Barcelona and Arsenal stars lead emphatic wins: Champions League team of the week

Bayern Munich also represented in XI after the victory over Manchester United

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAM OF THE WEEK (3-5-2): GK: Ivan Provedel (Lazio): Union Berlin’s Frederik Ronnow produced the best goalkeeping performance of the round, but Provedel gets the gloves for his stunning late equaliser against Atletico Madrid. The Italian timed his run and struck his header like a clinical striker. EPA

DF: Kieran Trippier (Newcastle United): Handed one of the toughest tasks in the Champions League in containing Rafael Leao and did so admirably as Newcastle marked their return to the tournament with a hard-fought goalless draw at the San Siro. Getty

DF: Strahinja Pavlovic (Salzburg): Salzburg were under severe pressure against Benfica but held firm to claim an impressive 2-0 win. Pavlovic was key to Salzburg’s resistance with a fine display. The 22-year-old Serb is an exciting talent and performances like this demonstrate why he’s so highly regarded. EPA

DF: Sven Botman (Newcastle): The entire Newcastle backline, and goalkeeper Nick Pope, impressed in Milan, with Botman leading his defence superbly. The Netherlands international is quickly establishing himself as an elite centre-back. AP

CM: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid): Silky, smooth, and scoring last-minute winners: all the hallmarks of a Bellingham masterclass. The England midfielder bossed the game against Union Berlin and struck his sixth Madrid goal. In injury time. Again. EPA

CM: Martin Odegaard (Arsenal): The Gunners marked their return to the Champions League with a stylish 4-0 win over PSV Eindhoven, and their captain was the heartbeat of the performance. PSV couldn’t handle Odegaard and the Norwegian capped his display with a well-taken fourth goal. Getty

CM: Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich): The standout star in Bayern Munich’s win over Manchester United, the 4-3 a scoreline flattering the Premier League side. Musiala was a menace whenever he was on the ball, setting up Serge Gnabry for the second goal and generally terrifying the life out of the United defence. Only 20 years old and already one of Europe’s leading players. AP

RW: Leroy Sane (Bayern Munich): Like Bayern teammate Musiala, United could barely lay a glove on Sane, who opened the scoring with some help from Andre Onana’s butterfingers. Could have had a second but his shot cannoned off the post. The German winger was a danger every time he surged forward. PA

LW: Galeno (Porto): A superb showing from the Brazilian winger in Porto’s 3-1 win at Shakhtar Donetsk. Involved in all three goals, scoring the first two and setting up Mehdi Taremi for the third. AP

CF: Joao Felix (Barcelona): The Portuguese forward was immense in the 5-0 rout of Royal Antwerp, scoring twice with classy finishes and providing a sumptuous cross for Robert Lewandowski’s goal. Joao Felix has started life at Barcelona on fire. Getty

CF: Julian Alvarez (Manchester City): Another big performance from the Argentine following his impressive display in the comeback win against West Ham at the weekend. City again found themselves behind, again Alvarez stepped up to take charge, scoring twice to establish the lead on the way to a 3-1 win over Red Star Belgrade. PA

The Uefa Champions League group stage got underway this week and there were several statement wins from traditional heavyweights to lay down some early markers.

The action began on Tuesday evening with an early game at the San Siro, where Newcastle United marked their return to the tournament after a 20-year absence with a gutsy goalless draw against AC Milan. Also with an early kick off, RB Leipzig eased past Young Boys 3-1 in Bern, Switzerland.

Five-time winners Barcelona, aiming to return to the top table after two successive group-stage exits, got their campaign up and running in style, outclassing debutants Royal Antwerp 5-0. Holders Manchester City were also too strong for their opponents but needed a second-half fightback to beat Red Star Belgrade 3-1 at the Etihad.

Paris Saint-Germain were comfortable 2-0 winners over Borussia Dortmund, while Galeno-inspired Porto claimed a 3-1 win at Shakhtar Donetsk, who are playing their home games in Hamburg, Germany.

Celtic endured a miserable evening in the Netherlands, where Feyenoord eased to a 2-0 victory after the Scottish champions were reduced to nine men. The biggest drama of the night took place in Rome as Lazio goalkeeper Ivan Provedel scored a superb last-minute equaliser against Atletico Madrid.

On Wednesday night, Real Madrid made hard work of their 1-0 win over Union Berlin as Jude Bellingham scored yet another injury-time winner, while Galatasaray fought back from two goals down to draw 2-2 with 10-man Copenhagen.

Arsenal returned to the Champions League in fine style with a 4-0 thrashing of PSV Einhodven, Napoli edged out Braga 2-1, Salzburg claimed a 2-0 win at Benfica, and there were 1-1 draws between Real Sociedad and Inter Milan, and Sevilla and Lens.

The blockbuster match of the round took place at the Allianz Arena, where Bayern Munich defeated Manchester United 4-3 in a match the Germans dominated in all but the scoreline.

Assessing the performances of the opening round of fixtures, we have selected our Champions League team of the week in the photo gallery above. To move on to the next photo, click on the arrows or swipe if using a mobile device.