It was the Erling Haaland show in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday even on a night when Paris Saint-Germain superstars Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar all scored in a comeback victory.
Manchester City also trailed deep into the game at home against Haaland’s former club Borussia Dortmund in a fascinating quick reunion for the prolific Norway prodigy.
The stage was set for Haaland to seal a 2-1 win after teammate John Stones leveled the game scoring with a stunning shot in the 80th minute.
Photo: Reuters
Haaland rose to his challenge in the 84th minute when he met a high cross with a twisting leap and acrobatic volley to send goalward a ball that seemed to have passed him.
It was a 26th goal in just 21 Champions League games for Haaland, who has scored for City in six straight games and has a rate of better than a goal per game this season.
City’s late win restored some order on an evening when more upset results beckoned in a competition that has been more unpredictable this season.
Midway through the second half across Europe, City and Juventus were losing at home, Real Madrid were being held goalless at home and PSG were level in Israel after trailing.
Messi had tied the game for PSG before halftime against Maccabi Haifa, but it took until the 69th minute for Mbappe to seize the lead and Neymar sealed a 3-1 victory in the 88th minute.
Madrid had to wait until the 80th minute to break through in a 2-0 win against RB Leipzig. Fede Valverde’s opening goal was followed by Marco Asensio’s sweeping shot in stoppage-time.
However, Juventus did not find the late goals they needed against SL Benfica and fell to a second straight 2-1 loss after defeat in Paris last week.
Wasting a fourth-minute lead earned by Arkadiusz Milik, Juventus were beaten by a Joao Mario penalty for Benfica before halftime and a David Neres strike in the 55th minute.
Neres’ former club Shakhtar Donetsk continued their unbeaten run this season drawing 1-1 with Celtic, who dominated much of the play.
Ukraine-based Shakhtar might have a star playmaker in Mykhaylo Mudryk, who scored with a powerful left-footed shot for the second straight game. Shakhtar hosted the game at Legia Warsaw’s stadium in Poland for security reasons.
Chelsea manager Graham Potter’s first game in charge of the team was a 1-1 draw at home to Salzburg.
AC Milan eased to a 3-1 win over Dinamo Zagreb as Rafael Leao starred and French veteran Olivier Giroud opened the scoring with a penalty in the 45th minute.
Copenhagen and Sevilla drew 0-0 in Denmark and are both still without a goal in Group G.
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