PSG beat Barcelona for winning start to Champions League defence

Holders Paris Saint-Germain travel from down to triumph 2-1 astatine Barcelona successful the league signifier of the Champions League.

Paris St Germain battled backmost from a extremity down to drawback a 2-1 win implicit Barcelona successful a gripping Champions League encounter, with the defending champions overcoming a raft of injuries to unafraid a invaluable triumph distant from home.

Barcelona started good connected Wednesday, and their unit paid disconnected successful the 19th infinitesimal erstwhile Marcus Rashford delivered a precise walk crossed the container to Ferran Torres, who slid successful to bushed the offside trap and slot past PSG goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier.

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PSG, however, responded tenaciously, contempt missing skipper Marquinhos and their starting attacking trio of Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue.

They took power of proceedings and equalised successful the 38th infinitesimal erstwhile Nuno Mendes embarked connected a dazzling tally down the left, beating 3 defenders earlier mounting up 19-year-old Senny Mayulu, who finished clinically into the bottommost corner.

After substitute Lee Kang-in deed the station with a changeable from the borderline of the container successful the 83rd minute, PSG yet scored a deserved victor from a speedy antagonistic successful the 90th, with Achraf Hakimi crossing for substitute Goncalo Ramos to occurrence location from adjacent range.

“Very disappointing feeling astatine the end, erstwhile you concede successful the past infinitesimal of the game, to suffer astatine home, you person to beryllium disappointed,” Barcelona skipper Freddie de Jong told Movistar+.

“They [PSG] were amended successful the last stages, successful the 2nd fractional successful general. We began the crippled better. So it went backmost and forward, but it’s true, they were amended successful the 2nd half.”

Barcelona’s Ferran Torres scores his side’s archetypal extremity against PSG [Albert Gea/Reuters]

Man City and Juventus held but Arsenal and Newcastle win

Manchester City had to settee for a 2-2 gully with Monaco aft Eric Dier scored a 90th-minute punishment for the hosts.

Villarreal and Juventus besides ended 2-2 aft Renato Veiga’s precocious equaliser.

Arsenal bushed Olympiakos 2-0, with Gabriel Martinelli netting aft 12 minutes and Bukayo Sako sealing the triumph successful wounded time.

“We privation to beryllium creative, we cognize the prime we person successful the team,” Arsenal skipper Martin Odegaard said.

“Everyone tin spot the prime and extent successful the squad now, it is simply a feeling from each azygous subordinate connected the transportation that you privation to support your place.”

On Arsenal finishing 2nd successful the English Premier League for 3 consecutive seasons and being knocked retired of the Champions League successful the semifinals past year, Odegaard added: “We person utilized everything that happened to america successful a bully mode and person besides brought a fewer caller players successful – hopefully this is going to beryllium our year.”

Nick Woltemade is doing his champion to marque Newcastle fans hide astir Alexander Isak.

The club-record $93m signing scored his 3rd extremity successful 4 starts for Newcastle to acceptable up the 4-0 rout of Union Saint-Gilloise.

The German planetary was signed to capable the sizable void near by Isak’s contentious determination to Liverpool. And helium has made an instant impact.

His 17th-minute extremity astatine Lotto Park mightiness not person been the prettiest — diverting Sandro Tonali’s goalbound changeable past Kjell Scherpen — but it got Newcastle disconnected to the cleanable start. It besides highlighted his utile knack of being successful the close spot astatine the close time.

Woltemade has present scored successful back-to-back games aft his extremity against Arsenal connected Sunday. He inactive has immoderate mode to spell to beryllium helium tin regenerate Isak, who scored 54 goals successful 78 Premier League starts for Newcastle, but the aboriginal signs are promising aft his determination from Stuttgart.

Anthony Gordon struck doubly from the punishment spot — scoring either broadside of halftime to enactment Newcastle successful control, and substitute Harvey Barnes added a fourth.

Qarabag maintained its 100 percent commencement to the Champions League with a 2-0 triumph implicit Copenhagen. Abdellah Zoubir and Emmanuel Addai were connected people for the Azerbaijani team.