Lionel Messi scored twice as Paris Saint Germain came from a goal down to beat RB Leipzig 3-2. In the other Group A match, Manchester City put five past Club Brugge in a dominant performance.
It took Mauricio Pochettino’s men just nine minutes to go in front against a struggling RB Leipzig. Kylian Mbappe put them in front with a superbly hit shot from just inside the box, following an efficient counter-attack. Two passes were all it took for PSG to break through Leipzig’s lines, who were pulled out of shape when an attack broke down at the other end.
Andre Silva equalized in the 28th minute for Leipzig, turning in an Angelino cross at the back-post. Angelino later supplied the cross from which Nordi Mukiele scored to put the Bundesliga side in front after the interval; a super, lofted ball that the defender smashed into the roof of the net on a volley.
PSG were behind only for ten minutes as in the 67th minute, Lionel Messi scored his second goal in PSG colors to bring the sides level. The Argentine walked the ball into the net after Peter Gulacsi failed to clear it away with his initial save.
Seven minutes later, he put the Parisiens in front from the spot after Mbappe was fouled inside the box. Mbappe later denied the six-time Ballon d’Or winner the chance to complete his hattrick by taking another spot-kick himself, which he fired over the bar. Nonetheless, PSG held on to win the game.
In Brugge, Manchester City put in a dominant performance resulting in five goals for the travelling side. The Citizens broke the home side’s resilience in the 30th minute by taking the lead through full-back Joao Cancelo before Riyad Mahrez put them up by two from the spot close to half-time.
Kyle Walker added a third in the 53rd minute to put the result beyond any doubt – but City weren’t done just yet. Youngster Cole Palmer scored his first Champions League goal in the 67th minute, and Mahrez added a second late on, but only after Hans Vanaken had reduced the deficit by one for Club Brugge.
