Paris Saint-Germain began their title defense in the UEFA Champions League with a dominant 6-1 victory over Slovan Bratislava on Wednesday at the Parc des Princes. Ferran Torres led the scoring with a hat-trick, while Ousmane Dembele added two goals. Fabian Ruiz also contributed to the comprehensive win. PSG, aiming to become only the fourth club in history to secure three consecutive European Cups, will face Manchester City away and then Barcelona at home in their next group stage matches.
Torres, reflecting on the start, emphasized the need to balance domestic and European focus, noting that PSG had yet to claim a Ligue 1 win this season despite their strong continental showing. The French side quickly took control, with Dembele scoring twice within the first 22 minutes. Torres then extended the lead before halftime by scoring twice, before completing his hat-trick early in the second half. Slovan Bratislava’s Suleiman Camara managed a consolation goal, but Ruiz sealed the emphatic victory for PSG.
At Anfield, Liverpool overcame an early deficit to secure a 2-1 win against Atletico Madrid. Marcos Llorente put Atletico ahead in the 17th minute after a pass from Julian Alvarez, who was starting his first match of the season. Llorente’s goal marked his fifth against Liverpool in only three appearances at Anfield. Liverpool responded just before halftime when Dominik Szoboszlai scored following a backheeled pass from Ronald Araujo. Shortly after the break, Alexis Mac Allister sealed the victory with a powerful strike from outside the box. Liverpool’s new manager, Andoni Iraola, praised the atmosphere and expressed satisfaction with his Champions League coaching debut.
Arsenal secured a narrow 1-0 victory at Napoli’s Stadio Armando Diego Maradona, despite several missed opportunities in the first half. Napoli’s goalkeeper Alex Meret made a key save to deny Mikel Merino, and Piero Hincapie missed a close-range chance early in the second half. The winning goal came with 15 minutes remaining when Martin Odegaard combined with Christos Tzolis before firing a shot past the goalkeeper. Odegaard has now scored several decisive goals early in the season, continuing Arsenal’s positive start.
Barcelona opened their Champions League campaign with a 5-1 victory over Feyenoord in Rotterdam. Raphinha was the standout performer, scoring twice and continuing his impressive scoring run this season. Karim Adeyemi also scored to give Barcelona an early lead, while Lamine Yamal added a free-kick goal. Though Feyenoord’s Sem Steijn pulled a goal back, Gabriel Jesus, who entered as a substitute, headed in his first Barcelona goal. Coach Hansi Flick praised the team’s control and dominance throughout the match as Barcelona seek to end a 12-year wait to win Europe's premier club competition.
Elsewhere, Stuttgart, returning to the Champions League after 34 years, secured a 3-1 home win against Norwegian champions Viking, highlighted by a first-half hat-trick from Ermedin Demirovic. Sporting Lisbon, quarter-finalists last season, rallied from behind to defeat Galatasaray 3-1 in their group opener in Portugal.