Aston Villa managed a massive upset of German power Bayern Munich ... again.
Forty-two years after beating Bayern Munich in the European Cup final, Aston Villa emerged with a 1–0 victory in the group stage of the Champions League on Wednesday.
After a tight match where neither team could create many scoring chances, Aston Villa’s Jhon Durán finally broke through in the 79th minute when his left-footed shot from just outside the penalty area found the bottom left corner of the goal.
It was the first time Bayern Munich (1–0–1) lost a group-stage game since 2017.
Aston Villa (2–0–0) and Bayern Munich met for just the second time in club history. The inaugural meeting between the two sides was historic as Aston Villa won its only European Cup final with a 1–0 win over the legendary German side in 1982.
This time, Aston Villa was the better side again and won despite being outshot 13–5.
The English club also did a solid job containing Bayern Munich’s English striker Harry Kane, who had four goals in the club’s opening 9–2 win against Dinamo Zagreb.
In another major upset, French side Lille (1–0–1) beat defending champion Real Madrid 1–0, snapping the Spanish side’s 36-game unbeaten streak across all competitions.
Jonathan David scored the game’s only goal in added time in the first half. Lille then defended well throughout the second half, containing an explosive attack from Real Madrid (1–0–1) led by French star Kylian Mbappé, who came on as a substitute in the 9th minute after dealing with a hamstring injury.
Other Games:
Liverpool 2, Bologna 0:
Liverpool (2–0–0) was outplayed throughout parts of the game but still emerged with the victory. Alexis Mac Allister gave the English side the lead in just the 11th minute, but Bologna (0–1–1) settled down and created several solid chances. As the Italian side pushed forward to find the equalizer, Liverpool took advantage with its counter attack, and Mohamed Salah added an insurance goal in the 75th minute. Bologna forward Thijs Dallinga appeared to score an early goal, but it was disallowed for offsides.Juventus 3, RB Leipzig 2:
The Series A power had come back against Leipzig (0–0–2), who got a pair of goals from Benjamin Sesko. Juventus (2–0–0) was shorthanded after Michele Di Gregorio was shown a red card in the 59th minute for a handball. However, Juventus rallied behind two goals by Dusan Vlahovic in the 50th and 68th minute. Francisco Conceição scored the winner in the 82nd minute.Atalanta 3, Shakhtar Donetsk 0:
The Series A squad evened its record in the Champions League by taking control of the game early and cruising to the victory. Atalanta led 2–0 at halftime on goals by Berat Djimsiti and Ademola Lookman just over 20 minutes apart. Atalanta (1–1–0) put the game away with a goal by Raoul Bellanova three minutes into the second half off a pass by Lookman, and Shakhtar Donet (0–1–1) never recovered.Feyenoord 3, Girona 2:
Luck was on Feyenoord’s side as they were helped by a pair of own goals by Girona (0–0–2). David López scored Girona’s first-ever Champions League goal and provided an early lead in the 19th minute. However, Feyenoord (1–0–1) stormed back and an own goal by Yangel Herrera tied the game in the 23rd minute. Antoni Milambo provided the Dutch squad with the lead with a shot from the top of the penalty area. After Donny van de Beek tied the game again in the 79th minute, an own goal by his teammate Ladislav Krejcí six minutes later was the winner for Feyenoord. Both teams missed penalty kicks.Benfica 4, Atlético Madrid 0:
The Portuguese power scored early and often against its Spanish opponent. Benfica (2–0–0) benefitted from four scorers—Kerem Aktürkoglu, Ángel Di María, Alexander Bah, and Orkun Kökçü. Atlético Madrid (1–0–1) did not manage a shot on goal.Dinamo Zagreb 2, Monaco 2:
Monaco (1–1–0) had a stunning comeback to earn the draw. Dinamo Zagreb (0–1–1) led 2–0 on a penalty by Petar Sucic in extra time in the first half, and Martin Baturina added a second goal in the 66th minute. Monaco rallied late and tied the game on goals by Mohammed Salisu in the 74th minute and a penalty kick by Denis Zakaria in the 89th minute.Club Brugge 1, Sturm Graz 0:
Christos Tzolis scored on a right-footed shot from the left side of the box in the 23rd minute. Sturm Graz (0–0–2) was given five yellow cards and did not find a way to solve the defense of Club Brugge (1–0–1).
