There were eight games in the Champions League on Wednesday evening and some big results to boot, Abbeylivenetwork.com reports.
Here is what we made of the events across the grounds in Europe.
The St. James’s fortress
We aren’t the first to mention it, but it needs saying – Newcastle United will be one tough act when they are playing at home.
The Premier League side were drawn into a brutal group with PSG, Milan, and Borussia Dortmund in their return to the competition after a 20-year absence, but it’s been no issue so far.
After picking up a draw at the San Siro last time out, the Magpies followed up with an impressive 4-1 thumping of Ligue 1 giants PSG.
The occasion appeared to be too much for Mbappé and co, as the St. James’s Park crowd swallowed them whole with every passage of play.
While Newcastle don’t have the strongest squad in the competition or even their own group, games played in their north east fortress won’t be easy for any calibre of competition.
Atleti showing old-school resilience
The days of deep runs in the Champions League under Diego Simeone appeared to be in the rearview mirror, but Atlético de Madrid may have put the car in reverse.
With a breakout star in Samuel Lino and the dynamic duo of Antione Griezmann and Álvaro Morata firing on all cylinders, the capital club might just become a force once again.
Coming from behind to down Feyenoord showed us one key trait that Atleti sides have perhaps been missing in recent years – resilience.
Sitting just five points from first in LaLiga with a game in hand, their form is translating to domestic duties as well.
Atleti aren’t being talked about as a contender, where have we heard that before…?
PSG’s European woes remain
When will the duck finally be broken?
PSG continue to fail in Europe when the occasion is big, and they’ve done it once again in Newcastle.
With departure of Lionel Messi and Neymar in the summer, the talk in Paris was it’s about time they built a team, not a collection of superstars.
Well, the transition is yet to pay dividends as Luis Enrique’s men continue to sputter on the continent when their backs are up against the wall.
The 4-1 thrashing at the hands of Eddie Howe’ side was their heaviest group stage defeat in the era of their Qatari owners – QSI.
The Parisians still face road tests in Dortmund and Milan!
Lazio love it late
Last gasp goals appear to be Lazio’s forte these days.
The Rome outfit snatched a point against Atlético de Madrid in round one of Group E play when goalkeeper Ivan Provedel scored with the last touch of the game to spark wild scenes at the Stadio Olimpico.
This week however, Lazio’s clash with Celtic appeared to be fizzling out to a 1-1 draw, but Pedro popped up in the 95th minute to snatch the win and stun Celtic Park.
The late, late show is becoming regularly scheduled programming for Serie A side, can they continue to produce such unrelenting drama?
Man City revert to type
It’s not often that the treble winners lose two games in the bounce, but that’s exactly what Manchester City did heading into Wednesday night’s clash with RB Leipzig.
Pep Guardiola used a whole host of his new signings in the games prior, with Mateo Kovačić, Matheus Nunes, and Jérémy Doku all featuring heavily.
But after suffering two defeats against Newcastle United and Wolves, respectively, Guardiola brought Jack Grealish, Bernardo Silva and Rodri back into the picture, and City looked like themselves once again.
The Blues held RB Leipzig to just one shot on target in the 90 minutes, showing a level control that has been missing in stretches for City this season.
Pep Guardiola’s side have two wins from two to start Goup G action. Could they be on their way to more European glory?
