Champions League action saw Arsenal rebound, Aston Villa keep rolling, and Real Madrid’s magic strike again. In a thrilling rematch of last year’s UEFA Champions League final, reigning champions Real Madrid staged a remarkable comeback at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, overcoming a two-goal deficit to defeat the formidable Borussia Dortmund 5-2 with five unanswered goals in the second half.
Vini Jr. was the standout performer, netting three of Real’s five goals, capping off his impressive hat trick with a dazzling solo effort in stoppage time:
Here are three key insights from the matches.
Aston Villa holds the top spot
Aston Villa is enjoying a dream start to the Champions League season, sitting alone at the top of the table. This remarkable achievement follows a challenging period when the club competed in England’s second-tier Championship division from 2016 to 2019. Under the guidance of Spanish manager Unai Emery, Villa has transformed into a competitive force, awakening the potential of a club often viewed as a sleeping giant.
While the season is still young, Emery’s squad has benefitted from favorable scheduling, playing two of their three matches at home. Their upcoming fixtures, including a challenging away game against Brugge and a home clash with Juventus, will test their resolve. However, after a stunning victory against Bayern Munich on October 2, the claret and blue faithful are optimistic about their team’s prospects.
The U.S. men’s national team star Christian Pulisic continued to impress with a spectacular goal on Tuesday.
Pulisic, leading the scoring charts for AC Milan in Serie A and all competitions this season, achieved his 10th career Champions League goal directly from a corner kick during Milan’s 3-0 win over Club Brugge. The defending from the visitors left much to be desired, and former Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet may feel he should have stopped it. Nevertheless, Pulisic’s goal was crucial, marking a significant turnaround for the seven-time Champions League winners after two opening losses in the 2024-25 campaign.
Before their match against Shakhtar Donetsk in London, Arsenal faced considerable pressure. The Gunners, who finished as Premier League runners-up in the last two seasons, suffered a surprising setback against Bournemouth, heightening expectations for a strong response.
A narrow 1-0 victory, secured by an own goal in the first half, may not have fully alleviated the concerns of die-hard fans, but it did maintain their unbeaten Champions League record, even as it ended their perfect start.
In Turin, Juventus supporters were left without any silver lining as their storied club faced a shocking injury-time defeat to Stuttgart. Substitute El Bilal Touré netted the winner shortly after Juventus was reduced to ten men due to Danilo’s second yellow card.
Finally, in Paris, Paris Saint-Germain and Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven battled to a 1-1 draw at Parc des Princes, a result that likely felt disappointing for the home side. U.S. national team midfielder Malik Tillman started for PSV, while Richie Ledezma came off the bench.
