Real Madrid began their Champions League campaign with a narrow victory over Inter Milan on Tuesday, while Erling Haaland struck twice to give Manchester City a winning start at Porto.
Madrid won 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabéu, with Kylian Mbappé and Federico Valverde scoring in the first half. Inter, though, controlled long spells of the match and came close to forcing an equaliser before the final whistle.
The result also gave José Mourinho a winning return to the competition with Madrid. His first Champions League match back in charge came against Inter, the club he guided to European glory in 2010.
Mbappé opened the scoring after Madrid capitalised on an error in the Inter defence. Valverde then doubled the advantage when he pounced on a mistake by goalkeeper Josep Martínez.
Inter responded after the break. Carlos Augusto pulled one back, setting up a tense final stretch, but Thibaut Courtois made several important saves as Madrid held on.
“It was a tough match with three crucial points,” Mourinho said afterwards. He also praised Courtois, suggesting the goalkeeper deserved recognition for his performance.
Mbappé’s goal also took his Champions League tally to 71, level with Madrid great Raúl in the competition’s scoring records.
Haaland delivers in Porto
In Portugal, Manchester City relied on Haaland’s finishing to beat Porto 2-0 at the Estádio do Dragão.
The Norwegian forward broke the deadlock two minutes after half-time, heading in a cross from Enzo Fernández. He struck again in stoppage time to secure the points.
City dominated possession and registered 10 shots on target, while Porto failed to record one. Yet the visitors had to wait until the second half to turn their control into goals.
The victory was an encouraging start for Enzo Maresca in his first Champions League campaign as City manager.
“We could’ve scored more goals, especially in the first half,” Maresca said. “Overall, I think we deserved to win the game.”
Haaland’s two goals took his Champions League total to 59 in 59 appearances, underlining his extraordinary scoring record in Europe’s premier club competition.
Villa, Dortmund and Betis also win
Aston Villa also began their European campaign with a victory, beating Club Brugge 3-2 in Belgium.
John McGinn, Emiliano Buendia and Nicolas Jackson scored for Villa. The hosts fought back through Hugo Vetlesen and Nicolo Tresoldi, but Unai Emery’s side held on.
Borussia Dortmund defeated Villarreal 3-2, with Serhou Guirassy scoring twice late in the match after the sides had traded goals.
Real Betis produced one of the night’s comebacks, beating Lille 3-2 in France. Marc Bartra scored twice before Troy Parrott completed the turnaround. Lille later finished with 10 men after Ethan Mbappé was sent off.
AEK Athens completed the night’s results with a 1-0 victory over LASK, Razvan Marin providing the decisive free-kick.
For Madrid and City, however, the message from the opening night was clear: the competition has begun, and both European heavyweights already have three points on the board.
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