Real Madrid reach 200 Champions League wins as Kylian Mbappe scores twice against Marseille

Real Madrid opened their Champions League campaign with a narrow 2-1 win over Marseille at the Santiago Bernabeu, despite playing the closing stages with 10 men. Marseille stunned the home crowd when Timothy Weah put them ahead midway through the first half. Real equalised before the interval when Mbappe converted a penalty after Rodrygo was fouled in the box.

The home side faced further trouble in the second half. Trent Alexander-Arnold was sidelined with an injury, and Dani Carvajal was sent off following a VAR review for a headbutt on Marseille goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli.

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Even with ten men, Real Madrid held on thanks to another Mbappe penalty, after Facundo Medina was penalised for handball. Mbappe, who reached 50 goals for the club, said, “For me it’s a penalty, but I understand there are people who don’t. We’re all lost with this rule.”

Arsenal followed with a strong 2-0 away win against Athletic Bilbao. Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard, both substitutes, scored late in the game. Martinelli ran through to open the scoring in the 72nd minute, and Trossard sealed the victory with a deflected strike.

“We started to grow throughout the game. In the second half, we were more fluent, dominant, and the finishers made the impact for us to win the game,” said coach Mikel Arteta. This was an ideal start for Arsenal, who lost to eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain in last season’s semi-finals.

Tottenham Hotspur edged Villarreal 1-0 in North London, with the match decided by a farcical own goal from Villarreal goalkeeper Luiz Junior. Lucas Bergvall’s cross trickled into the net, giving Spurs the win. “It was a very even game that we just edged,” said manager Thomas Frank, as Tottenham continued their strong form under new leadership.

Juventus and Borussia Dortmund delivered one of the most thrilling games of the night, finishing 4-4 in Turin. After a goalless first half, Karim Adeyemi put Dortmund ahead, but Kenan Yildiz equalised soon after. The lead changed hands multiple times, with Felix Nmecha, Dusan Vlahovic, Yan Couto, Ramy Bensebaini, and late goals from Vlahovic and Lloyd Kelly making it a rollercoaster of a match.

In Lisbon, Benfica seemed to be cruising against Qarabag, leading 2-0 early through Enzo Barrenechea and Vangelis Pavlidis. But Qarabag fought back with Leandro Andrade, Camilo Duran, and Oleksiy Kashchuk scoring to win 3-2 — their first-ever victory in the Champions League proper.

Union Saint-Gilloise also made history with a 3-1 win at PSV Eindhoven. Promise David, Anouar Ait El Hadj, and Kevin Mac Allister scored for the Belgian side, while Ruben van Bommel pulled one back for PSV.

The opening night of the Champions League combined drama, historic wins, and late drama, setting up a thrilling group stage across Europe.

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