Tuesday’s Champions League action delivered and then some, with a series of shock results reverberating across Europe.
Manchester United fans got a glimpse of what the future holds as their new boss secured a huge victory over their bitter rivals, while the continental champions were brought down by their own patch, which gave his iconic coach more than a few headaches to deal with. .
There are more twists and turns in store for Wednesday, but which players stole the show on the first night of Champions League football this week?
Pep Guardiola must have thought that the hype surrounding Ruben Amorim was a lot of malarkey given the start Manchester City done in their confrontation with Portugal.
A Nordic behemoth ended up claiming all the headlines but it was Phil Foden’s industry that initially silenced the Estadio Jose Alvalade crowd.
Last year’s FWA Footballer of the Year cut in possession and headed goalwards, unleashing a raked effort past Franco Israel without giving the keeper a chance to respond.
It all went downhill after that, but Foden can at least hold his head a little higher than most of his teammates.
Things were looking pretty bleak for Celtic after they were thrashed 7-1 by Borussia Dortmund. Few gave them much hope of reaching the last 16, even after winning their first leg 5-1 against Slovan Bratislava.
However, the Scottish giants bounced back with a goalless draw at Atalanta and extended RB Leipzig’s woes on Tuesday, running out comfortable 3-1 winners.
It was two goals from Nicolas Kuhn that turned the game in Celtic’s favour, curling in brilliantly before the home side’s insatiable press allowed the 24-year-old to put them ahead early in the second half party
Mohamed Salah didn’t get all the plaudits Liverpool beat Bayer Leverkusen in the second halfbut it probably wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for the Egyptian’s contributions.
The 32-year-old set up two strikes at Anfield and has now contributed at least one goal in each of his last six starts in all competitions.
The Reds continue to rely on Salah, who is still showing that he remains their team’s best player despite the uncertainty surrounding his contract situation.
Tijjani Reijnders may have licked his lips when it became clear that Real Madrid’s confusing midfield could be exploited during Milan’s victory at the Bernabéu.
The Dutchman’s profile has not stopped rising for a few years, but this Tuesday he gave his most complete performance, running powerfully through the central areas of the home team and scoring his goal, controlling Rafael Leao’s cross and finishing hard.
After a short break in the goal, Luis DÃaz covered the scoreboard with his name Liverpool blew Leverkusen away.
The Colombia international played a central role and could not be contained by the Bundesliga champions, showing great composure to strike first before completing his hat-trick with two composed finishes later.
Another hat trick has kept him out of first place here, but it’s shaping up to be the best season of his career for Diaz.
There was already a lot of excitement surrounding Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres before Tuesday, but his display against city it has only made the spotlight on him shine even brighter.
After missing an early chance, the 26-year-old remained calm and composed as the Premier League champions conceded chance after chance, equalizing before punishing stupid mistakes from the penalty spot.
It may only be November, but Gyokeres already has 23 goals in all competitions. No wonder so many teams are clamoring for his signature.
