Here’s what happened on Matchday Three of the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, in case you missed it.
The results
Watch match highlights: Liverpool 0, Real Madrid 3 || Anderlecht 1, Arsenal 2 || Olympiacos 1, Juventus 0 || Galatasaray 0, Borussia Dortmund 4 || AS Monaco 0, Benfica 0 || Bayer Leverkusen 2, Zenit St. Petersburg 0 || Ludogorets 1, Basel 0 || Atletico Madrid 5, Malmo 0
Talking points
Balotelli an easy scapegoat: It’s understandable to be upset with Mario Balotelli if you’re a Liverpool fan. He failed to find the back of the net against the Spanish powerhouse on Wednesday, and has now scored just one goal in 10 games since joining the Reds from AC Milan in the summer.
Super Mario ignited further rage among some Liverpool fans when he swapped shirts with Real Madrid’s Pepe as the walked down the tunnel at halftime. Manager Brendan Rodgers called him out after the game for that, too.
To be sure, the Italian put in another limp performance at Anfield, and was deservedly subbed out after 45 minutes. But Balotelli is the easy scapegoat here. He was hardly the only Liverpool player who was poor on the night. Few, if any of his teammates, wrapped themselves in glory against a Real Madrid side that is on another level. Greater scrutiny, surely, should be spent on the Reds’ horrible defending (especially on set pieces) as the major reason behind the team’s woeful performance.
Off night for Pirlo: At 35, Andrea Pirlo still has lots to give. But Juventus has to do a much better job of managing the midfield maestro’s minutes.
The Italian has only recently returned from a lengthy injury layoff and is still trying to find his legs. Plus, he played 84 minutes on the weekend in a 1-1 draw against Sassuolo. It was a mistake by coach Massimiliano Allegri to start Pirlo in a road game that promised to played out in front of an intimidating Greek crowd and would be too fast for the Italian midfielder.
Whisper it softly, but Pirlo proved to be a liability on the night. He was caught in possession far too often, had little time on the ball and committed a number of turnovers, including a crucial one that led to Olympiacos’s winning goal. Juventus came to life for the first time after Pirlo was subbed out in the 57th minute. Claudio Marchisio’s introduction underlined what Juventus was missing with Pirlo at the helm—speed, strength and quickness of execution.
There’s life in Arsenal, yet: Arsenal sleepwalked its way through Wednesday’s game in Belgium, outplayed and outworked for the majority of the match. Defeat seemed imminent, and then boom—the Gunners struck twice in the final minutes to steal three valuable points out of Anderlecht’s hands.
This wasn’t a vintage performance from Arsene Wenger’s men. And they road their luck a bit—Anderlecht hit the post shortly after Andy Najar gave the Belgian champions a 1-0 lead in the 71st minute. Had Anderlecht scored, that would have been it. But Arsenal kept at it, and made their Belgian hosts pay the price for not putting the game away.
Six points from three games rather flatters Arsenal. But with the Gunners struggling for form in the Premier League, a strong European campaign will offer some hope for the future.
Thursday programming alert: Watch Lille vs Everton on the four main Sportsnet channels at 1:00 pm ET, Young Boys vs. Napoli on Sportsnet World at 1:00 pm ET, Tottenham vs Asteras on the four main Sportsnet channels at 3:00 pm ET, and Celtic vs. Astra on Sportsnet World at 3:00 pm ET. || Watch these five games online at Sportsnet World NOW: Steaua Bucharest vs Rio Ave at 1:00 pm ET, Standard Liege vs Sevilla at 1:00 pm ET, PAOK vs Fiorentina at 1:00 pm ET, Villarreal vs Apollon Limassol at 3:00 pm ET and Inter Milan vs St-Etienne at 3:00 pm ET.
Goal of the day
Save of the day
Alejandro Domínguez delivered a brilliant, curling free kick from 30 yards out that was destined for the top corner in the seventh minute. Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon was equal to the task, though, scampering across his goal-line to track the shot and parry the ball away.
Match of the day
The first half was dull, but Arsenal’s stunning comeback in Belgium over Anderlecht ended up offering plenty of excitement.
Best moment
The crowd at Anfield applauded Cristiano Ronaldo off the field as he was subbed out in the 75th minute.
Stat of the day
Question of the day
[polldaddy poll=8393810]
Best tweet
3 stars
1) Roberto: Olympiacos’ Spanish goalkeeper made a number of highlight reel saves, and kept Juventus at bay with fabulous stops against Alvaro Morata and Carlos Tevez in the final 20 minutes.
2) Karim Benzema: His brace highlighted a devastating 18-minute span when Real Madrid torched Liverpool’s defence for three goals.
3) Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: Scored twice from close range to spot Dortmund a 2-0 lead after 18 minutes.
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