Wednesday's Champions League action featured two blowouts, a surprisingly impotent Barcelona attack and a last-minute winner in the day's biggest matchup. Here's a recap off all the results with the first round of group stage play now complete.
Champions League scores: PSG lets points slip away against Ajax, Porto and Roma get big wins
Porto and Roma picked up landslide victories, while Paris Saint-Germain squandered points late against Ajax.
Group E
AS Roma 5-1 CSKA Moscow - Full match report
It was always assumed that CSKA Moscow would have a time time of it in Rome, but no one expected them to get crushed, 5-1. Roma scored four times in the first half, including a brace from Gervinho. The Italian side put both Bayern Munich and Manchester City on notice that Group E might not be a two-team race.
Bayern Munich 1-0 Manchester City - Full match report
Bayern and Manchester City looked to be on their way to a scoreless draw despite both teams having chances and legitimate penalty shouts. The Germans claimed all three points in the 90th minute when Jérôme Boateng took advantage of City's failure to clear the ball from danger, and beat Joe Hart with a rising shot inside the far post.
Group F
Ajax 1-1 Paris Saint-Germain
PSG’s poor away form continued on Wendesday when the Parisians gave up a late goal against Ajax and were forced to settle for a draw. Edinson Cavani put PSG ahead in the 14th minute, cleaning up a rebound from a Zlatan Ibrahimovic shot. The lead held until the 74th minute when Lasse Schöne took advantage of some poor goalkeeping by Salvatore Sirigu to grab a point for the Dutch side.
Barcelona 1-0 APOEL - Full match report
Barcelona were dominant, but not particularly clinical -- they defeated Cypriot side APOEL Nicosia by a rather surprising 1-0 scoreline. Gerard Piqué scored the lone goal in the 40th minute with a header off a Lionel Messi free kick, but APOEL's goalkeeper Urko Pardo -- who came up through Barca's La Masia -- had an excellent game, making several tough saves to keep things close.
Group G
Cesc Fábregas put the Blues ahead in the 11th minute but after Jose Mourinho's side wasted chance after chance, Schalke finally made them pay in the 62nd minute. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar got in behind the Chelsea defense on the break, cut inside from the left wing and sent a shot against his body that went through traffic and past Thibaut Courtois. It's the first time Schalke scored a goal against Chelsea in five Champions League matches, and it earned them a important point.
NK Maribor 1-1 Sporting Lisbon
Nani’s wicked strike in the 81st minute looked to have Sporting on their way to three points, but Luka Zahovič grabbed a deserved point for Maribor in stoppage time. With Chelsea and Schalke also drawing, it’s not the worst result for Sporting, but they’ll be disappointed at failing to get a leg up in the race for the knockout round.
Group H
Athletic Bilbao 0-0 Shakhtar Donetsk
Athletic Club’s return to to the group stages of the European Cup competition ended with a rather quiet scoreless draw against Shakhtar Donetsk. While dropping points at home will be disappointing for Bilbao, it’s a solid result against a talented Ukrainian side.
FC Porto 6-0 BATE Borisov
Yacine Brahimi’s hat trick powered FC Porto over BATE Borisov, 6-0, in Portugal. Brahimi put Porto ahead in the fifth minute and doubled his side’s lead in the 32nd minute, with Jackson Martiínez adding a third just five minutes later. Brahimi completed his hat trick in the second half as Porto cruised to an convincing victory.
See More:
