José Mourinho marked a memorable reunion with Roma, but Real Madrid ultimately stole the spotlight with three late goals to secure a remarkable 4-3 Champions League victory away from home on Wednesday.
Marten de Roon deservedly put the hosts ahead before Kylian Mbappé equalised on his 100th Champions League appearance, leaving the teams level at half-time. Roma then took control as Donyell Malen scored twice within six minutes early in the second half, seemingly putting the match beyond the 15-time European champions.
Madrid produced a stunning response, however, scoring three times from corner situations in the final six minutes. Carlos Espí, Endrick and former Roma defender Antonio Rüdiger found the net to silence the Stadio Olimpico and complete the turnaround.
“It felt like two separate matches,” Mourinho said. “Roma controlled every aspect in the early stages. At 3-1, most people would have believed the result was already decided.”
Mourinho remains a much-loved figure in Rome after guiding the club to the Conference League trophy and the Europa League final during his two-and-a-half-year spell in charge. Supporters welcomed the Portuguese coach with banners and chants before Roma’s first home Champions League fixture in more than seven years.
Fredrik Sjøvold scored in the 52nd minute to give Bodø/Glimt a 1-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund, further strengthening the Norwegian club’s outstanding home record against leading European opponents.
Bodø outperformed the 2024 Champions League finalists and broke the deadlock through Sjøvold shortly after half-time. Dortmund raised their level during the final 30 minutes but could not equalise, with Felix Nmecha missing a late opportunity.
“We have no grounds for complaint because the defeat was deserved,” Dortmund coach Niko Kovac said. “We lacked the necessary passion, while Bodø showed far more of it. We only responded after they went in front, and by that point it was too late.”
Dortmund now join Manchester City, Inter and Sporting among the prominent teams recently beaten on the artificial surface at Bodø’s Aspmyra Stadium. The Norwegian side’s journey to last season’s round of 16 was built on an impressive record at their 8,200-seat ground, the smallest venue in this year’s tournament.
Ukrainian champions Shakhtar Donetsk began life at their new Champions League base, Stamford Bridge, by recovering from behind to defeat AEK Athens 3-1.
Lovro Majer put the Greek visitors ahead in the 28th minute, but Pedrinho calmly converted a penalty six minutes later to restore parity. With roughly 10 minutes remaining, Vinicius Tobias scored from a narrow angle before substitute Gleiker Mendoza sealed the win with a powerful finish after cutting inside from the left.
The eastern Ukrainian club are playing their European home matches at Chelsea’s stadium this season because the London team are not involved in continental competition.
The United Kingdom has welcomed 265,000 Ukrainians since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, according to Ukraine’s embassy in London. Many members of the expatriate community attended Wednesday’s match, helping lift the crowd to 29,000.
Isco struck the decisive goal, while Abde Ezzalzouli produced one of the week’s finest finishes as Real Betis overcame Porto 3-2 in a heated encounter in Seville.
After the interval, Ezzalzouli curled an effort from the edge of the penalty area into the far top corner. Gabriel Veiga responded with an excellent free-kick, but his celebration sparked a confrontation between the two sets of players that resulted in three bookings.
Porto substitute Samu Aghehowa, a Spain international, scored only two minutes after entering the match. Fellow replacement Cucho Hernández equalised in the 74th minute before Isco converted a late penalty to settle the contest.
Stuttgart maintained their perfect record in this season’s league phase by earning a 3-0 victory over Slovan Bratislava in Slovakia. In an earlier fixture, Anis Hadj Moussa scored twice as Dutch league leaders Feyenoord recovered from a deficit to beat visiting Como 3-2.
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