Como win 9-1 at Lens to equal the Champions League's biggest winning margin; Fenerbahce beat Liverpool 3-2, Valverde and Haaland settle late thrillers
Como won 9-1 in Lens to match the biggest margin in modern Champions League history, while Fenerbahce came from behind to beat Liverpool 3-2 in Istanbul.
At a glance
- Como beat Lens 9-1 in France on Wednesday, November 4, equalling the biggest winning margin in the Champions League since 1992; Anastasios Douvikas scored a hat-trick and 18-year-old Matteo Papaccioli scored on his debut.
- Fenerbahce came from 2-1 down to beat Liverpool 3-2 in Istanbul with goals from Mason Greenwood, Archie Brown and Vedat Muriqi, Liverpool's first defeat of the campaign.
- Federico Valverde's stoppage-time strike gave Real Madrid a 3-2 win at AEK Athens, their fourth win in four games; Erling Haaland's 78th-minute goal won it 3-2 for Manchester City at RB Leipzig.
- Arsenal won 2-1 at Slavia Prague, Porto thrashed Napoli 4-1, Dortmund beat Real Betis 2-1 and Club Brugge won 2-1 at PSV.
Como beat Lens 9-1 in northern France on Wednesday night, November 4, equalling the biggest winning margin the Champions League has seen since it took its current name in 1992. Greek striker Anastasios Douvikas scored a hat-trick, Nico Paz scored one and set up three, and an 18-year-old, Matteo Papaccioli, came off the bench to score on his debut in stoppage time.
On the same night Liverpool lost for the first time in this season's competition, beaten 3-2 by Fenerbahce in Istanbul after leading twice. Real Madrid and Manchester City both needed late goals, from Federico Valverde and Erling Haaland, to win 3-2 away from home.
Nine goals, eight different scorers
Lens were behind after seven minutes, when Douvikas finished the first of his three. He added a second on 32 minutes, Paz made it 3-0 on 40, and the home side never recovered.
The second half was a procession. Lucas Da Cunha, Marc-Oliver Kempf, Douvikas again, Mattia Liberali and Martin Baturina all scored inside 22 minutes. Ruben Aguilar's volley into the far corner gave the home crowd a consolation, before Papaccioli made it nine.
| Minute | Scorer | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Anastasios Douvikas | 0-1 |
| 32 | Anastasios Douvikas | 0-2 |
| 40 | Nico Paz | 0-3 |
| 47 | Lucas Da Cunha | 0-4 |
| 53 | Marc-Oliver Kempf | 0-5 |
| 57 | Anastasios Douvikas | 0-6 |
| 62 | Mattia Liberali | 0-7 |
| 69 | Martin Baturina | 0-8 |
| — | Ruben Aguilar (Lens) | 1-8 |
| 90+1 | Matteo Papaccioli | 1-9 |
An eight-goal margin had been reached only twice before in the modern competition: Liverpool's 8-0 against Besiktas in 2007 and Real Madrid's 8-0 against Malmo in 2015. Como are the first team to do it away from home. It is also the heaviest Champions League defeat suffered by a French club.
The hat-trick took Douvikas to six goals in this season's competition. Cesc Fabregas's side, in their first Champions League season, had already beaten RB Leipzig and Manchester United 4-1 at home. They now have nine points from four games and sit fourth in the 36-team table. Lens have lost three in a row.
Greenwood, Brown and Muriqi turn it round for Fenerbahce
Liverpool had 68% of the ball in Istanbul and led through a first senior goal from 19-year-old Trey Nyoni on 25 minutes. Fenerbahce were level four minutes later, when a Mason Greenwood free kick deflected in off Jeremy Jacquet.
Alexander Isak headed Liverpool back in front from a Cody Gakpo cross midway through the second half. The lead lasted about five minutes. Archie Brown equalised in the 73rd minute, and six minutes later his cross was headed in by Vedat Muriqi for the winner. It was Fenerbahce's first win in the Champions League proper since 2008.
Late winners in Athens and Leipzig
Real Madrid trailed twice at AEK Athens. Aboubakary Koita gave the Greek side a 12th-minute lead and Jude Bellingham levelled on 32 minutes. Stavros Pilios restored AEK's lead on 75 minutes, Kylian Mbappe equalised three minutes later, and in the second minute of stoppage time Valverde drove a right-footed shot from distance past goalkeeper Alberto Brignoli, from a Brahim Diaz pass. Madrid have won all four games.
In Leipzig, Castello Lukeba's own goal on 37 minutes put Manchester City ahead. Ridle Baku equalised early in the second half, Enzo Fernandez made it 2-1 on 58 minutes and Antonio Nusa levelled again. Haaland slid in at the back post on 78 minutes to win it. City had lost their two previous Premier League games, and the win lifted them to seventh.
Wednesday's results
| Home | Score | Away | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lens | 1-9 | Como | Douvikas 3, Paz, Da Cunha, Kempf, Liberali, Baturina, Papaccioli; Aguilar |
| Fenerbahce | 3-2 | Liverpool | Greenwood, Brown, Muriqi; Nyoni, Isak |
| AEK Athens | 2-3 | Real Madrid | Koita, Pilios; Bellingham, Mbappe, Valverde |
| RB Leipzig | 2-3 | Manchester City | Baku, Nusa; Lukeba (og), Enzo Fernandez, Haaland |
| Slavia Prague | 1-2 | Arsenal | Nowak; Madueke, Gyokeres |
| Porto | 4-1 | Napoli | Bednarek, Veiga, Kiwior, Samu (pen); McTominay |
| Borussia Dortmund | 2-1 | Real Betis | Fabio Silva, Karetsas; Ruibal |
| PSV Eindhoven | 1-2 | Club Brugge | — |
Arsenal were 2-0 up at the break in Prague through Noni Madueke, after nine minutes, and Viktor Gyokeres, who finished into the far corner after a one-two with Mikel Merino on 38 minutes. Slavia had 14 shots in the second half and finally scored through Wiktor Nowak in the 90th minute. It was Arsenal's third win in four games.
Napoli's night in Porto got worse as it went on. Jan Bednarek and Jakub Kiwior, both centre-backs, headed in corners, Gabri Veiga scored on the counter and Samu converted a late penalty after Rafa Marin had been sent off. Scott McTominay had equalised just before half-time. Napoli have one win from four games, and the pressure on coach Massimiliano Allegri is growing.
In Dortmund, Fabio Silva scored soon after the restart, Aitor Ruibal levelled for Betis and 18-year-old Konstantinos Karetsas hit the winner five minutes later.
Where the table stands
Paris Saint-Germain lead on 12 points after their 6-0 win at Villarreal on Tuesday, level on points with Real Madrid. Como's nine points put them among the group chasing a top-eight place, which brings direct entry to the last 16; teams finishing ninth to 24th go into a two-legged play-off round.
Liverpool, Napoli and Lens now have little room for error, with four rounds left. The fifth round of the league phase is played later this month. Evening kick-offs are at 9pm Central European Time, which is 1am the next morning in Pakistan and 1:30am in India.
