PARIS: Kylian Mbappe scored two penalties as 10-man Real Madrid came from behind to launch their latest Champions League campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Olympique de Marseille on Tuesday.
The victory meant that 15-time champions Real became the first team in competition history — since the rebranding in the early 1990s — to reach 200 wins. And it gave former Real playing standout Xabi Alonso a victory in his Champions League debut as the club’s coach.
On a dramatic opening night of the league phase, Juventus staged a dramatic rally to snatch a 4-4 draw against Borussia Dortmund and Benfica squandered a two-goal cushion as Qarabag stormed back to claim a stunning 3-2 triumph in Lisbon.
Premier League rivals Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur both made winning starts against Spanish opposition in Athletic Bilbao and Villarreal respectively.
Tottenham were gifted an early lead when Luiz Junior put through his own net in the fourth minute, sealing a 1-0 win over Villarreal, while Arsenal eased past Athletic Bilbao 2-0.
Union Saint-Gilloise marked their first-ever appearance in the competition with an impressive 3-1 win against PSV Eindhoven.
For Real, dubbed the kings of Europe, it was another reminder why — when the pressure mounts — their knack for late comebacks keeps their crown shining.
On Tuesday, they again needed some Champions League magic to turn the game around with 10 men.
In in a compelling encounter at the Santiago Bernabeu, Marseille, winners of the inaugural Champions League in 1993, stunned the home crowd by breaking the deadlock in the 22nd when Mason Greenwood dispossessed Arda Guler to set up Timothy Weah, who fired past Thibaut Courtois.
Real didn’t take long to equalise. Rodrygo was brought down inside the box by Geoffrey Kondogbia and Mbappe converted from the spot to make it 1-1.
Real’s task got tougher when Dani Carvajal — an early replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold, who suffered a hamstring injury just four minutes in — was sent off for headbutting Marseille goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli.
But the home side still snatched all three points thanks to another Mbappe penalty in the 81st after Facundo Medina was harshly penalised for handball. Mbappe now has 50 goals in 64 matches with Real.
“We are happy that he keeps scoring goals and has been feeling more and more comfortable,” Real midfielder Federico Valverde said of the France star. “Our job is to make sure the ball gets to him and that he can have even more scoring opportunities than he is having now.”
Juve against Dortmund in Turin was a repeat of the 1997 final won by the Germans, and the fixture more than lived up to its billing, finishing in a spectacular draw.
Remarkably the first half ended goalless, with the breakthrough coming seven minutes after half-time when Karim Adeyemi put the visitors ahead from a fine low strike.
Kenan Yildiz equalised with a stunning effort high into the top corner just after the hour mark, only for Felix Nmecha to put Dortmund back in front in style.
Dusan Vlahovic made it 2-2, but Yan Couto restored the Bundesliga side’s advantage and they appeared to have sewn up the points when Ramy Bensebaini converted a penalty in the 86th minute.
However, Vlahovic pulled one back in the 94th minute and then crossed for Lloyd Kelly to head home in the sixth minute of stoppage time, rounding off an extraordinary evening.
“We can’t allow ourselves to draw after playing such an awesome game and securing three important points,” Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel said.
There was similar drama in Lisbon, where Benfica seemed to be cruising at home to Qarabag after Enzo Barrenechea and Vangelis Pavlidis scored early goals.
However, Leandro Andrade pulled one back for the club from Azerbaijan before Camilo Duran equalised and Oleksiy Kashchuk turned and fired in from inside the area four minutes from time to make it 3-2.
It is the first time Qarabag have ever won a match in the Champions League proper.
ARSENAL WIN
Arsenal are eager to make a big impression again in Europe’s elite club competition, following their defeat by eventual champions Paris St-Germain in the semi-finals last season.
They got off to an ideal start in the Basque Country, with Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard scoring late goals to settle the game.
The Brazilian had only just come on when he ran through to open the scoring in the 72nd minute at San Mames. Arsenal then went on to seal the victory late on as Trossard — another substitute — scored with the aid of a deflection.
“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 Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta.
Thomas Frank’s Spurs, who qualified for the Champions League after winning last season’s Europa League, edged Villarreal 1-0 in North London.
The match was decided by a farcical early own goal from Villarreal goalkeeper Luiz Junior, who contrived to let Lucas Bergvall’s cross trickle into the net.
The victory maintained Tottenham’s impressive form under new boss Frank.
“It was a very even game that we just edged,” he told broadcaster Amazon Prime.
Union Saint-Gilloise qualified after winning a first Belgian title in 90 years and they enjoyed a dream debut in the competition as they pulled off a shock win at PSV.
Promise David opened the scoring with an early penalty and Anouar Ait El Hadj ran half the length of the field to double the lead before Kevin Mac Allister bundled in a late third.
Ruben van Bommel scored a 90th-minute consolation for the hosts.
Published in Dawn, September 18th, 2025