Matchday 2 of the UEFA Champions League 2020-21, certainly lived up to its expectation with some high-octane games in the group stages.
Lokomotiv Moscow’s resilience surprised one and all as they stretched Bayern Munich to the limits for the latter’s 1-2 win.
The first half of the game was dominated by the defending champions. In the 17th minute, French right-back Benjamin Pavard served a juicy volley to Leon Goretza, who made no mistake in converting the opportunity.
Dogged defence line of the Russian team denied the Bavarians several opportunities to score in the first half. The home team did well to cope with the Bayern’s marksman Robert Lewandowski, who could not find the net during the game.
The turning point in the game arrived when Ze Luis delivered a super assist to Anton Miranchuk from the periphery of the box. The left-winger finished the job with his wrong-foot to complete the equalizer in the 70th minute.
Fuelled by home support from 5000+ fans, the Russian attack had an opportunity to take the lead moments later. However, Luis missed the far post only by a narrow margin.
In the end, it was a moment of brilliance from Joshua Kimmich in the 78th minute from outside the box, which proved to be the difference between the two sides. Thus, Bayern Munich won their 13th consecutive game in UCL.
In Germany, Real Madrid looked to make amends for their shocking loss against Shakhtar Donetsk. But, Borussia M’gladbach made sure that the Los Blancos were made to sweat hard during the game.
The hosts shocked their visitors from Spain by netting the ball twice in before the first hour of play. Marcus Thuram starred for M’gladbach with his brace in the 33rd and 58th minute.
Late goals from Karim Benzema (87’) and Casemiro (90+3’) salvaged some pride for the ‘White Sharks’. But, Zinedine Zidane’s men had to settle for the undesired result. Inter Milan and Real Madrid are now placed beneath Donetsk Shakhtar and Borussia M’gladbach in Group B.
Elsewhere, Atletico Madrid gained three points from their fixture against RB Salzburg with 3-2 win, powered by a brace from João Félix. Premier League titans Manchester City and Liverpool secured thumping wins over Marseilles and FC Midtjylland respectively. Meanwhile, Atalanta and Ajax had to settle for a 2-2 draw.
Here are the results from Matchday 2:
Lokomotiv Moscow 1 – 2 Bayern Munich
Shakhtar Donetsk 0 – 0 Inter Milan
Marseille 0 – 3 Manchester City
Liverpool 2 – 0 FC Midtjylland
Atletico Madrid 3 – 2 RB Salzburg
Borussia M’gladbach 2 – 2 Real Madrid
Porto 2 – 0 Olympiakos
Atalanta 2 – 2 Ajax
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