Arsenal, Atalanta beat Stuttgart, AC Milan stormed back against Real and came away with a famous victory, Juventus drew with Lille and only poor old Bologna let the side down, falling to yet another defeat, this time against Monaco. A victory for Portuguese football, and a statement of intent from their manager, departing soon for English shores,  with Sporting battering Pep's Man City.

Also smaller but to them no less important victories as Shakhtar got their first, beating Young Boys, and Red Bull Salzburg finally bringing some hope to Austrian efforts, having taken their first three points, against Feyenoord, and not just by one fluke goal either. High score of the night was of course Barcelona's 5-2 demolition of Red Star, the second time the Spanish giants have put five past the opposition in this tournament, while the big shock has to be Ruben Amorim's parting gift to his team - and by weird extension, the biggest rivals of the English club - by routing Manchester City four goals to one.

Controversy of the night I think has to be that bizarre penalty awarded against Villa for that crazy handball, while miss of the night must go to Red Bull's extremely poorly-taken penalty against Feyenoord, even if they did win by a comfortable margin. Other stories include AC Milan's comeback against Real, and Celtic's much-needed win at home against Leipzig.

[Trollheart]

Nations' Progress.

I suspect there are going to be some pretty major changes in terms of who's leading, who's winning and who's losing after Matchday 4. One thing I do know is that the English tally is going to look a lot different, and not in a good way.

Austria
Finally Austrians have something to cheer, as Red Bull Salzburg pulled off a surprising win against Feyenoord, and did it in style, beating the Dutch 3-1. Sturm Graz maintain their 100 percent loss record, but it's a start.


Austrian tally (Matchday 4): W1, L1
Austrian tally (so far): W1, L5

Belgium
Belgium took their second win of the competition at our expense, the match decided on that fucking penalty, but they're on the way.


Belgian tally (Matchday 4): W1
Belgian tally (so far): W2, L3

Croatia
Croatia capitalised on the continuing bad form of Slovan Bratislava, hitting them for four and climbing six places up the table.

Croatian tally (Matchday 4): W1
Croatian tally (so far): W2, D1, L1

Czech Republic
The Czechs' poor form continues, with Sparta Prague being beaten 2-1 by Brest, though I suppose at least they scored a goal. That gives them a total of two now.

Czech tally (Matchday 4): L1
Czech tally (so far): W1, D1, L2

England
This is, of course, where we see the serious seismic changes taking place at the top of the league table, as all but one of the English teams suffered their first defeat of the competition. Although Liverpool continued to kick European butt, taking down Bayer Leverkusen 4-0, Arsenal slumped to a 1-0 defeat against Inter, we fell to Club Brugge and Man City? Well, they were hammered into the ground by Sporting. Must still have a headache.


English tally (Matchday 4): W5, L3
English tally (so far): W11, L3, D2

France

Overall French teams are still doing well, with Lille holding Juventus to a 1-1 draw and Brest defeating Sparta Prague, though PSG fell to a comeback from Atletico Madrid, at least leading for, um, four minutes.


French tally (Matchday 4): W1, D1, L1
French tally (so far): W6, D3, L3

Germany
Some wins for German teams but some losses as well. As detailed above, Bayer went down 4-0 to Liverpool while the constantly-losing Leipzig lost again, this time to Celtic. Stuttgart lost also, the only teams to win being Dortmund and Bayern, neither of whom thrashed their opponent, 1-0 each.


German tally (Matchday 4): W2,  L3
German tally (so far): W8, D2, L10[/b]

Italy

Until tonight, no country had, I think, had a perfect record of wins, and Italy are no exception, but they did well tonight, with Juventus only managing a draw against Lille, Bologna as usual losing, this time to Monaco, but all the other three teams winning. AC Milan took down the mighty Real, Inter upset the Gunners by handing them their first defeat of the campaign, and Atalanta beat Stuttgart.

Italian tally (Matchday 4): W3, D1, L1
Italian tally (so far): W9, D5, L6

Monaco

Monaco seem almost unstoppable, with just the one draw marring an otherwise perfect record of wins for the tiny team. Tonight was another, as they handed Bologna their, ah, dinner, taking them for 2-0.


Monaco tally (Matchday 4): W1
Monaco tally (so far): W3, D1

Netherlands

The Netherlands had mixed fortunes tonight. For Feyenoord it must have been particularly galling to have provided rank outsiders Red Bull Salzburg with their first win, while PSV Eindhoven took Girona down for four goals to nil.

Dutch tally (Matchday 4): W1, L1
tally (so far): W3, L3, D2

Portugal

A great and emotional night for Portugal as Sporting bade farewell to their longtime coach, who bowed out with a superb win against Manchester City. Benfica,however, could not get past Bayern.

Portuguese tally (Matchday 4): W1, L1
Portuguese tally (so far): W5, L3, D1

Spain

On their day, Spain can be unplayable, but this is not really turning out to be the case with this competition. Tonight they had successes as Barcelona beat poor Red Star off the pitch, but Real fell to AC Milan, while Girona also lost and Atletico beat PSG.

Spanish tally (Matchday 4): W2, L2
Spanish tally (so far): W8, L8

Switzerland

Young Boys almost - almost! - got their first win but Shakhtar shakhtarred (sorry) their dreams of three points, then took away the single point they could have had, leaving them with nothing to show for all their efforts.

Swiss tally (Matchday 4): L1
Swiss tally (so far): L4

Scotland

A well-needed win for Celtic allowed Scotland to put some polish on a performance that has been looking pretty dusty and stale.

Scottish tally (Matchday 4): W1
Scottish tally (so far): W2, L1, D1

Serbia

Another bad night for the Serbs, as Barcelona took them apart, and did not bother putting them back together again.

Serbian tally (Matchday 3): L1
Serbian tally (so far): L4

Slovakia

Languishing at the foot of the table, Bratislava were again beaten, this time by Dinamo.

Slovakian tally (Matchday 3): L1
Slovakian tally (so far): L4

Ukraine

Shakhtar though finally won their first match, at the expense of a Young Boys team who, for once, seemed to know where the ball was and where to kick it. Unfortunately for them, they only managed to kick it into the Ukrainian net twice less than their opponents.

Ukrainian tally (Matchday 4): W1
Ukrainian tally (so far): W1, L2, D1

So how do the rankings stand now? Let's check it out.


WINS
England (11)
Spain and Italy (9)
Germany [8]
France (6)
Portugal (5)
Monaco and Netherlands (3)
Scotland (2)
Croatia and Belgium (2)
Czech Republic, Austria and Ukraine (1)


LOSSES[
Germany (10)
Spain [8]
Italy (6)
Austria (5)
Ukraine, Serbia, Switzerland and Slovakia (4)
Portugal, France, England, Netherlands and Belgium (3)
Croatia (2)
Scotland, Czech Republic (1)

DRAWS
Italy (6)
France, Netherlands, England and Germany (2)
Ukraine, Scotland, Portugal, Monaco, Czech Republic and Croatia (1)

Perhaps surprisingly, no real change at the top of any of the groups. England, despite three losses, still lead in terms of wins, with 11, Germany still have the highest losses at 10 and Italy are the draw experts, topping the table with 6. The only real change in the wins category is that Germany, Spain and Italy is now Italy, Spain and Austria, with Salzburg having scored their first win, pushing the Germans down into third place. Other that, it's as you were.

Losses sees, as I say, Germany remain at the top with 10, followed in order by Spain, Italy and Austria, the only move of any real significance being the dropping of Belgium to sixth from fifth, due to their win against Villa. Draws has Italy in top place with 6, and everyone else more or less the same.

So really, as I say, not the massive shift I had expected, with England still leading in wins, for now. 

[Trollheart]

[Trollheart]

Tale of the Table

In addition to including it in the table graphic, I've now moved all the pertinent information about the standings here, where I can discuss it separate from the matches. The first, and most obvious point is that there is a new leader on the table, but it's still an English team. Liverpool, the only one of four to win tonight, take top spot from Aston Villa, a move of in fact just one place for them, reflecting their fortunes in the Premier League too. One of the biggest movers is Sporting, who climb 6 place to take second slot vacated by Liverpool as they move into pole position. Monaco and Brest take third and fourth place, moving up one each, and other than that it's quiet at the top, though very much lacking that English flavour the table had at the end of last matchday, with all other teams from England losing.

Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund both almost make it into the top five with their victories tonight, and Atalanta are another big mover, six places from 17 to 9, making it two Italian teams in the top ten, though at the moment only Inter Milan are set to qualify automatically for the Round of 16. Losses are mainly on the part of English teams, obviously, as Villa slide from the top to 8th, Man City from third to tenth, and Arsenal, who weren't doing as well as their other English cousins, drop three from 9 to 12.

In the middle of the table, Celtic are also a big mover from 20 to 15, while both Dinamo Zagreb and Bayern Munich move up 5, to 16th and 17th respectively. A decent enough position for the Croatians, possibly, but nowhere near good enough for the German giants, who overall have underperformed so far in this competition. Nobody would have expected to have seen them in this low position, least of all themselves.

AC Milan move up five to 20 after their victory over Real Madrid, while Club Brugge, Atletico Madrid and PSV all take a four-step leap to 22nd, 23rd and 24th respectively. This still leaves them looking at the Knock-out Play-offs, but has removed them, for now, from elimination out of the tournament.

The teams at the top then, and currently qualifying (though of course this is only half-over, and may change next matchday) are English, Portuguese, French, Spanish, Italian and German, kind of what you would expect, with the exception of Monaco, who currently stand at third. Hoping for qualification through the knock-out play-offs are English, Italian, German, French, Scottish, Croatian, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch and Belgian teams. Slated for elimination at the moment: Ukrainian, Austrian, Czech, Swiss, German, Spanish, Italian, Serbian and Slovakian teams.