Sports

Champions League: Lille beat Real Madrid as Aston Villa stun Bayern

Real Madrid suffered a shock 1-0 defeat to Lille in the Champions League on Wednesday, while Aston Villa defeated Bayern Munich 1-0 at Villa Park, in a repeat of the 1982 European Cup final.

Liverpool, on the other hand, continued their flying start under new boss Arne Slot with a 2-0 victory at home to Bologna to secure a second successive win over Italian opposition this season.

Kylian Mbappe made his return from injury for Madrid in France as a substitute but he was upstaged by Lille striker Jonathan David, whose penalty condemned Carlo Ancelotti’s side to a first loss in all competitions since January – a run spanning 36 matches.

Lille goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier produced a string of late saves as the French club clung on for a famous win over the record 15-time European champions.

“It hasn’t been a very good night for us, we shouldn’t look for excuses,” Ancelotti said after the game.

Villa also enjoyed a night to remember as a brilliant goal from in-form Colombian forward Jhon Duran lifted the hosts past Bayern.

Duran’s majestic lob in the 79th minute caught Manuel Neuer well out of position and earned Villa their second win in a row in the club’s first appearance in Europe’s top competition in 41 years.

Harry Kane almost snatched a last-gasp equaliser but Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez pulled off a superb stop to deny the England captain.

At Anfield, Alexis Mac Allister prodded in from close range after meeting Mohamed Salah’s cross to give Liverpool an early lead.

Champions League: Arsenal beat PSG as Dortmund whip Celtic 7-1

Dan Ndoye hit the post for Champions League debutants Bologna, but Salah made the game safe with a terrific curling effort in the final quarter of an hour.

Slot is the first Liverpool manager to win eight of his opening nine matches, surpassing the likes of Jurgen Klopp, Kenny Dalglish, Bill Shankly, and Bob Paisley.

Juventus also won 3-2 in a thrilling encounter against RB Leipzig in Germany despite having goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio sent off for handling outside his area, while Atletico Madrid fell to a humiliating 4-0 loss at Benfica.

Monaco rallied from two goals down on a sodden pitch to salvage a 2-2 draw away to Dinamo Zagreb.

Champions League newcomers Girona slid to a second straight defeat after scoring two own goals in a 3-2 home loss to Feyenoord.

Atalanta strolled to a 3-0 win over Shakhtar Donetsk in Gelsenkirchen with goals from Berat Djimsiti, Ademola Lookman, and Raoul Bellanova.

Club Brugge picked up their first points courtesy of Christos Tzolis’ goal in a 1-0 win at Sturm Graz.

The Star

Segun Ojo

Recent Posts

Again, stock market investors lose N878bn amid sell-offs

The Nigerian stock market extended its losing streak on Thursday, July 2, 2026, as investors…

3 minutes ago

Tinubu teases wife with ‘Iya Alakara’ amid kuli kuli, akara empowerment remarks

President Bola Tinubu on Thursday drew laughter at the Presidential Press Corps Dinner in Abuja…

5 minutes ago

Portugal survive drama against Croatia to reach World Cup last 16

Portugal reached the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 after defeating Croatia 2-1 in a…

6 minutes ago

Why we don’t cut petrol prices in line with global oil price drop — Dangote refinery

Dangote Petroleum Refinery has defended its petroleum product pricing strategy, insisting that recent reductions in…

9 minutes ago

How PFIPC recruitment waiver raises fresh questions for ‘non-existent’ agency

A fresh dimension has emerged in the raging controversy over the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion…

16 minutes ago

African startup funding rebounds to $3.9bn

African startups secured $3.9 billion across 506 deals in 2025, marking a strong recovery in…

17 minutes ago

This website uses cookies.