Late strikes from Cristiano Ronaldo and Alvaro Morata gave Real Madrid a last-gasp 2-1 win over Sporting Lisbon as the European champions came from behind to win the first game of their Champions League defence, yesterday.
Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero scored a hat-trick for coach Pep Guardiola to maintain his 100 per cent record at the club with a commanding 4-0 victory against Borussia Moenchengladbach in their re-arranged Group C opener.
Ronaldo denied his boyhood club a famous win by scoring an equaliser from a free-kick on 89 minutes just when it seemed Real Madrid could, sensationally, lose their opening game in Group F.
Morata then headed home deep in injury time to complete the fight-back.
Brazilian Bruno Cesar had earlier given the visitors a surprise, yet deserved, lead soon after the restart as he pounced on indecision in the Real back line.
Real took their time to respond to going behind with Ronaldo missing a gilt-edged chance to level when he struck the near post from a couple of yards out.
Man. City immediately took control of the game, which was postponed on Tuesday due to heavy rain, and Aguero gave them the lead early on when he lifted a cross from Aleksandar Kolarov high into the Moenchengladbach net.
The Argentina striker doubled the home side’s lead on 28 minutes when he sent Gladbach goalkeeper Yann Sommer the wrong way from the penalty spot after Christoph Kramer had clumsily brought down Ilkay Gundogan, making his debut after David Silva was rested as a precaution.
Aguero completed his hat-trick 13 minutes from time after being set clear by Raheem Sterling and Kelechi Iheanacho made it 4-0 in stoppage time.
A Gonzalo Higuain header that hit the crossbar was the closest Juventus came to breaking the deadlock in their Group H match against Sevilla in Turin.
Sami Khedira, playing his 50th Champions League match, had two chances to put the Italians ahead in the opening quarter of an hour and Paulo Dybala was foiled by keeper Sergio Rico, who time and again kept Sevilla in the match.
Just before the hour was up Higuain headed a Dani Alves cross onto the bar in the clearest chance of the match.
Sergio Escudero had Sevilla’s only effort on target in the first half but it was easily dealt with by Juve keeper Gianluigi Buffon.
Leicester City enjoyed the easiest possible introduction to Champions League football but Monaco stunned Tottenham at Wembley Stadium in front of a record attendance for an English team at home in the competition.
Two Riyad Mahrez goals helped Leicester to brush off the limited Group G challenge of Club Bruges 3-0 at the Jan Breydel stadium.
The win was the Foxes’ first in any European competition for 55 years and last season’s surprise Premier League champions could not have wished for a better start, taking the lead when Marc Albrighton seized on a misplaced header from a long throw to score in the fifth minute.
Bruges were lucky to escape a red card when veteran defender Timmy Simons hauled down Jamie Vardy on the edge of the area. Mahrez rifled a left-foot shot from the resulting free-kick into the top corner on 29 minutes.
Mahrez completed the rout from the penalty spot after Vardy gave the defence the slip and was upended by keeper Ludovic Butelle after the break.
Goals from Bernardo Silva and Thomas Lemar silenced the vast majority of the 85,011 fans at the national stadium – Tottenham’s adopted home for this season’s Champions League – before the hosts responded.
Toby Alderweireld halved the deficit with a header shortly before half-time and Tottenham were much better after the break.
Yet despite plenty of pressure they were unable to find the equaliser as only their second Champions League campaign began in disheartening fashion.
Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund achieved their biggest European win, hammering Polish champions Legia Warsaw 6-0 away from home to get off to the perfect start in Group F.
Mario Goetze led Borussia Dortmund’s rout, opening the scoring and also assisting on two goals on a miserable night for the Poles that was marred by crowd trouble with home fans involved in fighting.