London: A dramatic night of Champions League football delivered upsets, defensive errors, and a standout moment of brilliance from 18-year-old Estevão, as both Manchester City and Barcelona suffered significant defeats in the league phase.
Leverkusen stun Manchester City in Guardiola’s 100th UCL match
In his 100th Champions League game as Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola made 10 changes to his starting XI following the weekend defeat to Newcastle — but the rotation backfired as City fell 2-0 to Bayer Leverkusen.
Alejandro Grimaldo opened the scoring in the 23rd minute with a precise low strike into the far corner, and Patrik Schick doubled the lead in the 54th with a well-placed header. Leverkusen repeatedly exposed City on the counter, leaving the English champions frustrated.
“It feels wonderful and we gave everything till the last second,” Schick told DAZN after the victory.
The loss prevented City from climbing to the top of the Champions League standings.
Estevão steals the show as Chelsea beat 10-man Barcelona
At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea cruised to a 3-0 victory over a faltering Barcelona, moving the London club closer to the top of the league-phase standings.
Barcelona suffered a major setback just before the interval when defender Ronald Araújo was sent off for a second yellow card following a forceful challenge on Marc Cucurella.
Chelsea took the lead through a Jules Koundé own goal in the 27th minute after defensive confusion in the box. The second half belonged to teenage sensation Estevão, who scored a superb solo goal in the 55th minute, holding off two defenders before finishing confidently. Liam Delap sealed the result in the 73rd minute with a close-range strike.
This marked Barcelona’s fourth loss in 10 matches across competitions, increasing pressure on manager Hansi Flick.
Champions League Standings: Tight races and rising pressure
City, Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Inter Milan remain in the top three places heading into Wednesday’s fixtures.
Borussia Dortmund climbed to fourth, while Chelsea moved up to fifth — both now level with City on 10 points.
Barcelona dropped to 15th, and Juventus strengthened their campaign by rising to 21 points after a hard-fought win.
Mourinho earns first UCL win with Benfica
José Mourinho finally claimed his first Champions League victory with Benfica, beating Ajax 2-0 in Amsterdam. Left back Samuel Dahl scored a stunning volley in the sixth minute, and Leandro Barreiro added a late second.
Ajax, in full crisis mode, have now lost all five of their Champions League matches and have won just once in their last 10 games.
Aubameyang leads Marseille comeback
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang struck twice in four minutes to secure Marseille’s 2-1 comeback victory over Newcastle.
Other key results
Dortmund crushed 10-man Villarreal 4-0, with Serhou Guirassy scoring a brace.
Juventus edged Bodo/Glimt 3-2 in the Arctic Circle, thanks to a stoppage-time winner from Jonathan David after the hosts equalised in the 87th minute.
Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise beat injury-hit Galatasaray 1-0, with star striker Victor Osimhen sidelined and 18-year-old Arda Ünyay sent off.
Napoli defeated Qarabag 2-0 as Scott McTominay continued his scoring form; Qarabag’s Kevin Medina was briefly knocked unconscious by a McTominay shot and later substituted.
Athletic Bilbao and Slavia Prague played out a 0-0 draw, leaving both teams outside the qualification spots.
