Uefa Champions League

The race for the top 8 spots that will earn automatic qualification into the knockouts has intensified and each point will count from here on.

Mohamed Salah scored a second-half penalty to maintain Liverpool's perfect Champions League record in a 1-0 win over Girona. A sixth straight win kept the Merseyside club at the top of the revamped 36-team league stage five points clear of second place Inter Milan. Girona was 30th with just one win from six games. Salah struck from the spot in the 63rd minute in Spain. It was his 16th goal of the season in 22 appearances overall. Dinamo Zagreb drew 0-0 with Celtic and both teams remain in the playoff positions. Liverpool's outstanding start to the campaign goes on with Arne Slot's team also on top of the Premier League. Former Manchester United midfielder Donny van de Beek handed Salah the chance to fire the visitors ahead with a clumsy tackle from behind on Luis Diaz in the box. Salah stepped up to convert the penalty and Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga went the wrong way. Liverpool's two remaining games are against Lille at home and PSV Eindhoven away in January. U.S. ...

Real Madrid's big stars turned on the style to revive the Spanish giant's faltering Champions League title defense. Galacticos Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham all scored in a thrilling 3-2 win at Italian league leader Atalanta. But Madrid still had to ride its luck as Mateo Retegui fired over from in front of goal in stoppage time when handed a golden chance to level the game. It was only Madrid's third win in the competition's revamped league phase and leaves the 15-time champion in the unseeded playoff positions in 18th place. It's a very important win. Not everyone wins here. We suffered and competed. In the Champions League, you have to suffer, Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. It's still difficult to finish in the top eight, but we have two games left to earn points. Six-time champion Liverpool leads the way after maintaining its perfect record in Europe this season with a 1-0 win against Girona. Like Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain also picked up a much-neede

Bayern Munich is mourning the death of a fan who attended the team's 1-0 win over Benfica in the Champions League. The Bavarian club said on early Thursday morning that it received the news that the fan had died while being transported to the hospital. Bayern fans did not sing or chant during the game on Wednesday out of respect for the person. The atmosphere in Bayern's stadium was noticeably muted some minutes after kickoff when it became apparent there was a medical emergency requiring the attention of paramedics and police officers, The Bayern supporters' group Club Nr 12 said its members would "not be supporting as usual today because of an emergency medical intervention. Life comes before sport. We wish the family and friends lots of strength." The Bayern supporters did not resume chanting after the person was carried out of the block on a stretcher after about half an hour. Jamal Musiala's 67th-minute header - set up by Harry Kane - was enough for Bayern to end its two-game

Manchester City, Monaco, Brest, Bayer Leverkusen, Inter, and Sporting are all tied at 7 points, rounding up the current top 8 spots.

Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta said a 1-0 loss to Inter Milan in the Champions League was "very, very difficult to accept" after two penalty decisions went against his team. The only goal of the game came just before halftime on Wednesday after Inter was awarded a penalty when a free kick into the area skimmed off Mehdi Taremi and onto Mikel Merino's outstretched arm, and Hakan alhanoglu converted from the spot. Merino had a penalty appeal of his own rejected earlier in the match after being checked by the video assistant referee when he appeared to be punched in the head by Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer as they both went for a cross. "Well, I don't understand, it's just a deflection," Arteta said on the penalty that was awarded against Merino. "There is no danger all, you can not react because the ball is very close. But OK, they decide there is a penalty. But then if that's a penalty, the one on Mikel Merino, you know, when he punches in the head, it has to be 1,000% a penalty. And

Aston Villa's winning run in the Champions League ended after a bizarre penalty incident that coach Unai Emery described as the "biggest mistake" he's ever seen in his career. The mental lapse by defender Tyrone Mings, who on Wednesday conceded a spot kick by picking up the ball with his hand after a short goal kick by goalkeeper Emiliano Martnez, gifted Club Brugge a 1-0 win. Villa had won its first three games without conceding a single goal in the club's first appearance in the elite competition since it was the defending champion 41 years ago. "His mistake is completely strange. It's the biggest mistake I witnessed in my career," Emery said. "It has only happened one time in all my life. Today." A similar incident did happen already in the Champions League last season but a penalty kick was not given that time. In the quarterfinals, Arsenal defender Gabriel went unpunished for picking up a short pass from goalkeeper David Raya in the first leg against Bayern Munich. Bayern'

Barcelona showed its attacking prowess yet again in another big Champions League win. The Catalan club routed Red Star Belgrade 5-2 on Wednesday, marking the seventh straight match in all competitions that it as scored at least three goals. Hansi Flick's team has averaged four goals per match in that run of victories. Robert Lewandowski netted twice to extend his scoring streak to 15 goals in his last 10 matches with the Catalan club, while an in-form Raphinha also scored for Barcelona, taking his recent Champions League tally to eight goals in his last six appearances. "We played very well again today," said Lewandowski, who took his tally in the competition to 99 goals. "We had the match under control and got the three points." Barcelona leads the Champions League in goals scored with 15 in four matches. "We knew that Barcelona were in good form before the match, winning the clasico' and scoring a lot of goals," Red Star midfielder Timi Elsnik said. "It was quite a challenge b

Mikel Arteta will be hoping his side shrugs off the disappointing 0-1 Premier League loss to Newcastle and gets back to winning ways against a challenging Inter side away from home.

Both sides will be facing each other for the first time in their history and will look to get a win on the night to start the head to head record in their favour.

Erling Haaland was upstaged by another striker from Scandinavia in the Champions League. While Haaland missed a penalty for Manchester City, Viktor Gyokeres converted two spot kicks as part of his hat trick for Sporting in a 4-1 win for the Portuguese team. Gyokeres, a Sweden international, is one of the hottest strikers in Europe at the moment and now has 21 goals in 17 games for Sporting this season. Haaland is widely regarded as the best striker in the world but he couldn't put away his penalty after a handball. He stepped up and smashed his effort against the crossbar in the 69th. At the other end, Gyokeres converted his in the 48th to make it 2-1 and did so again in the 80th to make it 4-1 to Sporting.

Call him the new Alex Ferguson. Ruben Amorim endeared himself to fans of Manchester United, the team where he'll soon be coach, by leading current club Sporting Lisbon to a 4-1 victory over Manchester City in the Champions League on Tuesday. Ahead of his final home game in charge of Sporting after more than four years, Amorim quipped that United fans will think that the new Alex Ferguson has arrived if he was able to lead Sporting to victory over City one of the favorites for the European title. While that might be too strong after all, Ferguson is regarded as one of soccer's greatest managers after his trophy-laden spell at Old Trafford from 1986-2013 United supporters might be thinking they finally have a coach who can bring the good times back to a club that has lost its way since Ferguson's departure more than a decade ago. Someone who can take on and beat City's esteemed manager Pep Guardiola, too. He's so much better than me at the moment, Amorim said, but I believe a l

There were plenty of jeers at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Before the match, when the Champions League anthem was played. And after the match, when Real Madrid saw its 15-game unbeaten run at home in the Champions League come to an end. Madrid fans still appeared upset by Vincius Jnior not winning the Ballon d'Or ceremony, and also with yet another poor performance by the team. Madrid followed up its 4-0 loss to Barcelona in the Spanish league "clasico" with a 3-1 defeat against AC Milan in the Champions League, and coach Carlo Ancelotti didn't hide his concerns. "We need to be worried, we are not showing the best version of ourselves," Ancelotti said. "We are not compact as a team and we need to change that. We lack order in the team and, as a result, we're conceding too many goals." Madrid, the European powerhouse that has a record 15 Champions League titles, has now conceded seven goals in four matches in the competition, with its other loss coming in a 1-0 defeat at Lille. I

Arne Slot vs. Xabi Alonso had the makings of an epic battle. In the end it was the Liverpool coach who cruised to victory against the man many believed was destined to take over at Anfield this season. A hat trick from Luis Diaz and a goal from Cody Gakpo saw Liverpool beat German champion Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday and further endear Slot to the Merseyside club's fans, who joyously sang his name at the end. People singing for a manager is not that common, at least not in Holland, Slot said. It all seems so easy for the Dutchman, who replaced Jurgen Klopp in the summer and has led Liverpool to the top of the Premier League and now the Champions League after an outstanding start to his reign. That's win number 14 from his 16 games in charge, but this felt particularly symbolic, given his rival in the opposition dugout. Slot seems too level-headed to have concerned himself with the subplot of facing Alonso, who is arguably the most sought-after young co

Xabi Alonso is set to return to his former club as a visiting manager. Alonso was part of the Reds' UCL-winning campaign in 2005.

Ancelotti has won multiple Champions League titles with Real as well but hasn't had the best start to this season, with the new format presenting unique challenges for the 15-time winners.

This season of UCL is sporting a new format with all 36 teams in the same group instead of the conventional eight groups of four teams each

Real Madrid forward Rodrygo is doubtful for Saturday's clasico against Barcelona after leaving Tuesday's Champions League match because of a muscle injury. Rodrygo was substituted by Aurlien Tchouamni in the 85th minute of Madrid's 5-2 come-from-behind victory over Borussia Dortmund at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said it is unlikely Rodrygo will play against Barcelona. The Brazil forward is expected to undergo further tests before Saturday's home game. Madrid trails Barcelona by three points in the Spanish league standings. Rodrygo had ice wrapped around his right leg after leaving the field Tuesday. The injury came just before Rodrygo assisted in Madrid's third goal by Lucas Vzquez, which put the team ahead after a 2-0 deficit in the first half.

Three straight wins, no goals conceded and top of the league on maximum points. Aston Villa's first ever appearance in the Champions League couldn't be going any better. Villa's 2-0 home win over Bologna on Tuesday maintained the 100% start to the English team's first campaign in Europe's top club competition since 1983 when it was called the European Cup, which Villa won in 1982. What we are building here is amazing, said Villa captain John McGinn, one of the scorers against Bologna at a rocking Villa Park. Villa opened with a 3-0 win at Swiss outsider Young Boys and then beat German giant Bayern Munich 1-0 in its first home game of the revamped competition. Halfway through the third round of league games, Villa is in first place and no other team has nine points. We are playing seriously, we are playing focused, responsible and the team is progressing and mature in everything, said Villa manager Unai Emery, who took charge two years ago with the team just above the relegation

Bayern Munich and Manchester City extended their winning starts in the Women's Champions League group stage, while Arsenal and Barcelona rebounded from early-season setbacks with big victories. One day after Arsenal's coach Jonas Eidevall resigned, the team took just one minute to score in a 4-1 win over Norwegian team Vlerenga. United States defender Emily Fox's goal after exactly 60 seconds set Arsenal on its way for interim manager Rene Slegers. Arsenal lost 5-2 in Munich one week ago and Bayern impressed again, winning a rain-soaked game 2-0 at Juventus. The statement win last week was Man City beating Barcelona, but the two-time defending champion was back in dominant form in a 9-0 drubbing of Sweden's Hammarby. Man City rallied from an uneasy spell either side of halftime at St. Plten to win 3-2 in Austria, sealed by an 80th-minute header by Mary Fowler. Arsenal revival Arsenal's start to October had been about as bad as it gets. Winless in two home games in the English Wom