The little music of the Champions League is ringing again in the ears of football fans. Eight matches were on the program for this first day of the 2022-2023 group stage. The competition is well underway…
The PSG group: Benfica does the job
While the shock of group H opposed PSG and Juventus for a Parisian victory (2-1), Benfica received Maccabi Haifa. After a dull half-time, the Portuguese quickly made the difference after returning from the locker room with two goals in five minutes from Rafa Silva and Alejandro Grimaldo on a superb shot from twenty meters. Next week, Maccabi host PSG. The task promises to be difficult…
The surprise: Zagreb surprises Chelsea
A small goal from Orsic in the 13th minute was enough. The Chelsea Blues have never been able to catch up on Dinamo Zagreb’s lawn. For his first tenure since his arrival from FC Barcelona, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was not particularly inspired. The Gabonese international was far too altruistic on two clear chances at the start of the match before going out and being replaced by Broja on the hour mark. To be seen again…
The injury: Karim Benzema
In his black jersey, the Real Madrid captain started the match at Celtic Glasgow with a bandage on his right forearm. However, it was his knee that betrayed him. After less than half an hour of play, the striker of the Blues and Merengue, victim of severe pain in his right knee, was forced to leave his teammates. The big favorite for the next Ballon d’Or has given up his place to Eden Hazard and his armband to Luka Modric. Just over two months from the start of the World Cup, let’s hope this isn’t a new glitch for the France team. Carlo Ancelotti, the Madrid coach, spoke about this injury at the microphone of beIN Sports: “I don’t think it’s serious for Benzema. It looks muscular. We have to wait for the exams tomorrow to find out what he has. “The people of Madrid, with Tchouaméni incumbent, perfectly managed this blow to win (3-0) thanks to goals from Vinicius Jr, Modric… and Hazard.
Scorer: Erling Haaland
With two hat-tricks in six Premier League days, Erling Haaland has been panicking since his first appearance in the Manchester City jersey. But the former Dortmund striker came to England above all to help the Citizens establish themselves on the big European stage. Like PSG, Pep Guardiola’s players are still chasing their first continental title. In Seville, the first chance was the right one for the Norwegian, who took advantage of a caviar from De Bruyne to push the ball closely into the back of the Spanish net. And become the fourth player in history to score on his European debut with three different clubs (Salzburg, Dortmund and City). The other three are called Morientes, Saviola and Ibrahimovic… With a small double as a bonus thanks to a new goal from close in the 67th and a big victory (4-0).
The results
Group H:
PSG – Juventus 2-1
Benfica – Haifa 2-0
Group E:
Dinamo Zagreb – Chelsea 1-0
Salzburg – AC Milan 1-1
Group F:
Celtic Glasgow – Real Madrid 0-3
Leipzig – Donetsk 1-4
Group G:
Dortmund – Copenhagen 3-0
Sevilla FC – Manchester City 0-4
