The second night of the new Champions League season was not as chaotic as the first, but there was still plenty of talking points.
Here are the best of them.
Inter show their class against City
Only one visiting side in the previous 41 Champions League games at the Etihad Stadium had come away with a clean sheet, but that’s exactly what Inter did tonight.
The Serie A champions defended impressively throughout, restricting Erling Haaland to just one real chance, and seemed mostly comfortable in doing so.
That isn’t to say the three-time European Cup winners didn’t have chances of their own. Both in general play and in some devastating counter-attacks, Inter carved out some great openings. Marcus Thuram and Matteo Darmian really should have done better when in sight of the goal.
Simone Inzaghi made a bold call with his selection, dropping captain Lautoro Martínez to the bench, but it worked a treat, with Nicolò Barella, in particular, relishing the opportunity to test himself against Rodri and company.
Inter’s performance, as well as the result, shouldn’t have come as a huge surprise, and likely did not to Pep Guardiola, given how close they ran City in the 2023 final.
Based on tonight’s showing, they are very much a contender again, and certainly the best Italy has to offer.
Celtic in absolute paradise
Celtic Park is commonly known as Paradise, and tonight it more than lived up to the billing as the Hoops had a European night to rival any in their recent history.
Their 5-1 win over Slovan Bratislava was both their biggest win and first-ever opening day victory in the Champions League era (post-1992).
Liam Scales got the Scottish champions off to a dream start, powering a header home after 17 minutes, but it was after the break that they ran riot, giving their fans (including Rod Stewart) a rare mostly stress-free European night.
In the build up to the game, Brendan Rodgers, who tonight won just his fourth game of 25 in the competition, said this was the most ready he felt to take a true crack in Europe with the club, and judging on tonight, he is not wrong.
There will be tougher tests to come, but with a relatively kind draw and Arne Engels and Kyogo looking at home at this level, this could be a season to remember for the 1967 winners.
Ireland’s 13-year wait is over
It was a night of history all around in Glasgow, with Ireland finally ending their 13-year wait for a Champions League goal.
Not since Darron Gibson shot past Manuel Neuer (then of Schalke) for Manchester United in an April 2011 semi-final had there been a shade of green on a score sheet in Europe’s top competition.
It was, and is, a damning indictment of the downturn in the nation’s fortunes in recent times, but tonight was one to enjoy as two came in one night. Like Dublin buses, you might say.
Scales, as mentioned, got the first for Celtic before Adam Idah fired home the fifth and final goal of the night after coming off the bench.
It was a very tough international break for new manager Heimir Hallgrímsson and everyone connected with the country, and this was a much-needed boost.
Mixed night for the new boys
Bratislava’s debut in the Champions League got off to the worst possible start, but it wasn’t all bad for other newcomers to the competition.
Bologna might have been disappointed not to get their campaign started with a win at home, but Shakhtar Donetsk are never an easy opponent, and the Serie A club are still recovering from the loss of manager Thiago Motta, and key players Joshua Zirkzee and Riccardo Calafiori. A draw is something to build on.
Girona came minutes away from getting a point off their own away to PSG, but were left ruing Paulo Gazzaniga’s howler that gifted the Ligue 1 champions the win.
The former Spurs keeper had been brilliant before that, as had most of his teammates, who barely had a chance of their own but defended incredibly, which should give them heart for the rest of the “league phase.”
Tomorrow sees Brest make their bow. How will they fare?
Could the new model work?
The first night of the Champions League didn’t feel like anything different, with no shock results and a feeling of inevitability throughout the night’s proceedings.
Tonight was an improvement, with no results even close to Bayern Munich’s 9-2 evisceration of Dinamo Zagreb, and some feel-good stories.
There was Celtic’s win, albeit against a newcomer, and Sparta Prague’s surprise 3-0 victory over a somewhat fancied RB Salzburg, now coached by Jürgen Klopp’s former assistant, Pep Lijnders.
It was the Czech side’s first Champions League game in 19 years, and means they may now have a chance at making the knockout round play-offs at the very least, which is better than they had it before.
Tomorrow night completes the first round of the new season, could it give us a few more positive signs from this new model?
